MACAU, CHINA – NOVEMBER 23: China’s Yang Xiaonan defeats Brazil’s Tabatha Ricci in a women’s strawweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event on November 23, 2024 at Galaxy Arena in Macau, China hit (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
Brazil’s “Baby Shark” Tabatha Ricci steadily stepped up at UFC Macau on Saturday, taking on Yan Xiaonan in the co-main event.
Xiaonan has a title shot against fellow Chinese star Zhang Weili, and if Rich wins, he could be in contention for the title. Meanwhile, Xiaonan has recovered and is about to start climbing to the top again.
Xiaonan started the fight by controlling the center of the cage and timing her shots. In preparation for this fight, Tabitha Rich was working with her boyfriend Callum Walsh and legendary boxing coach Freddie Roach. Xiaonan had full control of her feet in the first round.
In the second round, Xiaonan started flying his hands and briefly staggered Rich, but Rich was able to get a takedown and clear the cobwebs. Every time Xiaonan sat down to blow, it seemed like she was hurting the “baby shark”. Konami clearly had the upper hand in terms of striking in the second round and was pulling away.
While the third round was underway, Xiaonan teed off and played a little with the food, while Rich was unable to get within range of the attack. The lead was quite large and there was no debate when the scorecards arrived. Xiaonan’s highly polished performance proved that she is one of the top fighters in the UFC women’s strawweight division.
Official result: Yang Xiaonan def. Tabatha Rich unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
