Deiveson Figueiredo’s first UFC title defense was quick and successful.
At UFC 255 on Saturday, the UFC flyweight champion Figueiredo (20-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) submitted Alex Perez by guillotine choke at 1:57 of Round 1.
Early on, Figueiredo and Perez (24-6 MMA, 6-2 UFC) exchanged hard strikes on the feet. When Perez caught a Figueiredo kick, the champion pulled for a leg submission. When Perez tried to pounce on his downed opponent, he rolled right into Figueiredo’s guard and was swiftly choked out.
In his first title defense, Figueiredo extends his winning streak to five. Over the span of his 10 UFC fights, Figueiredo has picked up seven finishes, including a title-clinching submission of Joseph Benavidez in a match for the vacant belt on July 19.
With the loss, Perez had his three-fight winning streak snapped. His only other promotional loss came to four-time UFC title challenger Joseph Benavidez in November 2018.
Perez was not Figueiredo’s originally scheduled opponent. Figueiredo was booked to fight former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt. However, Garbrandt pulled out of the fight in October due to health issues.
The flyweight title bout was the UFC 255 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2/ESPN+.
Complete UFC 255 results:
- Deiveson Figueiredo def. Alex Perez via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 1:57
- Valentina Shevchenko def. Jennifer Maia via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46)
- Tim Means def. Mike Perry via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Katlyn Chookagian def. Cynthia Calvillo via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Paul Craig def. Mauricio Rua via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:36
- Brandon Moreno def. Brandon Royval via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:59
- Joaquin Buckley def. Jordan Wright via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 0:18
- Antonina Shevchenko def. Ariane Lipski via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:33
- Nicolas Dalby def. Daniel Rodriguez via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Alan Jouban def. Jared Gooden via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Kyle Daukaus def. Dustin Stoltzfus via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
- Sasha Palatnikov def. Louis Cosce via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 2:27
