UFC Fight Night 143: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw | Event Profile, Full Results & Legacy

Daniel Cornmeat
May 21
7 min read

1. Introduction

2. ESPN Era Begins — UFC’s New Broadcast Home

3. Quick Stats

4. Main Event: Cejudo’s 32-Second TKO of Dillashaw

5. Hardy’s DQ Debut, Cerrone’s FotN TKO & The Card

6. Full Results

7. Bonuses & Awards

8. Records & Milestones

9. Legacy & Impact

10. FAQ

Introduction

UFC Fight Night 143: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw took place on Saturday, January 19, 2019 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York — broadcast live on ESPN+ as the first event under the UFC’s five-year ESPN contract. The card drew 12,152 fans for a gate of $1,230,000. The main event was a UFC Flyweight Championship fight between champion Henry Cejudo and UFC Bantamweight Champion TJ Dillashaw, who had dropped down to challenge for the FW title.

Cejudo stopped Dillashaw by TKO at 0:32 of round one — the fifth fastest title fight stoppage in UFC history. Cejudo earned Performance of the Night. Alonzo Menifield earned Performance of the Night in his UFC debut. Donald Cerrone and Alexander Hernandez earned Fight of the Night. In the co-main event, Allen Crowder defeated Greg Hardy by disqualification after Hardy landed an illegal knee in round two — Hardy’s UFC debut. Dillashaw subsequently tested positive for EPO and received a two-year USADA suspension; the result was overturned to a No Contest.

ESPN Era Begins — UFC’s New Broadcast Home

The UFC’s five-year contract with ESPN and ESPN+ replaced the Fox Sports deal that had run from 2011 through the end of 2018. UFC Fight Night 143 was ESPN+ 1 — the first numbered event of the new era. ESPN+ is a streaming subscription service; the Brooklyn card’s production values and card depth reflected the UFC’s awareness that the debut event set the standard for the new broadcast relationship. The Barclays Center — a 19,000-capacity arena with a strong MMA event track record — provided a commercially credible debut venue.

Dillashaw’s move to flyweight was a competitive and commercial risk. No UFC BW champion had previously moved down to FW to challenge for that title. His stated motivations — proving himself as the sport’s most skilled technical striker, and proving he could make flyweight — were well-documented before Brooklyn. The EPO positive test that subsequently emerged raised the question of whether his extreme weight cut from BW to FW was facilitated by performance-enhancing substance use.

Quick Stats

📅 Date: Saturday, January 19, 2019 (ESPN+ 1 — FIRST EVENT UNDER UFC’S 5-YEAR ESPN CONTRACT)

📍 Venue: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York

👥 Attendance: 12,152

💰 Gate: $1,230,000

📺 Broadcast: ESPN+ (ESPN+ 1 — first event; free ESPN+ trial available; streaming-first debut)

🏆 Main Event: Henry Cejudo (c) vs. TJ Dillashaw — UFC FLW Championship (Dillashaw dropped from BW to FW to challenge; unprecedented BW-to-FW title challenge)

✅ Result: Cejudo def. Dillashaw via TKO (punches) — R1, 0:32 (PoN $50k; 5th FASTEST TITLE STOPPAGE in UFC history; Dillashaw later TESTED POSITIVE FOR EPO → 2-year USADA ban → result overturned to NO CONTEST)

Main Event: Cejudo’s 32-Second TKO of Dillashaw

Dillashaw’s game plan was built around leg kicks and movement — using his larger frame to establish range control and his technical striking to build output over rounds. Cejudo’s opening was an immediate blitz: he came forward with combinations from the opening exchange, caught Dillashaw with a combination that included a kick to the guard, and dropped him. The knockdown sequence produced multiple follow-up punches before the referee intervened at 0:32.

Dillashaw’s post-fight interview characterised the stoppage as unfortunate and maintained he had never stopped moving. The result’s EPO positive test context — revealed in the weeks following Brooklyn — reframed the competitive narrative: whether Dillashaw’s extreme weight cut was sustained by EPO use, and whether that use affected his early-round performance against Cejudo, became the central questions. USADA issued a two-year suspension; the New York State Athletic Commission also issued a one-year suspension.

Hardy’s DQ Debut, Cerrone’s FotN TKO & The Card

Greg Hardy’s UFC debut disqualification was one of the most discussed individual fight results of the 2019 UFC calendar. Hardy — a 30-year-old former NFL defensive end for the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys — had been contracted to the UFC despite a 2014 domestic violence conviction (later dropped when his accuser reportedly refused to cooperate). His controversial background made his UFC debut one of the year’s most commercially charged individual storylines. The illegal knee against Allen Crowder in round two produced the DQ within the first 12 seconds of his UFC career.

Donald Cerrone’s Fight of the Night TKO of Alexander Hernandez at 4:46 of round one with elbows was the Brooklyn card’s most technically precise individual result outside the title fight. Hernandez was a 23-year-old Texas LW with a 9-0 professional record; Cerrone’s elbow-based ground-and-pound finish demonstrated his continued LW finishing quality. Gregor Gillespie’s R2 TKO of Yancy Medeiros extended his unbeaten record. Alonzo Menifield’s debut PoN was a LHW finish that introduced a physical, forward-pressing LHW contender to the UFC audience.

Full Results

Main Card (ESPN+)

Henry Cejudo def. TJ Dillashaw — TKO (punches) — R1, 0:32 — FLW Title (PoN $50k; 5th fastest title stoppage; Dillashaw later TESTED POSITIVE EPO → 2-year ban → NC; FIRST ESPN+ EVENT)

Allen Crowder def. Greg Hardy — Disqualification (illegal knee) — R2, 2:28 — HW (HARDY’S UFC DEBUT — immediately DQ’d for illegal knee; former NFL DE Carolina Panthers/Dallas Cowboys; controversial background)

Gregor Gillespie def. Yancy Medeiros — TKO (punches) — R2, 4:59 — LW (Gillespie extending unbeaten LW record; 13-0)

Joseph Benavidez def. Dustin Ortiz — Unanimous Decision (29-28x3) — FLW (2 FLW bouts on main card; first time since TUF 24 Finale Dec 2016; FLW milestone)

Paige VanZant def. Rachael Ostovich — Submission (armbar) — R2, 1:50 — Women’s FLW

Glover Teixeira def. Karl Roberson — LHW (Teixeira building late-career LHW record)

Preliminary Card (ESPN+/ESPN)

Donald Cerrone def. Alexander Hernandez — TKO (elbows) — R1, 4:46 — LW (FotN $50k each; Cerrone ground-and-pound elbows of unbeaten 23-year-old Texas LW)

Ariane Lipski def. Joanne Calderwood — Women’s FLW (Lipski building FW career)

Alonzo Menifield def. Vinicius Moreira — LHW (PoN $50k; MENIFIELD’S UFC DEBUT; physical LHW finish)

Mario Bautista vs. Cory Sandhagen — BW (Sandhagen continuing win streak after Lincoln debut FotN; Sandhagen won)

Dennis Bermudez def. Te Edwards — FW

Belal Muhammad def. Geoff Neal — WW (Muhammad building WW career; future UFC WW champion at UFC 304 July 2024!)

Chance Rencountre def. Kyle Stewart — WW

Bonuses & Awards

🥇 Fight of the Night: Donald Cerrone + Alexander Hernandez — $50,000 each

🥇 Performance of the Night: Henry Cejudo + Alonzo Menifield — $50,000 each

Records & Milestones

• Cejudo’s 32-second TKO — 5th fastest title fight stoppage in UFC history.

• ESPN+ 1 — first event under the UFC’s 5-year ESPN contract.

• Dillashaw’s subsequent EPO positive test and 2-year USADA ban — result overturned to No Contest.

Legacy & Impact

Cejudo’s Brooklyn TKO of Dillashaw was the beginning of a FW+BW career phase that produced the UFC BW Championship at UFC 238 in June 2019 (over Marlon Moraes) and a BW title defense over Dominick Cruz at UFC 249 in May 2020. His simultaneous FW and BW championship — the ‘Triple C’ designation — was one of the most discussed individual athletic achievements in the sport’s 2019-2020 era.

Belal Muhammad’s Brooklyn preliminary win over Geoff Neal was an early step in the WW career that produced 11 consecutive UFC wins before the UFC WW Championship at UFC 304 in July 2024. Donald Cerrone’s Brooklyn FotN TKO of Hernandez was one of his most commercially visible individual ESPN-era performances. Greg Hardy’s debut DQ was the beginning of a controversial UFC HW career that produced several wins before the physical limitations of his MMA development became apparent.

FAQ

What was Dillashaw’s EPO situation?

Erythropoietin (EPO) is a hormone that stimulates red blood cell production, increasing oxygen delivery to muscles. In endurance sports, EPO is a well-documented performance-enhancing substance. In combat sports, it has been used to aid extreme weight cutting — the high-altitude simulation effect allowing fighters to cut more weight with less cardiovascular cost. USADA’s test of Dillashaw before Brooklyn returned a positive result for recombinant human EPO. His 2-year suspension was announced in April 2019. The result was overturned to a No Contest by the New York State Athletic Commission.

Why was Hardy’s debut so controversial?

Hardy was a former Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys defensive end who had pleaded guilty in 2014 to domestic violence charges against a former girlfriend. The conviction was later vacated when the accuser reportedly refused to cooperate with the prosecution at the appeal. The NFL had suspended Hardy for the 2015 season. His UFC signing generated significant media and public discussion about whether a fighter with his background should be given a platform. His debut DQ for an illegal knee made his first UFC appearance end in disqualification of his own action.

What made the 32-second stoppage historically significant?

At 0:32 of round one, Cejudo’s TKO of Dillashaw was the fifth fastest title fight stoppage in UFC history. The sequence — Dillashaw opening with leg kicks, Cejudo catching him with a combination, the knockdown, the follow-up punches, and the referee’s intervention — occurred in a 32-second window that compressed what was supposed to be a five-round championship fight into a single initial exchange. The stoppage’s legitimacy was debated; Dillashaw characterised it as early, but the knockdown and follow-up damage were clear.

What was Gregor Gillespie’s position?

Gillespie was a 31-year-old Niagara Falls, New York LW who had gone 13-0 professionally before Brooklyn. His Cornell University wrestling background produced a grappling-first style that had produced five consecutive UFC wins. His R2 TKO of Medeiros at 4:59 — last second of round two — extended his record to 14-0. His subsequent UFC career produced one more win before his first career loss to Kevin Lee at UFC 244 in November 2019.

What was the Benavidez vs. Ortiz context?

Having two FLW bouts on the main card was historically unusual: the Brooklyn card became the first UFC event since the TUF 24 Finale in December 2016 to feature multiple men’s FLW bouts on a single main card. Benavidez’s decision over Ortiz maintained his FLW title contendership. The UFC was simultaneously managing the Dillashaw vs. Cejudo title fight at FW and the ongoing FLW divisional calendar.

What was Belal Muhammad’s Brooklyn context?

Muhammad was a 27-year-old Chicago welterweight who had gone 13-3 professionally before Brooklyn. His win over Geoff Neal — a 23-year-old Texas WW making his UFC debut — was a competitive result in which the more experienced fighter’s tactical control outperformed Neal’s forward-pressure striking in the preliminary card context. Muhammad’s Brooklyn result was one step in the 11-fight UFC WW win streak that produced the championship at UFC 304 in July 2024.

References

UFC Fight Night 143: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw — Wikipedia

UFC Fight Night 143 — Tapology