UFC Fight Night 119 results: Deiveson Figueiredo takes questionable split call from Jarred Brooks

Just about every time Jarred Brooks shot for a takedown, a guillotine was waiting from Deiveson Figueiredo.

It was Figueiredo’s (13-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) heavy punches, however, that made the difference on the judges’ scorecards, resulting in a split decision over Brooks (13-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC).

The lightweight bout was part of the preliminary card of today’s UFC Fight Night 119 event at Ibirapuera Gymnasium in Sao Paulo. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of additional prelims on FS2 and a main card on FS1.

One judge scored the fight 30-27 for Brooks, a likely reflection of his wrestling dominance throughout the fight. The other two, however, gave Figueiredo 29-28 scores. Despite a brutal weight cut and a hometown advantage, the Brazilian Figueiredo didn’t get much love from the crowd after the decision was announced.

Figueiredo and Brooks jawed at the weigh-ins and were amped as they entered the octagon. But instead of slug it out, they mostly played a game of cat and mouse as Brooks circled away from Figueiredo’s punches and timed takedowns. The American’s early efforts were hugely successful, with high-amplitude slams putting Figueiredo on his back. By the end of the first, Figueiredo was eating a steady diet of shots from his back.

The Brazilian adjusted in the second round, however, and gave Brooks more of a reason to respect his distance. A stinging right forced Brooks backward, and when he went for a takedown, a guillotine attempt followed. The choke looked good for a few seconds. But Brooks hung tough and popped his head out, a sequence that would repeat itself for the rest of the fight.

In the final frame, Figueiredo had figured out Brooks’ timing even better and managed to stay upright for most of the round. He gave chase on the feet and landed several power shots. Brooks pulled off a big suplex, only to fight off a kimura attempt. But that submission attempt, like all the other guillotines, were not sound enough to succeed.

Figueiredo now improves to two straight UFC wins, while Brooks suffers the first loss of his professional career after 13 wins including a successful octagon debut.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 119 results include:

• Deiveson Figueiredo def. Jarred Brooks via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
• Marcelo Golm def. Christian Colombo via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:08

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 119, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan and Fernanda Prates contributed to this report on site in Sao Paulo.)