Not a single media member agreed with the scorecards for Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Carlos Leal.
At UFC 308 this past October, Fakhretdinov (23-1-1 MMA, 5-0-1 UFC) picked up a controversial unanimous decision win over Leal (21-6 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in the first fight of the night. Every media member (h/t MMA Decisions) scored the fight in favor of Leal, with the majority awarding him all three rounds.
But instead, it was Fakhretdinov who got his hand raised. Not only did he win, but he was handed an egregious 30-27 score from one of the judges, which sent the commentators into a frenzy.
Round 1 started with a few Fakhretdinov leg kicks before he landed a takedown. Leal worked his way back up right away, as the pair exchanged strikes while clinched up against the cage. On the break, both men threw big shots, before Fakhretdinov ducked under for another successful takedown. However, Leal was quick to make it back up again. Leal landed a big left on the break, followed by three calf kicks. For the remaining minute of the round, Leal had the seemingly fatigued Fakhretdinov backing up. Stats revealed that Leal slightly outstruck Fakhretdinov in Round 1, but it was Fakhretdinov’s body language that swayed the momentum towards Leal. Two of the three judges gave Fakhretdinov Round 1.
In Round 2, Fakhretdinov came out with a sense of urgency, but Leal fired back with a big leg kick. Leal stuffed another Fakhretdinov takedown as he continued to press forward and find a home for the leg kick. Fakhretdinov landed a few nice jabs, but was countered by lunging rights and big leg kicks from Leal. Fakhretdinov attempted another takedown, but was met with a Leal knee. After Leal broke free from the clinch, Fakhretdinov landed a solid right. The pair traded in the pocket, but Leal was landing the cleaner shots. With seconds remaining in the round, Leal landed a leg kick which got Fakhretdinov’s attention, but Fakhretdinov was able to finally land a takedown late.
Round 3 started with another failed Fakhretdinov takedown attempt, as Leal used a front headlock to shuck him off and rip to the body. Fakhretdinov shot for another takedown, but Leal continued to defend well. Leal then decided to surprise Fakhretdinov with a takedown of his own, but was only able to keep him down briefly. Leal backed up Fakhretdinov up with a combination, and proceeded to defend another takedown. Fakhretdinov landed a big right, followed by a jab as the pair continued to slug it out until the final second.
The fight wasn’t a landslide for Leal, but with Fakhretdinov going 2-19 in takedown attempts, getting outstruck overall, and eating the harder shots, it’s a tough sell to give him the fight. Leal had Fakhretdinov frustrated and working throughout. The Brazilian was pressing forward for the majority of the fight, threw hard leg kicks which visibly took a toll on Fakhretdinov, and landed the more significant shots overall in what was an impressive showing on short notice.
