What is Majority Decision in the UFC?

A majority decision in the UFC is when two of the judges score the contest in favor of one of the fighters as the winner, while the third rules the fight a draw. Such a bout is ultimately ruled a win for the fighter favored by the majority of the judges.

The most recent example of a majority decision took place in last night's Vera vs. Cruz fight card. The co-main event of the evening saw Nate Landwehr edge past David Onama via a majority decision.

Watch Landwehr vs. Onama's official decision below:

Judges Junichiro Kamijo and Derel Cleary scored the contest a 29-27 in favor of Nate Landwehr, while Michael Bell scored the fight as a 28-28 draw.

Landwehr vs.Onama Official scorecard (image courtesy @ufc.com)

Majority decisions are also common in the world of boxing. The November 2018 superfight between Canelo Alvarez and Gennadiy Golovkin saw the Mexican win the bout via a majority decision.

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What are the major types of decisions in a UFC fight?

Every time a fight goes the distance and judges come into the equation, a plethora of possible outcomes can be expected.

Unanimous decision wins, split decision wins, split draws, majority decisions or majority draws are possible outcomes of a UFC event when judges' score cards are involved.

As the name suggests, a unanimous decision win occurs when all three judges agree that one fighter has triumphed over the other.

Amanda Nunes's recent victory over Julianna Pena at UFC 277 is a prime example of a unanimous decision win.

Watch Nunes vs. Pena 2 official decision below:

A split decision win is the result of two of the three judges giving the fight to one the athlete, while the third judge goes the other way.

Reigning middleweight champion Israel Adesanya won his first meeting with Marvin Vettori via a split decision.

Splits draws happen when one judge scores the bout for one athlete and the second judge gives the fight to the other fighter while the third rules the fight a draw.

The heavyweight banger between Ion Cutelaba and Dustin Jacoby at Vegas 25 fight card ended in a split draw.

A majority decision is announced when a fighter wins a bout as a result of two of the three judges scoring the contest in his/her favor while the third judge scores the fight a draw.

Similarly, a majority draw is a result of two judges scoring the fight as a draw, while the other clearly favors one of the fighters. The UFC 256 flyweight title bout between Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno ended in a majority draw.

Watch Brandon Moreno talk about his majority draw against Deiveson Figueiredo below: