LAS VEGAS — Venezuelan flyweight Yuneisy Duben stopped Canadian Shannon (MMA Barbie) Clark in vicious fashion Tuesday on Dana White's Contender Series, derailing Clark's hopes of earning a UFC contract while knocking her out cold.
Clark came out swinging, eating blows as she plowed forward and was knocked to the ground with a clubbing right 50 seconds into the first round. And Duben, a heavy underdog, finished the fight 73 seconds into the round with a vicious overhead right to the chin as Clark attempted a low kick.
The hammer-like blow knocked Clark out cold and she toppled backwards — her head bouncing off the canvas. Motionless for a time, she eventually left the cage under her own power.
The Contender Series, held at the UFC’s Apex production facility, offers fighters a chance to impress UFC president White — and possibly earn a UFC deal. Duben both made and left a mark.
"One of the most impressive knockouts I've ever seen … Congratulations, you are in the UFC," White said in announcing Duben's contract.
Duben (6-0-0) went into the fight a plus-800 underdog, meaning a $100 bet would return $800 in profit. Clark was a minus-1350 favourite, meaning you had to wager $1,350 to win $100.
"That's got to be the biggest upset in Contender Series history," said White.
The UFC boss said the 28-year-old Duben almost didn't make it to the fight, saying "she doesn't have a dollar to her name. She's flat broke, she has nothing. She came here and took this opportunity tonight."
"I told myself 'It is my night. The night belongs to me, I'm going to shine,'" Duben said through an interpreter. "And this is what I did. I've always had a dream I'm going to be in the UFC."
The 32-year-old Clark, a mother of two from Lethbridge, Alta., earned the chance to compete for a UFC contract after defeating Brazil's Thaiany Lopes in February to claim the vacant Legacy Fighting Alliance 125-pound title.
"I'm here to show you can follow your dreams, even when you're a mom," Clark (5-1-0) said in a promo for the show.
Canadians who previously earned UFC contracts via the Contender Series include Chad Anheliger, Jasmine Jasudavicius, Mike Malott, Yohan Lainesse and TJ Laramie. Others to have moved on via the feeder series include Serhiy Sidey, who moved to Canada from Ukraine when he was six and now calls Burlington, Ont., home, and Brazilian-born Caio Machado, who now fights out of Vancouver.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 3, 2024.
The Canadian Press
