Top UFC contender Maycee Barber was on the receiving end of one of the most alarming finishes in recent memory.
A packed house at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena held their breath after the top five women’s flyweight got knocked out — and subsequently choked out — by former division champion Alexa Grasso in the co-main event of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night card.
Grasso, 32, landed a vicious left hand in the opening round that appeared to knock her opponent out cold, whipping Barber around as her legs turned to jelly.
She immediately pounced on Barber’s back and cinched a rear-naked choke as referee Mike Beltran jumped in to stop the contest.
A completely disoriented Barber, 27, grasped for Beltran’s leg before laying flat on her back, where she remained motionless — seemingly unconscious with her eyes wide open — for several minutes in an unnerving scene.
In a respectful gesture, Grasso paused her celebration to wait by her opponent’s side as she was treated by medics and eventually helped to her feet.
Barber was taken to the hospital after the bout, where she appeared in good health and strong spirits, as she reposted an encouraging message from her boyfriend on her Instagram story.
“Part of the game,” read the post, which included a photo of Barber recovering from a hospital bed. “Congrats to Alexa, we got caught but are okay. Will be back soon thanks for checking in.”
The loss snapped Barber’s seven-fight winning streak dating back to 2021 — following a unanimous decision loss to Grasso.
Grasso, meanwhile, picked up her first win since becoming the first Mexican-born female champion in UFC history with an epic upset of Valentina Shevchenko in 2023.
She later fought to a draw with Shevchenko in their championship rematch then got outmatched in the trilogy bout, and she entered Saturday’s contest after dropping a unanimous decision to current No. 1 contender Natalia Silva.
“I’m back. Alexa without injuries is different. I’m so happy,” Grasso said after the fight, which was officially scored a knockout.
As for the finish, Grasso said, “of course my striking is always the first weapon, but I was training hard to get a finish by submission because I trained jiu-jitsu a lot. I wanted the finish.”
The women’s flyweight bout preceded Saturday’s high-profile main event, where surging middleweight contender Joe Pyfer notched a TKO victory over former long-reigning champion Israel Adesanya.