UFC debutant Sofia Montenegro was left drenched in blood as her first trip to the Octagon ended in brutal fashion in Paris.
The Argentine strawweight took on fellow newcomer Delphine Benouaich in the opening bout of the UFC Paris prelims at the Accor Arena.
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Both women weighed in at 115lbs ahead of their promotional debuts.
And the pair wasted no time getting stuck into each other, trading shots at a furious pace throughout an action-packed opening round.
French favourite Benouaich pushed forward despite giving up size to Montenegro, throwing combinations and mixing in knees as the home crowd roared her on.
The blood started flowing in the second round, with Benouaich herself initially leaking from the nose as the pair continued to exchange.
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But the fight dramatically swung when Benouaich landed a right hand which dropped Montenegro to the canvas before immediately following her down.
The 31-year-old then rained down punches and vicious elbows from the top, opening Montenegro up and leaving blood smeared across both fighters and the Octagon floor.
Montenegro desperately turned over in an attempt to escape the punishment but that only allowed Benouaich to jump on her back and lock in a rear-naked choke.
The bloodied debutant refused to tap and instead went unconscious, with Benouaich awarded the win by technical submission at 4:22 of the second round.
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Footage of the gruesome aftermath quickly spread on social media, with one stunned fan saying the Octagon “looked like a crime scene.”
Montenegro, 26, had earned her UFC contract despite losing a razor-close split decision to Jeisla Chaves on Dana White’s Contender Series last September.
She had originally been due to make her UFC debut earlier this year before withdrawing during fight week.
Benouaich, meanwhile, entered with a 7-2 record after reaching the strawweight semi-finals of The Ultimate Fighter 34 – and marked her official UFC debut with a bloody statement victory on home soil.