SUMMARY
- Manon Fiorot convincingly defeated Erin Blanchfield at UFC Atlantic City via unanimous decision.
- Fans, however, spotted Fiorot tapping out to Blanchfield's guillotine attempt in the first round.
Manon Fiorot comfortably defeated Erin Blanchfield at UFC Atlantic City via unanimous decision. The tall Frenchwoman was too much to handle for Blanchfield who clearly lost out due to reach and power.
The flyweight bout between Fiorot and Blanchfield was the headliner for the UFC Atlantic City event. Before their fight, the event was surprisingly riddled with eye pokes. However, the main event did not seem to incite controversy. The fight and its result were as clear as day.
SHE GETS THE UNANIMOUS DECISION 🙌
After 5 hard fought rounds, @ManonFiorot_MMA takes the dub! #UFCAtlanticCity pic.twitter.com/gvT6y9IeUJ
— UFC (@ufc) March 31, 2024
From the first round, both women came out moving a lot and attempting strong strikes. Fiorot used her reach advantage and threw a punch whenever Blanchfield moved in. In a rare moment, Blanchfield had Fiorot in a guillotine after she was slammed by the Frenchwoman. However, Fiorot came out of it and stood strong.
‘The Beast’ continued to show her superior physicality with strong strikes on Blanchfield’s head. It was easier for Fiorot to strike Blanchfield on the face because of the height difference. At one point, Blanchfield did not care about getting hit and just went straight in to get her strikes. She succeeded and did get a lot of significant strikes in but they were not enough.
LONGEST ACTIVE UFC WIN STREAKS
13 – Islam Makhachev
10 – Merab Dvalishvili
08 – Movsar Evloev
07 – @ManonFiorot_MMA pic.twitter.com/AEdjQ1yWZa— UFC (@ufc) March 31, 2024
In the fifth round, Blanchfield struck a massive head kick that had Fiorot struggling a bit. That had to be her go-to move to conjure up a win as she was surely losing the decision. However, she could not connect the hit again and lost the fight via unanimous decision (45-50, 45-50, and 45-50).
Fans think Manon Fiorot tapped out in the guillotine
Controversy was somehow ensued by MMA social media in a very non-controversial fight. Many fans claimed to have seen Fiorot tap out while she was in the guillotine in the first round. One fan wrote, “Fiorot TAPPED AND NO ONE SAW IT!!! #UFCAtlanticCity.” Another wrote, “Oh no. Manon Fiorot tapped the thigh of Erin Blanchfield in the first round… The fight should of been over in RD1 #UFCAtlanticCity.”
No clear video footage is available of the exact moment. However, there were many more fans on the ‘Fiorot tapped out’ bandwagon. One fan wrote, “Fiorot looked like she tapped #ufc.” Meanwhile, a few fans asked the burning question, “Did anyone else see Fiorot tap there???” and “Am i tripping or did Fiorot tap? lol.”
The available footage, however, does not clearly prove that Fiorot tapped. There was no appeal by Blanchfield either. The Beast seemed to have come out of the guillotine fairly.
In her post-fight interview, Fiorot has called out for a title shot. She now has the fourth-highest undefeated active win streak in the UFC with seven. She has defeated fighters such as Rose Namajunas, Katlyn Cerminara, and Mayra Bueno Silva on her way to a historic win streak.