ALUCE PEREIRA DELIVERS KNOCKOUT OF YEAR CONTENDER AT UFC VEGAS 115

UFC Vegas 115 was another night filled with that trope that a card that seems weak on paper and is filled with a lot of unknown names can be more entertaining than some of the bigger cards the UFC puts on. From Renato Moicano’s submission win over Chris Duncan, to any of the other exciting finishes on the night, to a seemingly soccer-kick KO (that wasn’t a KO), which generated a lot of controversy, UFC Vegas 115 was a fire card.

And yet, one of the bigger highlights from the night came from the undercard. And for the second straight week, a fight on a UFC card has produced a Knockout of the Year contender. Last week, it was Alexa Grasso sending Maycee Barber into oblivion. This week, it was the strength of the hard-hitting Alice Pereira.

First of all, no, Alice Pereira is not related to Alex Pereira. But when you look at what Alice Pereira did on this night, it might be hard for some fans not to draw a connection between the two.

During the UFC Vegas 115 prelims, Alice Pereira squared off with Hailey Cowan. The first round proved well for Pereira, known as “Golden Girl.” Pereira was able to beat her opponent to the (literal) punch, using her quickness and power to batter Cowan during the opening five minutes. Cowan, in fact, was visibly bruised around her face as a result of that frame.

But Cowan is a tough fighter who was not to be deterred. In the second round, Cowan landed a major slam in the center of the Octagon, and it appeared that she was in control of the action. Cowan was unable to do much with her ground game, however, and she didn’t seem to put up much of a fight as Pereira got the action back to the feet.

And then, just as round two was coming to an end, Pereira unleashed a devastating knee that landed directly on Cowan’s face. Cowan dropped in a heap, and the referee quickly stepped in to wave off the fight.

It was definitely a needed performance from Pereira. She dropped her UFC debut to Montse Rendon at Noche UFC 3 in September, a performance that Pereira has openly admitted she’d like to move on from. Well, here, move on is what she did.

Pereira displayed the power that got her attention from the UFC in the first place. And the thing is, even though her name is “Golden Girl,” she isn’t an elderly woman from the classic TV show. Pereira is just 20 years old.

- TOM ALBANO