O'Neill Scores Armbar After Knee Gives Out At UFC 331
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Casey O'Neill pulled off a remarkable first-round armbar over Eduarda Moura at UFC 331 on Saturday in Los Angeles despite injuring her knee seconds into the fight.
Moura caught an early kick from O'Neill and dropped her to the canvas, per MMA Fighting. O'Neill revealed afterward that her left knee gave out on that exchange and remained compromised throughout the ground sequence. "I threw a kick and my left knee gave out," she told reporters, according to Sherdog. "So, it was really weird. I don't know if it was like a cramp or something happened."
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How O'Neill Escaped The Anaconda Choke
Moura landed ground strikes from top position and locked in an anaconda choke that appeared close to ending the bout. O'Neill stayed composed and slipped free. She said her left leg was barely functional during the scramble — her toes cramping, her knee unstable. "I was like, 'I'm gonna have to make something happen here,'" she said. "So bided my time, didn't feel like I was in too much trouble at all. And pulled something off."
Moments later O'Neill used her legs to elevate Moura into the air and flowed into the armbar. Moura tapped at 3:22 of the first round. The stoppage completed O'Neill's third straight win and second consecutive finish. She called for a matchup with top-10 flyweight Maycee Barber in her post-fight interview.
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O'Neill had been sidelined nearly two years with a severe right knee injury before returning this past March. Moura dropped to 3-3 in the UFC and has now lost two straight.
Original reporting:
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