The first fight of the UFC Vegas 109 Prelims contained some bizarre scorecards.
In a fight that flourished on extremely short-notice, middle weights squared Eric McConico and Cody Brundage in a slightly heavyweight fight to start UFC Vegas 109 at the Apex. The map was led by a middleweight fight between rising contenders Roman Dolidze and Anthony Hernandez.
During 2025, MMA jury members stood under a microscope in the eyes of fans, experts and fellow hunters. Although the calendar year has yielded a number of great moments, some high -profile attacks have yielded some controversial score from the jury members.
UFC Vegas 109 was no different.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Eric Mcconico earns the first UFC victory in controversial split decision to start UFC Vegas 109
Brundage and McConico had an eventful fight to start the UFC Vegas 109 Prelims. It was a back and forth fight over three rounds, with both hunters who gases in the last minutes.
Brunagee had early success with good clinch work and striking in time. But Mcconico, which was brutally eliminated in his UFC debut, had a number of big moments at the feet.
As the fight progressed, Mcconico had the larger moments on the feet, repeatedly stunning Brunge with beautifully timed right hands and high stairs. But many believed that McConico's Late Rally would not be enough to get the nod on the jury's score cards after Brunge unpacked and McConico had statistically hit the first two rounds.
Two of the jury members saw things differently and Mcconico ran away with his first UFC victory by a split decision. The score cards were everywhere, as you can see below.
#UFCVEGAS109 Official Scorecard: Cody Brundagee vs Eric Mcconico pic.twitter.com/Apsdmseuxr
– UFC News (@ufcnews) August 9, 2025
Brunge was visibly stunned by the result after demonstrably the better moments in the first two rounds of the fight. Mcconico won demonstrably round 3 with his pace and press the feet.
UFC fans become ballistic after bizarre scorecards lead to controversial UFC Vegas 109 kick -off result
After viewing McConico vs. Brunge did not stop fans the dubious scorecards while they flooded social media feeds.
“Horrig. That was clear for Brundage,” wrote a fan on X.
“This is absolutely waste,” said another.
“Ridiculous decision.”
“30-27 is a shame. Pre-written score card.”
“How did Mcconico won 2 hours around 2 hours. I looked at another fight?”
“Wow, that's terrible.”
“What a joke of a card.”
“Robbery LMFAO.”
“Tony Weeks is the only judge that should not be thrown from a bridge.”
“2 judges who give the most decisive round to the wrong hunter must be studied.”
“I have to fade every wrestler tonight if that is how Takedowns will be assessed.”
Brunge is now without a profit on his last two fights, after a majority decisions loss for Mansur Abdul-Malik in UFC Atlanta who was later destroyed into a draw. His last victory came through the first round knockout against Julian Marquez in March.
Mcconico earned his first UFC victory to get back on the right track after a loss in UFC Seattle in his debut.