Fight queen McCann scores ‘KO of the Year’ contender at UFC London (VIDEO)

Liverpool's ‘Meatball’ Molly McCann “became a star tonight” according to UFC boss Dana White after she landed a sensational third-round spinning elbow knockout of her Brazilian foe Luana Carolina as the fight promotion returned to London for the first time in three years on Saturday night. 

McCann, England's most successful UFC fighter in history, dominated the first two rounds at the O2 Arena as she aggressively pushed forward against an initially gun-shy Carolina, landing several combinations as she pushed the lengthy Brazilian back on her heels. 

Down on the scorecards entering the third, Carolina appeared to loosen up a little and began finding a measure of success with a series of kicks as McCann's aggressive opening appeared to have drained her gas tank – but just as it appeared that a momentum shift was possible, McCann launched a stunning spinning elbow shot which connected flush on Carolina's jaw, sending her cascading to the canvas where she remained out cold for an extended period before soon being revived by cage-side medics. 

Afterwards, the Merseysider excitedly exited the cage and raced towards White to embrace him. White later confirmed that Carolina had been taken to hospital for medical checks after the gruesome KO. 

With that, McCann became just the fourth fighter in the history of the UFC to successfully land a fight-ending spinning elbow – and the UFC awarded her a $50,000 performance bonus for her handiwork. 

“She's a long b*stard so I thought, 'how do I get her?'” McCann told commentator and former UFC champ Michael Bisping afterwards.

“She went to sleep. My resting heart rate is 38 I can go all day. I'm so happy we have put it all together.

"I got made the main card for a reason. Thank you very much for having the faith in me. Who is getting me a bevvie, then?"

She added in a separate interview with BT Sport: “I just believed, believed, believed.”

Unsurprisingly, McCann's sensational knockout soon went viral on social media, with several of her UFC peers reacting to the finish.

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“Mom, get the meatballs,” wrote former UFC two-division champion Henry Cejudo.

Warning: video contains swearing

“Oh my god. [Meatball Molly], give her all the bonuses,” added Casey O'Neill, while UFC veteran – and someone who has given fans his fair share of spectacular knockouts over the years – Cub Swanson was also impressed.

“That girl got Meatballed,” wrote Swanson.

White was clearly impressed after watching McCann earn her sixth win in eight UFC fights courtesy of her second successive victory.

"She became a star tonight," said the promotion boss. "If that’s not knockout of the year then we’ll have some crazy stuff this year.

"And she’s a woman – women don’t knock each other out like that. Great fight, too, by both women."

McCann, who is a die-hard supporter of Premier League football team Everton, was later joined in the dressing room by club legend Wayne Rooney, who offered his congratulations to both McCann and her Liverpool-supporting teammate, Paddy Pimblett. 

“What a night for the Scousers,” McCann said in a video of Rooney's visit after the manager of English second-tier side Derby attended the event straight from his team's draw at home to Coventry on Saturday afternoon. "Thank you so much – and hey, thanks for getting here after the game.”