An up-and-coming mixed martial artist, Nadia Kassem, made her UFC debut against a seasoned veteran, Alex Chambers, a woman who just two years ago was her training partner during a road trip to the Australian Institute of Sports.
Both hailed from New South Wales and were making their first trips to the octagon in front of their hometown crowd of Sydney, sharing a back-and-forth fight that saw the young and scrappy Kassem getting the better of her opponent in the exchanges.
The fight started off with Chambers uncharacteristically taking control of the centre of the octagon and trading strikes with Kassem along the fence before attempting to secure a body lock.
Kassem fought her way out, but not for long, with Chambers shooting in on a rather heavy-handed double leg off a slightly overzealous kick from Kassem.
Chambers landed in half guard and began working to advance.
Unfortunately, this gave Kassem the perfect opportunity to attempt an inverted heel hook, which Chambers was eventually able to escape by sliding her knee out of danger after Kassem attempted to swap back to a regular heel hook.
Chambers would then find herself in top position once more, working to advance from half guard until the end of the first round.
The second round would open with some more trading of strikes on the feet, before Chambers would shoot in for another double leg on Kassem, who was unable to sprawl in time and was taken down along the fence.
Unable to keep her opponent’s knees wrapped together, Chambers reluctantly followed Kassem back to her feet, where she would work from the body lock to a standing head and arm choke position.
Chambers had the opportunity to complete a corkscrew takedown, or to reap Kassem’s leg for the takedown, but the brash young fighter was not to be denied, instead escaping the position and landing a vicious body kick as she exited.
The Brazilian Jiu Jitsu purple belt seemed to be fatiguing as the fight continued, but she continued to soldier on, eventually grabbing onto a kick from Kassem and turning it into a single leg takedown. Say what you want about Alex “Astro Girl” Chambers, but the lady can read a kick!
Once again forced to work off her back, Kassem wasted no time in attempting a submission, working first from a crooked guard position to attempt a triangle after Chambers came too far forward in an attempt to pass Kassem’s guard.
While Kassem didn’t exactly reach to break the posture of her opponent, she did do a good job of pulling her back down to the mat with her legs, landing hammerfists constantly before then working for an armbar.
Kassem’s corner screamed for her to pull Chambers’s head down and finish the choke, but she opted to land more punches and elbows before eventually pulling down to attempt to secure the victory. It’s possible that Kassem’s frame, her long legs in particular, were part of the reason this choke was not a success against Chambers. Kassem could have also opted to underhook her opponent’s left side leg in order to stop her from standing up and eventually escaping the position.
Kassem would look to finish once more with the armbar, but Chambers was able to step over her opponent and remove her elbow from some of the danger.
Following Chambers’s movement, Kassem would work to take the back before finishing the round along the cage fence.
The third and final round began with Kassem landing more heavy kicks to the body of Chambers, who was visibly fatigued by this point. That didn’t stop Chambers from shooting in for another takedown, lifting Kassem and throwing her to the mat as if she were a ragdoll.
Chambers began to land strikes to the body and head of Kassem from guard, before almost falling prey once more to the wily and aggressive guard of Kassm, who continually looked to lock an armbar and triangle. Chambers wisely stood back to her feet, landing kicks to Kassem before diving back in and attempting a guard pass.
A leg entanglement opportunity would see Kassem trying to finish via heel hook once more.
Kassem’s failure to isolate and control the leg of her opponent would see Chambers escaping the heel hook attempt once more, before having her back taken by the more dynamic junior.
Kassem would show a creative flourish when she jumped into a reverse triangle attempt on Chambers, drawing applause from the crowd before giving up the position to instead try and land some shots from the back. Chambers would use this opportunity to escape to her feet.
Chambers would try to grind Kassem along the fence before being caught with a huge head kick that sent the crowd wild and Chambers wobbling but seemingly unphased.
The bout would end with Chambers being bullied by Kassem along the fence, a rubber stamp on what had been a largely dominant performance for the young mixed martial artist.
The judges would ultimately score the bout a unanimous decision for Kassem, whose ultimate takeaway from her UFC debut should be the words any jiu jitsu student hears day after day: “POSITION BEFORE SUBMISSION.”
*All images are the property of UFC FightPass: Kassem vs Chambers