UFC Fight Night 32 results: Cezar Ferreira edges Daniel Sarafian via split

GOIANIA, Brazil – They waited a long time for this fight to become a reality, so maybe it’s only fitting that Cezar Ferreira and Daniel Sarafian made use of all 15 minutes of their cage time in a back-and-forth battle that was originally slated as the finale of the first “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil” in 2012.

In the end, two of the three judges sided with Ferreira, who took home the split-decision victory (28-29, 30-27, 30-28), much to the dismay of the crowd.

The middleweight bout co-headlined today’s UFC Fight Night 32 event at Goiania Arena in Goiania, Goias, Brazil. It aired on FOX Sports 1 following prelims on MMAjunkie.com.

Most of the fight saw the shorter, stockier Sarafian trying to bull his way in for one power punch after another. Ferreira, meanwhile, avoided them when he could, ate them when he had to, and used takedowns and stifling top control to slow the action down in the later rounds.

“He’s a very tough guy, a very strong guy, and I tried to do some moves and I couldn’t do what I had to do,” Ferreira said via a translator after the bout, before assuring the dissatisfied crowd that both he and Sarafian “will make you very happy” in the future.

Ferreira (7-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) remains perfect in the UFC thanks to the narrow decision win. Sarafian (8-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) has now lost two of his past three.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 32 results include:

• Cezar Ferreira def. Daniel Sarafian via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-28)
• Rafael Cavalcante def. Igor Pokrajac via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:18
• Brandon Thatch def. Paulo Thiago via submission (strikes) – Round 1, 2:10
• Ryan Laflare def. Santiago Ponzinibbio via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Jeremy Stephens def. Rony Jason via KO (kick, punch) – Round 1, 0:40
• Sam Sicilia def. Godofredo Pepey via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:42
• Omari Akhmedov def. Thiago Perpetuo via KO (punches) – Round 1, 3:31
• Thiago Tavares def. Justin Salas via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:38
• Adriano Martins def. Daron Cruickshank via submission (kimura) – Round 2, 2:49
• Dustin Ortiz def. Jose Maria via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 3:19

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 32, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

John Morgan contributed to this report on-site in Brazil.