Edson Barboza survived an onslaught in the first round, coming back to defeat Sodiq Yusuff by unanimous decision at the main event of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
Barboza took the cards 49-46, 48-46 and 48-46 in the featherweight bout.
Barboza, 37, won despite getting pummeled by the younger Yusuff in the first round.
“I really felt it,” Barboza said about the first round. “I didn’t know if I was in the gym or at home playing with my kids. I said, ‘What the f— is going on.’ Thank God, I listened to my coaches, had a good recovery and came back stronger.”
Despite the lopsided first round, Barboza rebounded to post 208 strikes to Yusuff’s 207, per UFC Stats.
“That’s a war,” said Barboza (24-11). “You really have to kill your opponent, and he was still alive. I gave my best to get the finish, but he’s one of the best in the world. He didn’t give up, like me in the first round.”
Yusuff fell to 13-3.
–Field Level Media
