In the wake of their recent losses, both Caio Borralho and Reinier de Ridder stepped into the cage determined to reset their momentum. A win was critical for both middleweight contenders to improve their current standings. In the end, it was Borralho who emerged victorious. However, not everyone was sold on his latest triumph.

Quite a few fans were upset, with some even claiming that de Ridder had been cheated out of a fair chance at victory. Stepping into the cage five months after the heavy underdog Brendan Allen scored a knockout win in their UFC Vancouver headliner, the Dutch fighter hoped to get back in the win column. With a second consecutive loss, his position in the division now appears uncertain.

With all three judges turning in identical 30-27 scorecards, the footage shared by Championship Rounds featured Herb Dean lifting Borralho’s hand.

“The winner by unanimous decision,” Bruce Buffer’s voice boomed inside the arena. “Caio ‘The Natural’ Borralho.”

As the Brazilian fighter walked toward him, dejection showed clearly on Reinier de Ridder’s face. The fight opened with both men trading strikes in the center. De Ridder hurt Caio Borralho early with a punch, but the latter fired back with power shots that rattled de Ridder more than once.

In the second round, Borralho pressured forward, landed cleaner punches, and defended a takedown before de Ridder briefly gained control on the ground. The momentum shifted slightly when de Ridder began landing more jabs and building volume. But Borralho remained confident and effective with his striking.

In the final round, Borralho hurt de Ridder again, secured a takedown, and controlled him on the mat while threatening submissions. In the end, that was enough for judges to score the bout in the Brazilian’s favor. However, the clean sweep for Borralho despite RDR landing some solid jabs and knees was too difficult for many to swallow.

Caio Borralho’s decision victory sets off debate

To one, the verdict was clear: “Rdr got brutally robbed, wtf.” de Ridder’s early progress, mixing kicks and punches to disrupt the Brazilian’s rhythm and landing shots after the brief pause for a low blow, likely gave some the impression that the Dutch fighter was edging ahead.

Echoing that sentiment, another questioned the scoring: “30-27???? What are the judges smoking?” That reaction mirrored others who felt the match was closer than the scorecards suggested. “It honestly felt like a draw,” one user remarked. With not a single round scored in the Dutch veteran’s favor, the response aptly captured the sentiment.

But not everyone disagreed with the verdict. For instance, one fan wrote, “It was a good decision. RDR sucks, and he’s a quitter who was falling all over the place even though Caio wasn’t even landing it clean.” While de Ridder had moments of success, as the fight progressed, it became clear which fighter was landing the more effective shots. Despite the back-and-forth action, Borralho found an opening and controlled the bout. de Ridder’s efforts failed to make any significant impact.

A more nuanced take followed: “We had it 29-28. Back-and-forth fight with both fighters seemingly exhausted by the end. Borralho ultimately landed the more powerful shots and had important control time in the final round. “It was not a draw. But labelling it a ‘robbery’ just because de Ridder had early successes before Borralho regained control may stretch the argument.

In close fights, strong reactions from fans are common, especially when they see their favorite fighter suffer a loss, emotions can cloud judgment, and some begin to feel he deserved a better result. The better way to judge it is by breaking down each round, not by how it felt in the moment.