CHICAGO — The Four Horsewomen have gotten quite a bit of fanfare outside the cage, as Ronda Rousey, Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir are popular everywhere they go.
Inside, though, it’s Rousey and everyone else. Jessamyn Duke continued the non-Rousey Horsewomen’s losing streak on Saturday, losing a unanimous decision to Elizabeth Phillips at UFC on FOX 16 at United Center.
The judges’ scores were 29-28 across the board.
Phillips was the clear winner in each of the first two rounds, negating Duke’s reach by taking the fight to the mat and mixing up ground-and-pound and submission attempts.
Phillips gassed badly in the final round, which Duke dominated. Duke picked Phillips apart in the standup and worked for several submissions on the ground. She had a tight armbar on Phillips in the closing round, but Phillips held on for a draw.
While it appeared the final round was close to a 10-8, which would have forced a draw, the judges all scored the final round 10-9.
The victory was vengeance for Phillips, who was submitted by Duke in the amateur ranks three years ago.
“My plan was to keep moving, land solid strikes, and win the fight,” said Phillips (5-3), who is now 1-2 in the UFC.
Duke (3-3, 1 NC) has lost three in a row, Baszler has dropped three in a row and Shafir has been knocked out in the opening minute of her past two fights.