Tatiana Suarez shined in her return to competition from a 1,258-day layoff on Saturday when she finished Montana De La Rosa at UFC Fight Night 220.
Nearly four years after she last competed, Suarez (9-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) came back to the octagon and got a definitive win when she locked in a guillotine choke on De La Rosa (12-8-1 MMA, 5-4-1 UFC) in the second round of the women’s flyweight bout, which took place at the UFC Apex.
SHE MAKES GOOD ON THE RETURN!!!!
Submission finish for @TatianaUFC
#UFCVegas70 pic.twitter.com/VWRMKcyZvs
— UFC (@ufc) February 26, 2023
After De La Rosa showed some resistance in the opening round, Suarez found her form in the second frame. She took control of the grappling and then found her way into the choke to finish the job.
“I’m so happy,” Suarez said in her post-fight interview with Michael Bisping. “I’ve been dreaming about this for a long time. I wasn’t able to fight, and it’s really hard when you can’t do what you love to do the most. I know what it’s like to lose one dream, and I didn’t want to lose another.”
Suarez competed at 125 pounds for this fight due to all the time off from the octagon, but she made it clear she’s on the way back down to strawweight for the next one, and intends to resume her title run in that weight class.
“I’m coming for the belt,” Suarez said. “115 here I come. Im going to come back down. I’m going to do what I know I can be, and be the world champion.
Welcome back @TatianaUFC
#UFCVegas70 pic.twitter.com/mbyFlbK1JV
— UFC (@ufc) February 26, 2023
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 220 results include:
- Tatiana Suarez def. Montana De La Rosa via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 2:51
- Mike Malott def. Yohan Lainesse via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 1, 4:15
- Trevor Peek def. Erick Gonzalez via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 4:59
- Jasmine Jasudavicius def. Gabriella Fernandes via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
- Jordan Leavitt def. Victor Martinez via knockout (knees, punches) – Round 1, 2:33
- Ode Osbourne def. Charles Johnson via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Joe Solecki def. Carl Deaton via technical submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:55
- Nurullo Aliev def. Rafael Alves via majority decision (29-27, 29-27, 28-28)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 220.