Piera Rodriguez blasts ‘coward’ Ariane Carnelossi after UFC Vegas 92 headbutt disqualification loss

Piera Rodriguez may have been the one disqualified from UFC Vegas 92, but she is not happy with her opponent Ariane Carnelossi.

Rodriguez suffered a second-round disqualification loss despite largely dominating Carnelossi in Saturday’s strawweight matchup. The offending sequence came after Rodriguez downed Carnelossi with strikes, then jumped into Carnelossi’s guard and led with her head, earning her a warning from referee Mark Smith. Shortly thereafter, Rodriguez again brought her head down onto Carnelossi’s in a puzzling sight, prompting Smith to immediately halt the bout. Ringside doctors ultimately deemed Carnelossi unable to continue and Carnelossi was awarded the disqualification victory due to the fouls.

Following the bout, Rodriguez addressed the situation on social media and labeled Carnelossi “a coward” in a scathing retort.

“I rather lose a fight because of a mistake I did, than go home calling myself a ‘winner’ knowing I am a coward,” Rodriguez wrote. “I made a big mistake, maybe because of adrenaline…But you have to go to sleep with that lie in your head your entire life! [Carnelossi] and you call yourself brave? I hope you and your team enjoy my money!”

Rodriguez has now dropped two consecutive UFC bouts after previously falling short against Gillian Robertson in April 2023, while Carnelossi rebounds from a May 2022 loss to Loopy Godinez following a two-year layoff.

UFC Vegas 92 took place May 18 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas. Lerone Murphy defeated Edson Barboza via unanimous decision in the night’s featherweight main event.