Jorge Masvidal (28-9 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and Al Iaquinta (12-3-1 MMA, 7-2 UFC) traded a war of words in the days leading up to their UFC Fight Night: Mendes vs. Lamas co-main event, and fans were treated to a fairly entertaining scrap between the two lightweight strikers.
Iaquinta was busted up in the 1st, struggling to defend against the sharp boxing skills of “Gamebred”. The Long Island native was wobbled and badly hurt with a big right hand and then Masvidal moved in for the finish in the closing seconds. While he didn’t get the finish he left a huge gash underneath the right eye of Iaquinta via a hard elbow.
Inexplicably, Masvidal let his foot off the gas in the 2nd and Iaquinta found a way back into the contest with leg kicks and a few punches, but he was totally unable to take Masvidal down throughout the bout. Round 3 saw an uptick in output from Masvidal as he dug into Iaquinta’s body while Iaquinta fired back with hard right hands and punishing kicks to Masvidal’s lead leg. All things considered, a close fight between two talented fighters, but in the end the decision went to Iaquinta.
Official Result: Al Iaquinta def. Jorge Masvidal by split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)
The crowd booed the decision, which enraged Iaquinta, who said “You better not boo me! I fought my f*cking ass off! F*ck you!” in his post-fight interview. Masvidal apparently also yelled “F*ck these judges!” as he walked past press row.
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