Introduction
Molly McCann (born 4 May 1990) is an English mixed martial artist. She is a former Cage Warriors Flyweight Champion and currently competes in the women’s flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of 1 August 2022, she is #15 in the UFC women's flyweight rankings.
Early life
McCann was born in Liverpool on 4 May 1990. Her father was absent and mother had substance abuse problems, so she was partially raised by her aunt. She grew up in Liverpool's Norris Green area with two sisters. Initially she trained in karate, kickboxing, and Thai boxing before starting boxing around the age of 12. She then played football for five years before starting MMA training in 2013. She graduated from Liverpool John Moores University with a degree in sports development and physical education.
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
McCann fought most of her early MMA career in Liverpool. In her early years as a fighter, she supported herself by working at Subway, which earned her the nickname "Meatball Molly". She fought for the MMA promotion Shock N' Awe, where she won the vacant Shock N' Awe Flyweight Championship and also defended it once. McCann also won the vacant Cage Warriors Fighting Championship Women's Flyweight Championship in 2018 against Bryony Tyrell. After competing on the regional circuit, she amassed a record of 7–1 before signing with the UFC.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
McCann made her UFC debut on 27 May 2018, against Gillian Robertson at UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Till. At the weigh-ins, she weighed in at 127 pounds, a single pound over the flyweight non-title fight limit of 126. She was fined 20% of her purse, which went to Robertson. She lost the fight via a rear-naked choke in round two.
Her second fight came on 15 March 2019, facing Priscila Cachoeira at UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal. She won the fight via unanimous decision.
McCann faced Ariane Lipski on 22 June 2019 at UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs. Korean Zombie. She won the fight via unanimous decision. Shortly after the fight, McCann signed a new four-fight contract with the UFC.
McCann faced Diana Belbiţă on 18 October 2019 at UFC on ESPN 6. She won the fight via unanimous decision.
McCann was scheduled to face Ashlee Evans-Smith on 21 March 2020 at UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs. Edwards. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was eventually postponed. Instead McCann faced Taila Santos on 16 July 2020 at UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Ige. She lost the fight via unanimous decision.
McCann faced Lara Procópio on 6 February 2021 at UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov. She lost the fight via unanimous decision.
McCann faced Ji Yeon Kim on 4 September 2021 at UFC Fight Night 191. She won the fight via unanimous decision. The back-and-forth bout won both contestants the Fight of the Night bonus award.
McCann faced Luana Carolina on 19 March 2022 at UFC Fight Night 204. She won the fight via knockout after landing a "Hellbow" - or spinning back elbow - in round three. With this win, she received the Performance of the Night award.
McCann faced Hannah Goldy on 23 July 2022 at UFC Fight Night 208. She won the fight via technical knockout. This win earned her the Performance of the Night award.
McCann faced Erin Blanchfield on 12 November 2022 at UFC 281. She lost the fight via a kimura submission in the first round.
Personal life
McCann struggled with her sexuality in her youth. She came out publicly as lesbian at 25 after stating, "I absolutely ran from it until the wheels fell off, until I couldn’t run no more."
McCann is a close friend of fellow Liverpudlian mixed martial artist Paddy Pimblett and a supporter of Everton FC. She describes herself as a socialist and "Labour". She is an opponent of the Conservative Party, due to her opinion that they had a negative effect on Liverpool and the working class in general, and on 23 July 2022, she led the crowd at the O2 Arena in a chant of "fuck the tories".
McCann is cousins with Katie Taylor. Three of her grandparents are from Ireland.
Championships and accomplishments
Mixed martial arts
- Ultimate Fighting Championship
- Fight of the Night (One time) vs. Ji Yeon Kim
- Performance of the Night (Two times) Luana Carolina and Hannah Goldy
- Cage Warriors Fighting Championship
- Cage Warriors Fighting Championship Women's Flyweight Champion (One time)
- MMAjunkie.com
- 2022 March Knockout of the Month vs. Luana Carolina
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 18 matches | 13 wins | 5 losses |
| By knockout | 6 | 0 |
| By submission | 0 | 2 |
| By decision | 7 | 3 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 13–5 | Erin Blanchfield | Submission (kimura) | UFC 281 | 12 November 2022 | 1 | 3:37 | New York City, New York, United States | |
| Win | 13–4 | Hannah Goldy | TKO (spinning back elbow and punches) | UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Aspinall | 23 July 2022 | 1 | 3:52 | London, England | Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 12–4 | Luana Carolina | KO (spinning back elbow) | UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Aspinall | 19 March 2022 | 3 | 1:52 | London, England | Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 11–4 | Kim Ji-yeon | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Till | 4 September 2021 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Fight of the Night. |
| Loss | 10–4 | Lara Procópio | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov | 6 February 2021 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Loss | 10–3 | Taila Santos | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Ige | 16 July 2020 | 3 | 5:00 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | |
| Win | 10–2 | Diana Belbiţă | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Reyes vs. Weidman | 18 October 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Boston, Massachusetts, United States | Belbiţă was deducted a point in round 2 for grabbing the cage. |
| Win | 9–2 | Ariane Lipski | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs. The Korean Zombie | 22 June 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Greenville, South Carolina, United States | |
| Win | 8–2 | Priscila Cachoeira | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal | 16 March 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | London, England | |
| Loss | 7–2 | Gillian Robertson | Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) | UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Till | 27 May 2018 | 2 | 2:05 | Liverpool, England | Catchweight (127 lb) bout; McCann missed weight. |
| Win | 7–1 | Bryony Tyrell | TKO (punches) | Cage Warriors 90 | 24 February 2018 | 2 | 1:32 | Liverpool, England | Won the vacant Cage Warriors Women's Flyweight Championship. |
| Win | 6–1 | Priscila de Souza | Decision (unanimous) | Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 88 | 28 October 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Liverpool, England | |
| Win | 5–1 | Lacey Schuckman | Decision (unanimous) | Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 82 | 1 April 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Liverpool, England | |
| Win | 4–1 | Anjela Pink | TKO (knees to the body and punches) | Shinobi War 9 | 26 November 2016 | 1 | 0:50 | Liverpool, England | |
| Win | 3–1 | Macicilia Benkhettache | TKO (punches) | Shock N' Awe 23 | 1 October 2016 | 2 | 1:15 | Portsmouth, England | Defended the SNA Women's Flyweight Championship. |
| Win | 2–1 | Valérie Domergue | Decision (split) | Shock N' Awe 22 | 1 April 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Portsmouth, England | Won the vacant SNA Women's Flyweight Championship. |
| Loss | 1–1 | Vanessa Melo | Decision (unanimous) | XFC International 12 | 28 November 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | São Paulo, Brazil | Flyweight debut. |
| Win | 1–0 | Katy Horlick | TKO (punches) | Shock N' Awe 20 | 30 May 2015 | 1 | 3:12 | Portsmouth, England | Catchweight (132 lb) bout. |
Books
- Molly Meatball McCann - BE TRUE TO YOU: A story about coming out, Self-published (30 June 2021), ISBN 979-8500961419