Watch as Andrade KOs strawweight champ Rose Namajunas with brutal slam at UFC 237

JESSICA ANDRADE produced a stunning knockout to end Rose Namajunas’ reign as UFC strawweight world champion.

The Brazilian – fighting on home turf – hoisted her opponent up before slamming her down on to the canvas in brutal fashion.

Namajunas, 26, landed on her neck and there were fears she could easily have broken it due to the nature of the fall.

Although knocked unconscious, the American came around soon after and thankfully there was no serious damage done.

But plenty of viewers were concerned about her welfare.

One person tweeted: “F***. I love MMA but one day someone’s not getting up from a slam like that.”

Another wrote: “Nasty to land like that lucky didn’t snap her neck.”

A third added: “She could have at least checked she was OK, did nothing but celebrate, Rose could have broke her neck man, hate to see that.”

STUNNING COMEBACK

Andrade, 27, struggled in the opening five minutes as ‘Thug Rose’ dominated early on.

But with the pair tussling mid-way through the second round, the ‘Bate Estaca’ (‘Pile Driver’ in Portuguese) produced her moment of magic, sending the adoring Rio crowd – and social media – wild.

One said: “Wow what a finish.”

Another wrote: “Brutal!”

And others laughed at commentator Dominick Cruz who declared she “can’t lift there” just moments before the dramatic finish.

The victory means she is now a world champion for the first time in her career, taking the belt Namajunas had held since November 2017.

The American admitted: “It’s just a huge pressure off my shoulders,” after losing her crown.

Elsewhere on the night of UFC 237, Jared Cannonier beat Anderson Silva with a first-round knockout and Irene Aldana defeat Bethe Correia via submission in round three.

Meanwhile, Alexander Volkanovski and Laureano Staropoli earned victories over Jose Aldo and Thiago Alves respectively with unanimous decisions.