The preliminary fight between Chris Padilla and MarQuel Mederos at UFC 327 ended in confusion after officials corrected the result from a Padilla win to a majority draw. The change followed a review of the judges’ scorecards and a missed point deduction on the paperwork.
What happened with the scorecards
The fight was first announced as a Padilla victory by majority decision. Broadcasters said two judges scored the fight for Padilla and one judge had it even. After the Tatiana Suarez vs. Loopy Godinez bout, the UFC broadcast said the result had been corrected to a majority draw.
When the corrected scorecards were shown, all three judges’ totals appeared not to include a one-point deduction given to Mederos for an eye poke in round three. The original running totals on the cards suggested two judges (Derek Cleary and Eliseo Rodriguez) had actually scored the bout 29-28 for Mederos and one judge (Solimar Miranda) had it 29-28 for Padilla. With the deduction applied correctly, the official outcome became a majority draw.
Fight recap
The fight was a stand-up battle. Padilla kept heavy pressure and high striking volume. Mederos landed some strong shots too, including an elbow that opened a cut and bloodyed Padilla.
In the third round, referees deducted one point from Mederos for an eye poke. That penalty became the center of the scoring error when the deduction did not appear to be reflected on the judges’ cards during the initial tally.
Fighter backgrounds and recent runs
Padilla came into this bout riding a seven-fight win streak and was 4-0 in the UFC. He last fought Ismael Bonfim in November and scored a second-round finish.
Mederos entered the fight on a nine-fight win streak with an 11-1 professional record. He was 3-0 inside the UFC before this night and had most recently beaten Mark Choinski at UFC 316.
| Fighter | Recent Result |
|---|---|
| Chris Padilla | Majority draw (initially announced as Padilla win). Previously: 2nd-round finish of Ismael Bonfim (Nov). |
| MarQuel Mederos | Majority draw (after correction). Previously: Win over Mark Choinski at UFC 316. |
Reaction and context
The scoring mistake drew criticism and mockery from fans and fighters online. Mistakes like this fuel frustration about judging and officiating in MMA.
Officials updated the result on the broadcast and released corrected scorecards. The incident overshadowed what had been a close and competitive fight between two rising fighters in the division.
