"Next stop, GOLD" - Fans hype up Erin Blanchfield as she shares six-year-old snaps from MMA debut in Atlantic City

Erin Blanchfield's recent Instagram post was a throwback to her professional debut as an MMA fighter. Blanchfield made her professional MMA debut at Cage Fury Fighting Championships 70 on March 24, 2018, against Whittaney Pyles, who was also making her debut. The event took place in Atlantic City, New Jersey - Blanchfield's home state.

While Pyles showed promise on the feet, the fight tilted heavily in Blanchfield's favor once it went to the ground. 'Cold Blooded', who has a formidable Brazilian jiu-jitsu background, battered Pyles with vicious ground-and-pound and attempted several submissions until the end of Round 1.

Cageside doctors determined that Pyles could not continue fighting and Blanchfield was declared the winner by TKO. The 24-year-old will compete in Atlantic City for the first time under the UFC umbrella as she takes on No. 3-ranked Manon Fiorot this weekend.

Coincidentally, this week marks the sixth anniversary of Blanchfield's win over Pyles. She took to Instagram and shared pictures from the fight, expressing her joy to compete in Atlantic City on this occasion. In the caption, she wrote:

"Made my pro debut in Atlantic City 6 years ago today. In 6 days I’m headlining UFC Atlantic City. Can’t wait to get another win in my home state."

Fans reacted to Erin Blanchfield's post, praising her as a fighter and a top contender in the women's flyweight division.

@fightinsightpodcast commented:

"Next stop, GOLD."

@kenneth.secret commented:

"1 more to go then belt!"

Other fans wrote:

"GOAT in the making."

"Next new champion."

Catch some of the comments below:

Fan reactions to Blanchfields' post

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Erin Blanchfield shares her thoughts on Rose Namajunas after being called out for a fight

Former two-time UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas moved up to flyweight after losing the title to Carla Esparza in 2023. 'Thug' defeated No. 8-ranked Amanda Ribas at last Weekend's UFC Vegas 89 to score her first victory in the division.

Following her win, Namajunas expressed her desire to fight the winner of Erin Blanchfield vs. Manon Fiorot or Maycee Barber to earn a title shot at flyweight.

During a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Erin Blanchfield shared her thoughts on Namajunas' performance against Ribas and her prospects in the flyweight division:

"I think she's better at 115 pounds. I think just moving up a weight class like ten pounds like 115 to 125, it's a big percentage of your body weight, especially when you're that small."

She continued:

"She won against Ribas but Ribas is also someone who's fought at 115. She's not that big of a girl. She had the one fight against Manon and she lost that. I think she's a great fighter. I think she's got a lot of skill but I think she's going to be a little outsized at 125."

Catch Blanchfield's comments below (7:38):