Jean Matsumoto

Matsumoto stayed composed through all three rounds in Baku and left with a unanimous decision over the dangerous Bekzat Almakhan, a win that nudged his record to 18-2. It mattered because the Brazilian had already shown he could win close UFC fights, but this one confirmed he could also neutralize a heavier-handed opponent without needing a submission to do it.

Key moments

• Matsumoto won a unanimous decision after 15 minutes.
• The result moved him to 18-2 as a professional.
• It was his second UFC win in three fights after the split-decision loss to Farid Basharat.
• The fight extended a record already proven over multiple five-round distances before the UFC.

Farid Basharat edged Matsumoto by split decision in a close UFC bout that showed how narrow the margins can be at bantamweight once the grappling exchanges are even. The loss is useful context because it came right before the Baku rebound and because it did not knock Matsumoto off his style at all; he remained willing to fight long, technical rounds afterward.

Key moments

• Basharat won a split decision after three rounds.
• The fight marked Matsumoto's second UFC defeat.
• It followed the split-decision win over Miles Johns from the previous summer.
• Matsumoto answered it immediately with the unanimous decision over Almakhan.

The split decision over Miles Johns was one of Matsumoto's more valuable UFC results because it came against a durable, experienced bantamweight who forced him to work for every round. Rather than needing a guillotine or front-headlock sequence, Matsumoto proved he could bank minutes and still find a close win.

Key moments

• Matsumoto won a split decision after 15 minutes.
• It was his first UFC victory to come via split scorecards.
• The Johns fight followed the split-decision loss to Rob Font earlier in 2025.
• The result set up the later Basharat booking as another step-up matchup.

Rob Font handed Matsumoto a split-decision loss in a fight that showed both how competitive the Brazilian already was and how thin the scoring margins become against veteran bantamweights. That setback did not crater his run, but it did establish the sort of technical, round-for-round fights he would keep having in the division.

Key moments

• Font won a split decision after three rounds.
• It was only Matsumoto's second professional loss at the time.
• The fight followed the unanimous decision over Brad Katona from late 2024.
• Matsumoto later rebounded by edging Miles Johns and then beating Almakhan in Baku.

Matsumoto outworked Brad Katona over three rounds and left with a unanimous decision, the kind of tidy UFC scorecard win that reinforced how reliable his pace and control had become. By then he was already far removed from being only a guillotine prospect; he was proving he could stack rounds against experienced opposition too.

Key moments

• Matsumoto won a unanimous decision after three rounds.
• The fight followed his successful UFC debut against Dan Argueta.
• It added another long-distance win to a career that had already gone five rounds three times.
• The result helped position him for the Rob Font matchup the next February.

Matsumoto's UFC debut turned into a late rescue act after Argueta's wrestling had kept him under pressure for much of the fight. With seconds left in round two, Matsumoto jumped on a guillotine, rolled through to finish it in mount, and forced both the tap and a brief blackout from Argueta.

Key moments

• Argueta landed repeated takedowns and may have been on his way to a decision if the bout reached round three.
• Matsumoto hurt Argueta with right hands as the wrestling pace began to create openings.
• When Argueta shot late, Matsumoto jumped guard on the guillotine and finished it at 4:59 of round two.
• The submission kept Matsumoto unbeaten and gave him a dramatic first UFC win.

Matsumoto earned his UFC contract by staying sharp for all three rounds against the durable Kasey Tanner. He consistently outworked Tanner with low kicks, punch combinations, and enough takedown defense to keep control of the fight's rhythm.

Key moments

• Matsumoto chopped Tanner's lead leg from the opening round and kept that weapon active all night.
• He mixed straight punches and kicks more cleanly than Tanner across most of the striking exchanges.
• Tanner found occasional late takedowns, but Matsumoto repeatedly scrambled up and denied long control stretches.
• The official verdict was a unanimous decision, 30-27 and 29-28 twice, after three rounds.

Matsumoto returned to one of his most reliable finishing weapons in the LFA cage by submitting Basilio with a second-round guillotine. The finish came exactly three minutes into the round and kept his pre-UFC rise moving with another clean stoppage.

Key moments

• The fight reached round two, giving Matsumoto time to settle before forcing the grappling finish.
• He ended the bout with a guillotine choke rather than riding out a decision.
• The tap came at 3:00 of the second round.
• It was part of a stretch where guillotines had become one of the signatures of his record.

Santos pushed Matsumoto through a full fifteen minutes, but Matsumoto still came away with a unanimous decision in another disciplined performance. By this point in his career, long fights were becoming as common as his front-headlock finishes.

Key moments

• Matsumoto won the fight on the scorecards rather than needing a late submission.
• The bout showed his ability to manage pace over three complete rounds.
• All three judges scored it for Matsumoto by unanimous decision.
• The win set up the later LFA appearance against Marlon Basilio.

Matsumoto headlined Fight Pro Championship and closed the show late in round two with a technical guillotine submission of Luan Matheus. The finish came with only seconds left in the round, another example of how comfortable he was carrying pressure deep before locking on the neck.

Key moments

• The fight lasted to the final seconds of round two before Matsumoto found the finish.
• The official result was a technical submission via guillotine choke at 4:53 of the round.
• It gave Matsumoto another headlining win over championship-style pacing.
• The bout kept his unbeaten run moving toward the 2022 five-round win over Carlos Marques.

Matsumoto handled another five-round assignment against Wanderley Levandovski and took a unanimous decision after 25 minutes. The win underlined a pattern that would hold up for years: he did not need chaos to win, only a steady, disciplined pace.

Key moments

• The fight went all five rounds, another early proof of Matsumoto's championship-distance gas tank.
• He earned a unanimous decision rather than a narrow split or a late finish.
• The result came against an experienced regional opponent in a billed main-event setting.
• It built on the five-round title win he had already logged against Andre Amaral Azevedo.

Matsumoto captured another long-form regional win when he outlasted Andre Amaral Azevedo over five rounds in the SFT cage. The unanimous decision gave him a title-fight-style result that pointed to his maturity far earlier than his age suggested.

Key moments

• The bout was contested over five rounds and reached the final horn.
• Matsumoto won on the scorecards by unanimous decision.
• This was one of the first strong signs that he could be trusted over championship distance.
• The win helped anchor the part of his record that made later UFC split decisions less surprising.

Matsumoto kept stacking controlled minutes against Barbosa and earned another unanimous decision in 2019. These scorecard wins mattered because they sat between his submission finishes and showed a more rounded prospect taking shape.

Key moments

• Matsumoto went the full three rounds and still won clearly on the cards.
• The victory came during a year where he mixed decisions and submissions in quick succession.
• It showed he could stay measured rather than forcing mistakes that were not there.
• The result helped bridge the gap between his early Batalha finishes and later five-round SFT wins.

Miranda pushed into the second round before Matsumoto found one of the more distinctive chokes on his ledger, an anaconda at 4:07. It was another reminder that his submission arsenal extended beyond the guillotine-centered reputation that came later.

Key moments

• The fight reached round two before Matsumoto locked up the finish.
• He won by anaconda choke at 4:07 of the second round.
• The result diversified a record that would soon include brabo, arm-triangle, and guillotine stoppages.
• It continued a fast early-career run of inside-the-distance wins.

Matsumoto needed less than three minutes to submit Marcelo Willian with a technical brabo choke. The finish was another early-career sign that he could attack the neck from multiple positions instead of relying on one repeat setup.

Key moments

• The bout ended in the opening round at 2:47.
• Matsumoto earned the finish with a technical brabo choke.
• The win came only weeks after his third-round TKO over Fabio Perpetua.
• It kept his 2019 momentum rolling before the later anaconda over Guilherme Miranda.

Perpetua gave Matsumoto one of the longer fights of his early run, but Matsumoto still found a late stoppage with punches in round three. The finish showed that his offense held up deep into the fight and was not limited to first-round submission bursts.

Key moments

• This was one of the few early bouts that pushed Matsumoto well into the third round.
• He closed the fight with punches at 4:09 of round three.
• The result highlighted a striking finish on a record better known for chokes.
• It set the stage for the quick brabo-choke win over Marcelo Willian two weeks later.

Matsumoto kept adding new finishes to the ledger by submitting Caio Santos with an arm-triangle late in the second round. Even this early, the pattern was clear: if a fight hit the mat and stayed there long enough, Matsumoto usually found a neck or arm to attack.

Key moments

• The submission came at 4:35 of round two, just before the bell.
• Matsumoto used an arm-triangle rather than one of his later-familiar guillotines.
• The fight reinforced how varied his grappling finishes already were in 2018.
• It preceded his third-round TKO win over Rodrigo Ayala later that same month.

Ayala lasted into the third round, but Matsumoto still broke through and finished him with punches at 3:05. It was another useful early entry because it showed his fights could trend late and still end with him on top.

Key moments

• The bout reached the third round before Matsumoto forced the stoppage.
• The official result was a TKO by punches at 3:05.
• That made it another non-submission finish on an otherwise grappling-heavy early record.
• The win helped establish the balanced finishing profile he still carries.

Matsumoto's first recorded professional win ended quickly, as he stopped Peterson Paulo Santana Silva with punches in just 76 seconds. It was a simple beginning, but it already hinted at the balanced finishing mix that would define the rest of his rise.

Key moments

• This was the first win listed on Matsumoto's professional record.
• He finished the fight by TKO with punches at 1:16 of the opening round.
• The quick stoppage showed early comfort forcing offense rather than waiting for a long read.
• It became the first step in a long unbeaten run that stretched into his UFC debut.