Esparza Busted Open In Loss To Kelly

It was a rough night for a couple of UFC fighters who were keeping busy on the jiu-jitsu circuit, courtesy of the Fury Grappling 3 event last Thurs. night (Dec. 30) inside 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Penn., streaming on UFC Fight Pass.

Former UFC strawweight champion Carla Esparza, along with veteran welterweights Donald Cerrone, Neil Magny, and Kevin Holland were all defeated in “The City of Brotherly Love.” In addition, Esparza was busted open and required stitches above her eye.

On the plus side, Sean Brady upset Craig Jones by decision.

“Sorry guys, accidental head butt on a slam led to a cut and a stop in the match. In good spirits!” Esparza wrote on Instagram. “Just gotta get a couple stitches. Thanks so much Fury Grappling for having me, and Danielle Kelly for the match.”

Complete Fury Grappling 3 results below, courtesy MMA Junkie:

Danielle Kelly def. Carla Esparza via injury stoppage (cut) – 4:26 mark
Sean Brady def. Craig Jones via judges decision
Joe Solecki def. Donald Cerrone via submission (rear-naked choke) – 3:17 mark
Clay Guida def. Billy Quarantillo via judges decision
Renato Moicano def. Chase Hooper via judges decision
Nicky Rod def. Steve Mowry via submission (rear-naked choke) – 5:30
Joaquim Silva def. Neil Magny via submission (guillotine choke) – 2:47
Jonathan Piersma def. Philip Rowe via judges decision
Alex Caceres def. Eddy Torres via submission (rear-naked choke) – 2:35
Kody Hamrah def. Kevin Holland via judges decision
Andre Petroski def. Phil Hawes via judges decision
Gillian Robertson def. Chrissy Briggs via judges decision

The injury does not appear serious enough to sideline Esparza, who is expected to rematch Rose Namajunas for the UFC strawweight title at some point in early-to-mid 2022.