"Felt like I won the first two rounds" - Matt Brown says he held back in third round against Bryan Barberena

In the wake of his unsuccessful outing against Bryan Barberena at UFC Columbus, Matt Brown took to social media to issue an update regarding his mindset in the fight.

Brown and Barberena produced an absolute slugfest for the fans at UFC Columbus. The duo walked away from the cage $50,000 richer as they earned the 'Fight of the Night' bonus for their exhilarating encounter.

Brown was slapped with a split decision loss as the judges picked Barberena as the victor. In the aftermath, the UFC veteran took to Twitter to reveal that as the fight progressed, he was convinced that he had won the first two rounds. This prompted him to take his foot off the gas in the third frame of their clash.

Nonetheless, Brown didn't take anything away from Barberena and commended his performance in his post-fight statement on Twitter.

"Thanks to everyone for all the support. Felt like I won the first two rounds so held back in third. Big mistake apparently. Big respect to Barberena he’s a real f**king soldier"

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Matt Brown is 3-2 in his last five fights

Including his latest loss to Bryan Barberena, Matt Brown has now conceded three defeats in his last five fights. His most recent win came against Dhiego Lima at UFC Vegas 29 back in June 2021.

The 41-year-old has clearly struggled with consistency in recent years. His win over Lima came after a loss to Carlos Condit, which he conceded at UFC Fight Island 7 in January 2021 via unanimous decision. He currently has a record of 25-19, with a UFC record of 16-13.

Regardless of the unsuccessful stint against Barberena, 'The Immortal' managed to etch his name in UFC and MMA folklore. With his UFC Columbus outing, Brown further extended his record for most appearances inside the octagon in the history of the UFC welterweight division. He has featured in 29 bouts in the promotion, with Thiago Alves coming in with 26 appearances in the second position on the list.