Fall River native Pennington set to get back into the octagon at UFC Fight Night

A Fall River native is getting back into the octagon after beating a former champion in her last fight.

Strawweight Tecia (Torres) Pennington will take on 11-4 Luana Pinheiro of Brazil at UFC Fight Night on May 17th at UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Pinheiro is hungry for a win after dropping her last few UFC bouts.

Pennington is coming off a victory in October against California’s Carla Esparza (20-7) in UFC 307 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.

Pennington, the odds-on favorite, looked sharp early in the first connecting on a series of shots before eventually being taken down by the former two-time UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion, Esparza. During the takedown, Esparza landed a series of close-range short shots. The first round could have gone either way.

In the second, Pennington began by connecting on a series of leg kicks. With about a minute and a half left in the round, the two exchanged several big shots to the head with Pennington getting the best of Esparza overall.

The third round began much like the second with Pennington continuing with leg kicks to the point Esparza’s leg started to turn purple. Despite being taken down late in the round, Pennington still had the upper hand.

The Tiny Tornado won by unanimous decision taking all three cards 29-28, 29-28, and 30-27. The fight brings her professional MMA record to 14-7.

Esparza retired after the fight which was planned to be her last.