The UFC Freedom 250 event packed plenty of punches and knockout finishes, including Brazilian Mauricio Ruffy defeating American Michael Chandler in the first round.
Chandler tried to strike early in the round, going for a double leg takedown, but couldn't achieve it. Ruffy was able to connect with multiple shots, including a long jab, and later a right hand followed by a spinning kick.
Ruffy kept up his attack, delivering an uppercut and then pursuing Chandler around the cage as he attempted to retreat to survive the round. However, the Brazilian fighter delivered a liver punch and spin kick, before landing multiple punches to Chandler on the mat.
With Chandler down and Ruffy attacking more, the referee had no choice but to get involved and end the fight early in favor of Ruffy.
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Following the quick knockout loss in the first round, UFC legend Chael Sonnen sent a six-word message reacting to what he saw from Chandler.
"Great career. Let’s wrap it up," Sonnen wrote on X in his advice for Chandler.
"Big fan of Mike but yeah I felt sad watching that," someone replied to Sonnen's tweet.
"This tweet works for Lewis too unfortunately," a commenter wrote, referring to Derrick Lewis, who also lost via knockout in the second round of his fight to Josh Hokit.
"Chandler and Lewis both should have laid down the gloves," another commenter agreed.
With the loss, the 40-year-old Chandler is now 23-11 for his career. He's dropped four straight fights, including losses to Paddy Pimblett at UFC 314, Charles Oliveira at UFC 309, and Dustin Poirier at UFC 281 in 2022.
Chandler is also 4-6 in his last 10 fights, and with that, it seems this could be the time to call it a career. There's no reason to push on at this point, as it could result in further embarrassment and injury.
Meanwhile, Ruffy's future looks bright, as his UFC Freedom 250 win is his ninth in his past 10 fights. The 29-year-old's most recent loss was three fights ago to Benoît Saint-Denis at 2025's UFC Fight Night: Imavov vs. Borralho in Paris, France.
In addition to winning his fight, he won his girlfriend's heart, as he proposed to her after his big victory.
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