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SAO PAULO – UFC women’s strawweight Randa Markos didn’t want to face another fighter in her hometown.

After a split-call loss 13 months ago against Alexa Grasso in Mexico, Markos knew she was unlikely to get a fair shake on the judges’ scorecards if Saturday night’s fight went the distance.

So when Markos (8-6-1 MMA, 4-5-1 UFC) was offered octagon newcomer Mariana Rodriguez at UFC Fight Night 137, she balked. But she also felt pushed into taking the matchup.

“I didn’t have a choice for this fight,” Markos told reporters backstage after an FS1-televised majority draw against Rodriguez at UFC Fight Night 137, which took place at Ibirapuera Gymnasium. “It was short notice, and I was kind of told I needed to take this fight.”

An optimist, Markos took it as an opportunity to do her best. And that she did against Rodriguez (11-0-1 MMA, 0-0-1 UFC), a scrappy muay Thai specialist with a talent for squirming out of her takedowns.

Markos felt she did enough to earn a win on the scorecards. But the fact that Rodriguez came up even on two of them was not a surprise.

“Definitely,” Markos said when asked by MMAjunkie if Rodriguez had gotten a little “home cooking” from judges. “I’ve been through that before. I completely dominated the first round, and every time we were inside, I was throwing uppercuts to her face over and over and over.

“She’s a tough chick, though – 11-0, in the UFC, and I get to welcome her.”

Would Markos take the opportunity to do a rematch on neutral ground? She isn’t so sure. She’ll see if the UFC comes with a better option the next time around.

But given that there’s no loss to bounce back from, she chooses to see the whole experience as a positive.

“I think it kind of breaks the streak,” said Markos, who’s alternated wins and losses since joining the UFC from “The Ultimate Fighter 20.” “Now, it’s time to start over.”

On neutral ground, hopefully.

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 137, check out the UFC Events section of the site.