UFC 249 results: Justin Gaethje rocks Tony Ferguson in dominant upset win

Dan Bernstein

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UFC 249 results: Justin Gaethje rocks Tony Ferguson in dominant upset win image

Justin Gaethje pummeled Tony Ferguson in their UFC 249 interim lightweight slugfest Saturday night, not letting up until he was crowned victorious over his bloody opponent in the middle of the fifth round.

Gaethje, who stepped into the fight because Khabib Nurmagomedov was unable to participate, shook Ferguson in the early going with a series of powerful left hooks. He took a tough uppercut to the chin in the second round that caused a brief wobble, but as the bout continued, he avoided serious trouble while wearing down Ferguson.

Gaethje declined the interim title belt he had just earned, saying he would wait for the real one.

Earlier in the evening, Henry Cejudo defeated Dominick Cruz by TKO to win the bantamweight title. Cejudo, 33, announced his retirement from the UFC after his win.

Sporting News tracked live updates and highlights from UFC 249, including the Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje main event and the rest of the fight card.

MORE: Francis Ngannou KOs Jairzinho Rozenstruik in 20 seconds

UFC 249 live updates, results from main card

(All times Eastern)

Justin Gaethje def. Tony Ferguson by TKO

1:02 a.m.: GAETHJE WINS BY TKO. An accumulation of hits finally gets to Ferguson.

1 a.m.: Gaethje just needs to avoid catastrophe over the final three minutes of the round to win. He's been dominant.

12:57 a.m.: End of the fourth round. Somehow, Ferguson is still standing.

12:55 a.m.: Gaethje rocks Ferguson again, and that one might have stuck. Ferguson really wobbled there.

12:51 a.m.: End of the third round. Despite stumbling from that second-round uppercut, Gaethje has been the better fighter tonight. Hit Ferguson with so many nice left-handed counters.

12:49 a.m.: Gaethje is stepping up the pressure once again. Ferguson's face is a mess.

12:48 a.m.: Ferguson has some swelling around one of his eyes, which could increasingly impair his vision as this fight progresses.

12:45 a.m.: Now Ferguson lands a huge punch! A nasty uppercut to the chin. That's how the second round ends. This is a good one so far.

12:44 a.m.: Ferguson is eating shots to his face that would put others to sleep. Can he keep eating them long enough to tire Gaethje?

12:42 a.m.: Gaethje has the clear advantage right now.

12:39 a.m.: End of the first round. Two hard left hooks in quick succession from Gaethje give him the momentum.

12:37 a.m.: Gaethje is swinging big in this first round. He's landed a couple of those punches and shown his knockout intentions.

12:33 a.m.: The final fight of the night is underway.

12:25 a.m.: Ferguson and Gaethje make their entrances.

Henry Cejudo def. Dominick Cruz by TKO

12:15 a.m.: Cejudo announces his retirement following his victory.

12:10 a.m.: Cejudo knocks Cruz over with a knee straight to Cruz's head and follows with a series of punches that leads the ref to stop the action. Cejudo retains his title. The decision to end things there was somewhat controversial.

12:08 a.m.: A cut opens up on Cejudo's forehead after his head comes together with Cruz.

12:06 a.m.: Cejudo keeps chopping away with leg kicks. Nothing devastating yet, though.

12:02 a.m.: End of the first round. Strong work from Cejudo so far.

Midnight: Cejudo withstands a high knee and momentarily takes down Cruz with a nice counter.

11:58 p.m.: Lots of dancing in the opening minute. First connection doesn't come until the point the previous fight on this card was already over.

11:57 p.m.: The first round between Cejudo and Cruz is underway.

11:45 p.m.: Time for some bantamweight title fun. The fighters are making their entrances.

Francis Ngannou def. Jairzinho Rozenstruik by KO

11:33 p.m.: IT'S OVER RIGHT AWAY. NGANNOU STUNS ROZENSTRUIK IN 20 SECONDS.

11:23 p.m.: One more clash of heavyweights before our pair of title fights. Will we get another knockout?

Calvin Kattar def. Jeremy Stephens by KO

11:08 p.m.: Kattar wins by second-round KO! Got him with the elbow.

11:03 p.m.: End of the first round.

11:02 p.m. Stephens lands a crushing kick to the leg. Kattar lands a powerful right hand to the face.

11:01 p.m.: Stephens has been the aggressor so far as the fighters feel each other out.

10:57 p.m.: The second contest of the main card is underway.

Greg Hardy def. Yorgan de Castro by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

10:41 p.m.: Hardy wins by unanimous decision. De Castro showed very little after the first round. He says he injured his foot.

10:40 p.m.: End of third round. This will come down to a judges' decision.

10:38 p.m.: De Castro slips and Hardy gives him the business for about 30 seconds with a steady drum of punches to the legs.

10:35 p.m.: Hardy comes out of the break with a huge right-handed swing. De Castro is trying to follow instructions from his corner to keep up his kicks to Hardy's weakened lower body.

10:34 p.m.: End of second round.

10:32 p.m.: De Castro is sitting back more in the second round. Unclear if it's strategic or if he's hurt. (UPDATE: It appears he was hurt.)

10:28 p.m.: End of the first round. Both fighters took damage, but Hardy's left leg might have received the most significant blow. These guys have a stupid amount of power behind each swing. It wouldn't be surprising if one finds a knockout soon.

10:27 p.m.: Some frenetic action late in the first round brings Hardy into the fight. He'd taken multiple strikes to the legs without responding before landing a couple of shots up high.

10:22 p.m.: The first round is underway!

10:16 p.m.: These empty arena walkouts are going to feel weird all night.

10:10 p.m.: The main card will get underway soon following several entertaining preliminary contests. Hardy vs. De Castro will be up first.

Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje undercard results

Anthony Pettis def. Donald Cerrone by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

The third round of that fight was crazy. Cerrone was undeterred after being poked in the eye, and Pettis somehow stayed on his feet after taking a kick to his face. Pettis claims victory over a competitor he's built a strong relationship with over the past decade.

Aleksei Oleinik def. Fabricio Werdum by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Credit to Werdum for recovering from a poor start, but the judges determine his third-round rally didn't quite make up for his early struggles.

Carla Esparza def. Michelle Waterson by split decision (30-27, 27-30, 29-28)

Waterson appeared surprised by the decision after a neck-and-neck battle.

Vicente Luque def.  Niko Price by TKO

Heck of a fight there. Price landed some big-time blows, including an early kick to Luque's face, and started the third round in control. Luque landed the decisive strike, though, with a late hook that sent his opponent to the ground.

Bryce Mitchell def. Charles Rosa by unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-24)

Ryan Spann def. Sam Alvey by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

What time does UFC 249 start tonight?

  • Date: Saturday, May 9
  • UFC 249 time: 6:30 p.m. ET | 3:30 p.m. PT
  • Main card:10 p.m. ET | 7 p.m. PT
  • Ferguson vs. Gaethje: 12:15 a.m. ET (approx.)

Fight fans are in for a big night of action Saturday with 11 bouts over a span of more than six hours. The preliminary fights are scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. ET, followed by the main card at 10 p.m. ET.

Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje are expected to step into the Octagon shortly after midnight ET to close out the night in style, in a matchup that will determine the interim lightweight title.

MORE: UFC 249 betting odds, advice for Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje card

UFC 249 fight card

Main card

  • Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title 
  • Henry Cejudo vs. Dominick Cruz for the bantamweight title
  • Francis Ngannou vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik; heavyweights
  • Jeremy Stephens vs. Calvin Kattar; featherweights
  • Greg Hardy vs. Yorgan de Castro; heavyweights

Preliminary card

  • Donald Cerrone vs. Anthony Pettis; welterweights
  • Aleksei Oleinik vs. Fabricio Werdum; heavyweights
  • Carla Esparza vs. Michelle Waterson; women's strawweights

Early preliminary card

  • Vicente Luque vs. Niko Price; welterweights
  • Bryce Mitchell vs. Charles Rosa; featherweights
  • Ryan Spann vs. Sam Alvey; light heavyweights

Dan Bernstein