Kayla Harrison is bleeding, still dominating Ketlen Vieira

Kayla Harrison tasted her own blood for the first time in her MMA career in the UFC 307 main card opener against Ketlen Vieira.

Harrison (18-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) entered the octagon at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City in her second UFC appearance and dominated Vieira (14-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) as the fight for victory began a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28).

Harrison began the fight patiently, but still controlled the action from the middle. Harrison's first clinch went nowhere, which boded well for Vieira's chances of keeping the fight alive. However, the second attempt to take the fight to the ground was a clean knockdown that resulted in heavy ground and pound attacks with less than a minute left.

The horn sounded to signal the end of the first round as Harrison slammed Vieira to the ground.

The pair fought non-stop for the first half of the second round before Harrison began looking for a takedown. The clinch work against the fence led to some nasty short punches, including a vicious elbow from Vieira that opened a cut and caused swelling.

HEMATOMA ON KAYLA 😳 #UFC307 pic.twitter.com/FAAMWv8hy6

– ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 6, 2024

The action stalled, prompting referee Marc Goddard to separate the two for the final moments of the round.

With the fight potentially tied in round 3, Harrison set the tone with a few aggressive punches. Harrison closed in and took the fight to the ground with a nice bodylock takedown with just under three minutes left and went to work with ground and pound.

Harrison dominated the rest of the fight until the final bell, then helped her opponent to her feet and showed mutual respect.

NEXT COVER PHOTO FOR KAYLA HARRISON 😤 #UFC307 pic.twitter.com/FHQzLr71LB

– ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 6, 2024

“You're the first to make me bleed!” Harrison said to Vieira while hugging himself after Bruce Buffer read the official decision.

During her post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, Harrison didn't mince words when asked about a possible title shot in her next appearance.

“Ladies, enjoy it while you can because the Queen is home and coming for the damn gold!”

Harrison improves to 2-0 in the UFC and is likely next in line to win the women's bantamweight title, which will be on the line later in the co-main event between Raquel Pennington and Julianna Pena.

Current UFC 307 results include:

• Kayla Harrison defeated. Ketlen Vieira by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Joaquin Buckley defeated. Stephen Thompson via Knockout (punches) – Round 3, 2:17
• Iasmin Lucindo defeated. Marina Rodriguez by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Alexander Hernandez defeated. Austin Hubbard via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
• Cesar Almeida defeated. Ihor Potieria by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Ryan Spann defeated. Ovince Saint Preux via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 1:35
• Tecia Pennington defeated. Carla Esparza by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Court McGee defeated. Tim Means via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:19

For more information on the card, check out MMA Junkie's UFC 307 event hub.