Fatima Kline celebrated her birthday in style.
The blue-chip strawweight prospect opened UFC Nashville with an impressive finish of Melissa Martinez, catching her with a head kick in the third round and blistering her with strikes to force the stoppage.
Watch the exciting knockout below.
FATIMA KLINE WITH A STATEMENT HEAD-KICK KO TO BEGIN #UFCNashville pic.twitter.com/sQhBRHllnh
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 12, 2025
Kline entered the UFC Nashville preliminary opener as a massive favorite and her performance lived up to the hype as she out-struck Martinez for the majority of the first two rounds. The always game Martinez looked to trade with Kline on the feet, but was consistently beaten to the punch.
Rather than cruise to a decision victory, Kline perfectly timed a head kick that dropped a dazed Martinez. Kline followed with ground punches until referee Jimmy Neely stepped in to wave off the bout at the 2:36 mark of Round 3.
Kline (8-1), who turned 25 on Saturday, has now won two straight fights since returning to the 115-pound division after making her UFC debut on short notice as a flyweight.
On the other side, Martinez (7-2) falls to 1-2 in the UFC.
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