LAS VEGAS – Utilizing both crisp movement and striking on the feet and a well-constructed grappling attack, Michelle Waterson (16-6 MMA, 4-2 UFC) scored a clearcut decision win over fellow vet Felice Herrig (13-8 MMA, 5-3 UFC).

The women’s strawweight bout opened up the main card of today’s UFC 229 event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Herrig walked forward at the start, looking to push the pace, while Waterson looked to move laterally on the outside and fire kicks from distance. Her speed was certainly evident early, and her foot did pass dangerously close to Herrig’s chin on multiple occasions. Herrig did chop the legs a bit in the early going, but she struggled to corner Waterson. Herrig gave chase around the cage and eventually landed a nice right hand as she moved into the clinch. Waterson defended well against the fence, but Herrig was certainly the stronger fighter in the position and held her in place.

Waterson worked off the fence briefly, and Herrig missed a few attempts at an outside trip, maintaining the bodylock and holding tight until the bell.

Waterson was quicker to engage in the second and actually looked for a takedown in the early going. However, it was Herrig who again was able to grab hold and drive the action to the cage. Waterson did sneak in a nice elbow up top, but Herrig answered with quick punches and moved back to the cage.

Waterson did eventually break free, bringing the crowd to life with a flashy high kick before taking Herrig for a ride and tossing her to the floor. Working from her opponent’s half-guard, Waterson dropped in a few elbows from the top while trying to advance position. Herrig simply held tight underneath, eventually scrambling to guard, but Waterson finished the round on top.

Waterson was aggressive again in the third, nearly landing a side kick to the face. As she moved inside for a takedown, Herrig hit a beautiful reversal to wind up on top, though she was tagged with several elbows as she settled to the top position. Waterson nearly escaped with a powerful bridge, but Herrig pushed her back to the floor. Waterson threatened with an omo plata, as well, but Herrig escaped with relative ease and settled back on top before referee Jason Herzog brought them back to the feet.

On the restart, Herrig moved again to the clinch but couldn’t get the fight to the floor. They broke apart with a little more than a minute, and it was Herrig who landed a crisp two-punch combination. Waterson answered back with a snapping front kick to the face, but Herrig walked through it. They moved to the clinch again before the bell, but Waterson broke away and returned to the center as the fight ended, and she was awarded the win on all three judges’ cards, 30-26, 29-28 and 30-27.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 229 results include:

• Michelle Waterson def. Felice Herrig via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-28, 30-27)
• Jussier Formiga def. Sergio Pettis via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-28, 29-28)
• Vicente Luque def. Jalin Turner via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 3:52
• Aspen Ladd def. Tonya Evinger via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:26
• Scott Holtzman def. Alan Patrick via knockout (elbows) – Round 3, 3:42
• Yana Kunitskaya def. Lina Lansberg via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Nik Lentz def. Gray Maynard via TKO (kick, punches) – Round 2, 1:19
• Tony Martin def. Ryan LaFlare via TKO (kick, punches) – Round 3, 1:00

For complete coverage of UFC 229, check out the UFC Events section of the site.