UFC star Jessica Andrade has claimed her breast fell out of her top before she tapped out in defeat against Erin Blanchfield.
Andrade was competing against rising star Blanchfield in the women's strawweight division at the UFC's latest fight night in Las Vegas as she looked to rekindle her ambitions to become champion again. It was looking to be a tough ask for 'Bate Estaca' who lost her belt to Valentina Shevchenko in 2021, given Blanchfield's reputation as one to beat.
And it turned out to be as tough as promised on paper in the event, with Blanchfield putting on a dominant display to submit her rival in the second round with a rear-naked choke. Andrade was unable to combat the power on the ground of the American who ended her three-fight winning streak going into the bout.
However the Brazilian believes she was distracted from a wardrobe malfunction, but believes Blanchfield's game plan was too well organised nonetheless. This is not an excuse, but when she came for the takedown, I lost focus," Andrade said when assessing the loss to Blanchfield during an interview with AG Fight.
"Because when she moved in, she put her shoulder just under my top and my breast completely slipped out. I lost focus and forgot to counter. All I could think of was my breast. When I used my hand to put my breast back in the top, that’s when she was able to take me down. It’s all part of the game, though. It’s not an excuse. She really had a great game plan.
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"It wasn’t on purpose. We have to be ready for everything. I should’ve been prepared to let my breast be out if it slipped out. It has been shown in so many places before. I shouldn’t even be worried about that."
Andrade was already up against it given she had stepped in on short-notice to take the bout against Blanchfield who was riding a dominant seven-fight run of victories prior to the showdown. It remains unclear if she will now make a switch back down to 115lb following the loss or remain at 125lb and try to rediscover her winning form to make another push for the title.
