NEWARK, N.J. – After a lackluster first two rounds, Lauren Murphy finished Mara Romero Borella with a brutal knee Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC on ESPN 5 in Newark, N.J.
Take a look inside the fight with Murphy, who picked up her second victory since February 2016.
Result: Lauren Murphy def. Mara Romero Borella via TKO (knee and elbows) – Round 3, 1:46
Updated records: Murphy (11-4 MMA, 3-4 UFC), Borella (12-6 MMA, 2-2 UFC)
Key stat: Murphy has now won two of her past three bouts after losing four of her first five.
Murphy on the fight’s key moment
“Everybody knows I love ground-and-pound. All of my finishes are TKO finishes – I think I have like nine of them now or something like that. I’m just now really learning how to use the power in my hands. I have a lot of power in my punches. … Next, it’s going to be my legs.”
Murphy on getting a TKO win
“I feel like I’m in a dream right now. I visualized this fight a million times. I didn’t know how I was going to win, I just knew I’d win.”
Murphy on what she wants next
“Anyone in the top 10 is a good fight, but I have not fought Alexis Davis or Roxanne Modafferi yet. I really respect them both. They’re ranked above me and are longtime veterans of the sport. I’m a respected veteran of this sport and proved I can finish in the top 10. That’s a big deal, and I’d like to test myself against these women that have been around longer than me. They’re proven, gritty and mean fighters. They’d be tough tests for me.”
To hear more from Murphy, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
