Dos Santos beats Werdum in battle of ex-UFC champs

In a battle of former UFC heavyweight champions, Junior dos Santos got the job done.

Dos Santos defeated Fabricio Werdum via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-27) in the Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 5 main event Friday night in Jacksonville.

It was a relatively timid fight throughout 15 minutes, with Dos Santos picking Werdum apart with punches and low kicks. He wobbled Werdum in the second round and left his face bloodied by the end of the contest.

Dos Santos and Werdum competed under the unified MMA rules but without gloves. The event was promoted by former UFC star Jorge Masvidal.

This was the second time the two Brazilian legends met in the cage. In his UFC debut in 2008, Dos Santos knocked Werdum out in the first round at UFC 90.

Dos Santos, 39, got back on track after losing his last five fights, which included his final four in the UFC and then an injury defeat to Yorgan De Castro in Eagle FC last year. Before Friday, Dos Santos' most recent MMA victory was a TKO of Derrick Lewis in 2019.

Werdum, 46, hadn't stepped into the cage since a no-contest against Renan Ferreira under the PFL banner in 2021.

Dos Santos held the UFC heavyweight title from 2011-12, while Werdum was champion from 2015-16.