Glacier Peak grad Granger defeated in return to action

LAS VEGAS — Miranda Granger’s long-awaited return to the octagon ended in defeat.

The 30-year-old Snohomish native lost by submission early in the second round of her strawweight bout against Cory McKenna during the preliminary card of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Hill at the UFC Apex.

It was Granger’s first fight in nearly 21 months. The Glacier Peak High School alum and mixed martial arts star took time away from the sport to become a mother, giving birth to her daughter last August.

Granger fell to 7-3 as a professional, including 1-3 in UFC.

McKenna, a 23-year-old from Wales, became the first woman in UFC history to win by submission with a Von Flue choke. She completed the move 1 minute, 3 seconds into the second round of the bout, which was divided into three five-minute rounds.

The 5-foot-3 McKenna overcame Granger’s four-inch height advantage and 10-inch reach advantage.

McKenna controlled the first round, securing a pair of takedowns in the opening two minutes before landing a series of punches to Granger’s head. McKenna was threatening to pull off a submission in the closing seconds of the first round when the horn sounded.

After the short break, McKenna quickly picked up where she left off. She earned a slam takedown 35 seconds into the second round and followed with the Von Flue choke to seal the victory.

McKenna improved to 7-2 as a professional, including 2-1 in UFC.

McKenna is ranked by Tapology.com as the world’s 26th-best female in MMA’s 115-pound strawweight division. Granger is the world’s No. 51 female strawweight.

This was the final bout of Granger’s four-fight contract with UFC, which is MMA’s top promotion.

Granger opened her UFC career with a victory by unanimous decision over Hannah Goldy in August 2019.

Granger has since lost her past three fights, including Saturday’s defeat. She lost by submission to Amanda Lemos in December 2019 and by unanimous decision to Ashley Yoder in November 2020.