MAIN CARD RESULTS | UFC SEATTLE
Following an all-action start to the night in Seattle where each of the seven preliminary card bouts ended inside the distance, the main card from Climate Pledge Arena didn’t see a downturn in excitement despite the majority of the bouts going the distance.
After veteran Alonzo Menifield got the better of newcomer Julius Walker on the cards to kick things off, Fighting Nerds standout Jean Silva registered his fourth straight stoppage win to begin his UFC tenure, finishing Melsik Baghdasaryan in the closing seconds of the opening round. Tenured bantamweight Rob Font scored a second consecutive win, out-landing game prospect Jean Matsumoto in a wildly entertaining affair before Anthony Hernandez pushed his winning streak to seven with a hard-earned second career win over Brendan Allen.
In the main event, Song Yadong collected a technical decision win over former two-division champ Henry Cejudo when the bout was halted following the third round, as “Triple C” was unable to continue as a result of an unintentional foul.
It was a wild night back in the PNW, and we have the details on everything that transpired collected for you below.
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Main event scheduled for five rounds. All other bouts scheduled for three rounds.
Prelim Results | Official Scorecards | Watch on ESPN+
Alonzo Menifield and Julius Walker engaged in a battle of attrition to kick off the main card, becoming the first fight of the night to see the third round.
Walker looked to wrestle at times throughout the contest, but struggled to get the powerful Fortis MMA representative off his feet. In the striking exchanges, Menifield landed the heavier blows, staggering Walker on a couple different occasions, though he was unable to build on those moments, with the third turning into a grind as both men were running on fumes.
For the first time all night, the judges were tasked with rendering a verdict, and when the scores were tallied, it was Menifield that came out ahead. Returning to Fortis MMA brought about a return to the win column for the early Dana White’s Contender Series graduate, who snapped a two-fight skid with his ninth UFC win, spoiling Walker’s debut in the process.
Prelim Results | Official Scorecards | Watch on ESPN+
Jean Silva tried to walk-off his win over Melsik Baghdasaryan, but instead had to land a couple more blows in order to seal up his fourth consecutive UFC victory.
The entertaining Fighting Nerds representative was having a blast in the Octagon, smiling and high-fiving with Baghdasaryan as the two exchanged in the opening minutes of the contest. But late in the frame, Silva connected with a right hand that put the Armenian on the deck, looked to referee Kevin McDonald to halt the action, and then forced him to do so seconds later as he unloaded additional blows to his felled opponent.
Now 4-0 inside the Octagon and riding a 12-fight winning streak overall, the 28-year-old featherweight is quickly becoming a fan favorite and a scary ascending talent in the 145-pound weight class. He’s earned finishes in each of his four outings, and should garner a step up in competition next time out after another thrilling effort here.
Prelim Results | Official Scorecards | Watch on ESPN+
Rob Font and Jean Matsumoto went the distance in their 140-pound catchweight bout that served as the midway point of Saturday’s main card.
On the feet, Font was consistently the quicker and more successful of the two, landing routinely with his speedy jab and right hands behind it, while Matsumoto countered with fewer, bigger swings. But the Brazilian did well to control and get the better of the grappling exchanges, depositing Font on the canvas with force a couple times in the second, but couldn’t do enough damage in those instances to dramatically shift things in his favor.
After trading blows through to the final horn, Font landed on the happy side of a split decision verdict, giving him consecutive victories for the first time since a four-fight run of success capped by his victory over former champ Cody Garbrandt. While Matsumoto suffered the first loss of his professional career, the young Brazilian showed he can hang with a Top 15 fighter, and remains a high-upside talent in the 135-pound ranks going forward.
Prelim Results | Official Scorecards | Watch on ESPN+
If Anthony Hernandez and Brendan Allen wanted to fight one another every couple of years, there likely wouldn’t be too many people that complain, as the former LFA opponents turned middleweight standouts turned in a wildly entertaining sequel in Seattle on Saturday night.
In each of the first two rounds, two ranked combatants wrestled and scrambled through positions on the canvas, each doing damage and hunting submissions, with neither ever getting a clear, defined advantage. Hernandez seized control in the third, his relentless pressure helping him keep Allen playing defense for much of the frame, with “Fluffy” finishing the round in top position, raining down blows.
Just as they did in their initial encounter, the two men went the distance, and as he did in the first meeting, Hernandez came out ahead again, earning a unanimous decision victory to extend his winning streak to seven. This was a thoroughly entertaining battle that should elevate the surging Hernandez into the Top 10 when the rankings update next week.
Prelim Results | Official Scorecards | Watch on ESPN+
Saturday’s main event came to an anticlimactic and confusing halt following the completion of the third round, with former champ Henry Cejudo unable to continue due an accidental eye poke that transpired in the third round, resulting in Song Yadong earning the biggest win of his professional career.
The Chinese fighter was the quicker, more effective of the two throughout the contest, getting the better of the striking exchanges, showing tremendous poise and composure in the fire. Cejudo had positive moments of his own, and exhibited an uncanny ability to take a shot before the bout was paused for a full five minutes following the eye poke. Though the former champion eventually completed the round, he could not continue off the break, resulting in the fight going to the scorecards.
When the scores for the three completed rounds were totalled, it was Song that came out ahead, earning a nod on all three cards. This was a huge victory for the 27-year-old “Kung Fu Kid,” one that unfortunately won’t feel as consequential as if it had ended a different way.
Prelim Results | Official Scorecards | Watch on ESPN+
Don’t miss a moment of UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs Song, live from Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington on February 22, 2025. Prelims start at 6pm ET/3pm PT, while the main card kicks off live on ESPN+ at 9pm ET/6pm PT.
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UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs Song Results
UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs Song Main Card Results
UFC FIGHT NIGHT
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Alonzo Menifield defeats Julius Walker by split decision (29-28, 30-27, 28-29)
Jean Silva defeats Melsik Baghdasaryan by TKO (strikes) at 4:15 of Round 1
Rob Font defeats Jean Matsumoto by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Co-Main Event: Anthony Hernandez defeats Brendan Allen by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Main Event: Song Yadong defeats Henry Cejudo by technical decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Song Yadong tops Henry Cejudo on points in UFC main event
A key bantamweight matchup between Song Yadong and Henry Cejudo came to an unfortunate conclusion on Saturday, one that might require the UFC to book an immediate rematch.
Yadong (22-8-1) defeated Cejudo (16-5) by technical decision when the fight was stopped after the third round due to Cejudo being unable to see from an accidental eye poke. The 135-pound bout, which headlined UFC Fight Night in Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, was scheduled for five rounds.
All three judges scored the abbreviated fight in Yadong’s favor: 30-27, 29-28, 29-28.
The fight went to a technical decision because it went three full rounds, as Cejudo tried to continue after the eye poke and ultimately finished Round 3. Had Cejudo been unable to continue immediately when the eye poke happened, the fight would have been called off and ruled a no contest.
Immediately following the result, Yadong suggested an immediate rematch.
“That was totally an accident,” Yadong said of the eye poke. “The result is not what I wanted. I’m so sorry. Henry is a legend. We should run it back. We will fight again.”
A former two-weight champion, Cejudo, 38, who made his first appearance in almost one year, also expressed interest in a rematch. He made it clear that retirement was not on his mind following the unfortunate result.
“I couldn’t see out of my left eye,” Cejudo said. “The right is OK. That last minute [of the third round] when he was chasing me, I didn’t know what he was throwing. I wanted to continue, but if I couldn’t see, he was just going to hurt me. Of course, we can run that back. One hundred percent.”
The eye poke occurred late in the third round, as Cejudo moved forward with punches and Yadong extended his hand out defensively. The contest was really heating up at that moment, as Yadong had seized a lot of early momentum but Cejudo was finding success with jabs and straight left hands. Cejudo, a former Olympic gold medalist in wrestling, wasn’t able to get Yadong down and had basically committed to a stand-up affair.
Cejudo bloodied Yadong’s nose with punches in the second round. Yadong, who is 11 years younger than Cejudo, consistently beat him to the punch in exchanges in Round 3. According to UFC Stats, Yadong outlanded Cejudo 84-67 in total strikes. Cejudo officially went 0-for-3 on takedown attempts.
Heading into Saturday, Cejudo was the No. 7-ranked bantamweight in the UFC. Yadong was ranked No. 8.
Alexander Volkanovski says he will not be afraid to take on UFC Featherweight Champion Ilia Topuria in a title rematch. (0:34)
There will be a new featherweight champion at UFC 314.
UFC CEO Dana White announced on Instagram Live that Alexander Volkanovski (26-4) will look to become a two-time featherweight champion when he faces Diego Lopes (26-6) in the main event of the fight card at the Kaseya Center in Miami on April 12.
White said current featherweight champion Ilia Topuria will vacate the title and move up to the lightweight division in pursuit of a world championship in a second weight class. There is no fight lined up for Topuria’s forthcoming lightweight debut.
Volkanovski has suffered consecutive knockout losses, falling to current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in October 2023 before losing the featherweight title to Topuria last February. Lopes will enter the fight on a five-fight winning streak, with his last victory coming by dominant unanimous decision over former title contender Brian Ortega at Riyadh Season Noche UFC last September.
The co-main event will be a five-round lightweight fight between Michael Chandler and Paddy Pimblett.
Chandler, the UFC’s No. 7-ranked lightweight, is coming off a decision loss to former champion Charles Oliveira in November. Chandler, 38, was famously tied to a major showdown with superstar Conor McGregor and was sidelined for two years as the UFC targeted a fight between the two. A fight was announced for UFC 303 last June, but McGregor was forced out with a toe injury two weeks before the fight date. Rather than wait again, Chandler (23-9) opted to face Oliveira. He is 1-4 in his past five fights.
Pimblett (22-3) is the UFC’s No. 12-ranked lightweight and is 6-0 in the UFC. Fighting out of Liverpool, England, Pimblett was last in action when he submitted King Green in the first round of their 155-pound fight at UFC 304 in July.
Also announced is the UFC debut of former Bellator two-weight world champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, who will face Yair Rodriguez in a featherweight fight. Freire was the second simultaneous two-division champion in Bellator MMA history and was widely considered the best fighter to never compete in the UFC. That will end at UFC 314 against a former title contender.
Freire, 37, was released from his PFL contract in January after months of disagreements over his lack of activity in the MMA promotion. He last fought in March 2024 when he successfully defended the featherweight championship against Jeremy Kennedy.
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UFC Seattle live blog: Henry Cejudo vs. Song Yadong
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This is the UFC Seattle live blog for Henry Cejudo vs. Song Yadong, the bantamweight main event this Saturday at Climate Pledge Arena.
A former flyweight and bantamweight champion, as well as an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling, Cejudo retired from MMA at the height of his powers back in 2020 but after a three-year hiatus, “Triple C” returned to action in 2023. Unfortunately for Cejudo, he’s failed to find the same success, losing both of his return fights, to Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili. A loss to Song could be lead to another retirement for the former champ-champ.
Breaking into the UFC in 2017 at just 21 years of age, Song looked like a future champion early in his career, and though he’s had some setbacks, the Team Alpha Male product still appears to be on that same track. Still just 27, Song has won five of his past seven, with his only losses coming against top contenders in Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen. Coming off the loss to Yan, Song hopes to get back on the winning track and get the biggest win of his career on Saturday.
Check out the live blog for Henry Cejudo vs. Song Yadong below.
