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Song Yadong emerged victorious over Henry Cejudo in the UFC Seattle main event, but not in the way he had hoped. The fight took a dramatic turn after an unfortunate eye poke left Cejudo unable to continue, leading to a technical decision win for Song.
Song started strong, controlling the distance and landing solid strikes against the former two-division champion. However, things took a shocking turn in the third round when Song accidentally poked Cejudo in the eye with two fingers. Despite clear replays showing the foul, referee Jason Herzog did not deduct any points, allowing the fight to continue until the round ended.
Between rounds, Cejudo expressed his struggle, stating:
“I don’t know what the fck he’s throwing at me ... I can’t fcking see. I cannot fcking see.”
A doctor was called in, but it was evident the fight was over as Cejudo’s vision was completely impaired.
If Cejudo had stopped immediately after the foul, the fight might have been ruled a no contest. However, since he fought until the round ended, the judges scored the contest based on completed rounds. The scorecards read 29-28, 29-28, and 30-27, awarding Song Yadong a technical decision win. Despite securing the biggest win of his career, Song was visibly disappointed with how the fight ended.
“That was totally accidental,” Song admitted. “This result is not what I wanted. I’m so sorry, Henry. I think we should run it back. We will fight again. Sorry fans. I learned a lot from this fight. I will do better next time in a rematch.”
For Cejudo, the controversial ending was frustrating, especially since a point deduction could have resulted in a draw.
“I couldn’t see [out of] my left [eye],” Cejudo said. “My right’s OK but even that last minute when he was chasing, I didn’t know what he was throwing at me. I can’t see from the left. I wanted to continue. If I can’t see, he’s going to hurt me. Of course, we can run it back 100 percent. F*ck, that finger went in my eye pretty good.”
As of now, it’s unclear whether the UFC will book an immediate rematch, but Song’s performance before the stoppage and Cejudo’s determination suggest that this rivalry is far from over.