Poatan’s sister loses to 21-year-old prodigy Smilla Sundell on Contender Series
Aline Pereira lost a unanimous decision to Smilla Sundell in the season finale, while Erick Visconde, Luis Francischinelli and Douglas da Lapa all won.
Brazil’s Aline Pereira, sister of former UFC champion Alex “Poatan” Pereira, lost a unanimous decision to Sweden’s Smilla Sundell on Tuesday night (Oct. 13) in the season finale of Dana White’s Contender Series in Las Vegas. All three judges scored it 29-28 for the 21-year-old former ONE Championship Muay Thai champion, who controlled most of the fight with relentless pressure and clinch knees. On the same night, three Brazilians won: Erick Visconde, Luis Francischinelli and Douglas da Lapa.
Pressure from the first minute to the last
According to the UFC’s official recap, Sundell took the center of the Octagon right away and chased Pereira, who spent much of the first round moving backward along the fence. The Swede closed the distance, looked for the Thai clinch and landed punches, kicks and knees. Pereira found a counter left hook in the final 30 seconds, but the round belonged to Sundell.
In the second round, Pereira handled the pressure better, stopped backing up and started landing counters and long jabs. Still, Sundell’s speed and variety made the difference, and a series of knees to the body late in the round seemed to hurt the Brazilian.
The surprise came in the third. With Sundell striking from range, Pereira changed levels and took her down, a takedown few people expected. Sundell got back up, went back to striking and punished another takedown attempt with a hard knee to the body. In the final seconds, Pereira loaded up and traded, but it was Sundell who finished moving forward.
Sundell is now 3-0 in MMA after winning her first two fights by TKO. Pereira, 36, had won two in a row and is now 3-3.
The last name helps, but Dana White decides
Pereira had family in her corner in Las Vegas. Before the fight, the UFC posted a photo of her next to Poatan, with a caption saying her brother was ready to see her “put on a show.”
On the Contender Series, a win doesn’t guarantee a contract, and a loss makes the road much harder. Dana White decides who gets signed at the end of each night, based on each fighter’s performance. At the time of publication, the UFC had not yet announced the contracts from the final week. Heading into this episode, 42 fighters had already earned UFC deals this season, according to the UFC.
A good night for Brazil
In the main event, LFA featherweight champion Erick Visconde beat previously unbeaten Dutch fighter Ilias Bulaid (9-0) by unanimous decision, 30-27 on all three cards. The Brazilian took the fight to the mat again and again, took the back, hunted for the rear-naked choke, tried a face crank and locked up an arm-triangle late in the second round, but Bulaid survived. It was the 18th win of Visconde’s career.
Luis Francischinelli, a 6-foot-6 welterweight, started in trouble: Will Rentz took him down twice, and he threatened a heel hook and landed elbows off his back before getting up. Then a counter left dropped the American, and ground strikes ended it by TKO at 2:18 of the first round.
In a clash of unbeaten Brazilian middleweights, Douglas “Robozinho” da Lapa stopped Davi Cabral 19 seconds into the third round, after two wild rounds in which Cabral had dropped him with a hook in the first. In the opener, American Greg Foster beat Jason Asher by unanimous decision.
Contender Series Week 10 results
- Featherweight: Erick Visconde def. Ilias Bulaid by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Women’s bantamweight: Smilla Sundell def. Aline Pereira by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Welterweight: Luis Francischinelli def. Will Rentz by TKO (punches), Round 1, 2:18
- Middleweight: Douglas da Lapa def. Davi Cabral by TKO (punches), Round 3, 0:19
- Lightweight: Greg Foster def. Jason Asher by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Before the fight, VF Comunica broke down Pereira’s and Sundell’s backgrounds and the five Brazilians on the card. Read the full story here.
What do you think: did Aline Pereira show enough to earn a UFC shot despite the loss? Let us know in the comments.
