Ketlen Souza’s corner was sure of their victory after going through a grueling battle against Loopy Godinez on the UFC Vegas 122 main card. However, the judges’ scorecards left them so stunned that Souza’s manager has vowed to appeal the decision.
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Godinez entered the bout against the Brazilian with a chip on her shoulder. Ketlen Souza had missed the strawweight non-title fight limit of 116 pounds by weighing in at 117, tipping the scale by 1 pound. Still, Godinez ended up accepting the matchup at a 117-pound catchweight. With that weight advantage, many thought Souza would have the clear edge in size.
After 15 minutes of back-and-forth action, the damage wore on Godinez’s face, with her bloody nose showing the signs of it. Souza’s team believed they had won the fight. But to their utter surprise, the judges ruled the bout 29-28, 29-28, 29-28 via unanimous decision in Godinez’s favor, leaving Souza’s corner completely baffled.
Right after the decision was announced, Souza’s manager Alex Davis took to social media to announce that he would knock on the Nevada Athletic Commission’s door to contest tonight’s result.
“This time, I am appealing,” Davis wrote on X. “Someone must stand up to this kind of thing!”
Ketlen Souza's manager, Alex Davis, says they will appeal the decision.
This time, I am appealing. Someone must stand up to this kind of thing!
Though Davis’ reaction suggests that he is confident Souza was robbed by the judges, the actual fight went down a little differently. The stats show tonight’s catchweight fight was closer than it appeared.
The UFC’s official website shows that Loopy Godinez had the edge in significant strikes in the first round, landing 29 to Souza’s 24. Plus, Godinez also scored a takedown that essentially swung the round in her favor.
The second round remained an even encounter, with both fighters landing 27 significant strikes. The judges scored the round for Godinez, but it could easily have been a draw or gone to Souza.
Lastly, in the third round, Souza landed 12 significant strikes, outlanding Godinez’s 11 by only 1 strike. However, the difference in the final round came from Godinez landing a takedown.
Going by the round-by-round breakdown, it surely suggests the fight was close. But the factor of damage was clearly on Souza’s side, which could lean the overall scoring of the fight controversial.
However, this is not the first time a Ketlen Souza fight has ended with such a narrow margin.
In 2025, Souza lost two consecutive fights against Angela Hill and Piera Rodriguez via split decision. Her team did not appeal those fights, but the Brazilian remained particularly adamant in her belief that she won two rounds against Hill.
“I did score the first round to her, but I scored rounds two and three for me,” Souza told UFC. “It was a very, very even fight.”
In that case, this is the first time her team would petition the commission over a fight. However, even if Souza’s team appeals the fight’s result, the most plausible outcome is that the commission would turn the bout into a no-contest.
That scenario would be no less than a victory for the Brazilian, because commissions rarely overturn any official decision, and one of those instances happened this year.
Chris Padilla fails to overturn UFC 327 decision after appealing to commission
One of the bizarre endings of a fight happened this year at UFC 327 in Miami when Chris Padilla fought MarQuel Mederos. After three rounds, the judges declared Padilla the majority decision winner. However, the Florida Athletic Commission issued a correction and ruled the bout a majority draw.
Padilla and his team rallied for the official decision to stay. But the commission did not budge from the revised result that they announced for the bout, denying his plea outright.
“Florida commission responded to our protest, they denied us,” Padilla’s team told MMA Fighting. “They stand by their scorecards. Result stays.”
It is definitely confusing for an athletic commission to change a bout’s outcome and then remain firm on its decision. But Padilla’s situation becomes more bizarre knowing that the referee actually deducted a point from MarQuel Mederos in the fight and he still could not win a decision.
Keeping that instance in mind, the most likely possibility is that Souza’s plea will go in vain, especially with the fight being much closer than most expect. The more realistic solution for them is to push for a rematch against Godinez. But that is not the only women’s UFC fight that came under bitter attention for its scorecards.
Norma Dumont vs. Ailin Perez’s fight also drew accusations of “robbery,” with many disagreeing with the Argentine’s win. The Brazilian’s team called for a rematch, but they did not seem inclined to appeal the decision.
That said, it would be interesting to see whether Souza’s team actually pursues the commission or not.