Dan Hiergesell is an expert voice who serves as MMAmania.com's weekend editor, covering mixed martial arts (MMA) for more than 15 years, getting featured on programs such as Countdown to UFC and SiriusXM Fight Club, among others.
Fatima Kline turned in the first UFC finish of the new year earlier tonight (Sat., Jan. 11, 2025) at UFC Vegas 101 live on ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, stopping fellow women's strawweight Victoria Dudakova with a brutal second-round TKO (elbows).
This was a weird fight on paper considering both women were coming off the first loss of their professional careers. Fatima's came in a short-notice debut up a weight class so she was looked at as the heavy betting favorite in this "Prelims" opener. Dudakova isn't a complete slouch, but most thought she'd be too one-dimensional to walk away with a win.
Well, the oddsmakers were right. After some decent takedown attempts and brief top control, Dudakova's attacks began to fall short. It allowed Fatima to implement her own offense and start making the Russian pay every time she entered inside. Fatima eventually leaned on her own top game and started to slice Dudakova up with elbows late in the second round. Dudakova was bloodied up and defenseless which forced the referee to step in for the stoppage.
Check out the final moments in the above video player.
Fatima, 24, now has her first official UFC win after competing in her natural weight class. In total, "The Archangel" is now 7-0 in the women's strawweight division and clearly a rising prospect to keep an eye on here in 2025.