Matthews vs Njokuani

Who won Matthews vs Njokuani?

Jake Matthews beat Chidi Njokuani by submission in the 1st round during the prelims of UFC Fight Night, on Saturday 12th July 2025 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 3 rounds in the Welterweight division, which meant the weight limit was 170 pounds (12.1 stone or 77.1 KG).

Matthews vs Njokuani stats

Jake Matthews stepped into the octagon with a record of 21 wins, 7 losses and 0 draws, 5 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 8 by submission.

Chidi Njokuani made his way to the cage with a record of 25 wins, 10 losses and 0 draws, 15 of those wins coming by knock out and 1 by submission.

This was Jake Matthews' 22nd fight in the UFC, having made his debut for the promotion in 2014. Chidi Njokuani marked his 9th fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2022.

Jake Matthews' UFC record stood at 15-7-0, while Chidi Njokuani's came in at 5-4-0.

The stats suggested Njokuani had a massive power advantage over Matthews, boasting a 60% knock out percentage over Matthews' 24%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Matthews had a massive advantage over Njokuani, boasting a 38% submission rate over Njokuani's 4%.

Jake Matthews was the younger man by 6 years, at 30 years old.

Njokuani had a height advantage of 4 inches over Matthews. That also extended to a 8-inch reach advantage.

Matthews was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 7 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2012, 4 years and 10 months later than Njokuani, whose first professional fight was in 2007. He had fought 9 less professional rounds, 66 to Njokuani's 75.

Matthews vs Njokuani form

Jake Matthews had beaten 3 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Francisco Prado at UFC 312 on 8th February 2025 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney, Australia.

Previous to that, he had beaten Philip Rowe at UFC 302 on 1st June 2024 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Prudential Center, Newark, United States.

Going into that contest, he had lost to Michael Morales at UFC Fight Night – Allen vs Craig on 18th November 2023 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC Apex, Las Vegas.

Before that, he had defeated Darrius Flowers at UFC 291 on 29th July 2023 by submission in the 2nd round at Vivint Arena, Salt Lake City.

He had been beaten by Matt Semelsberger at UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland on 17th December 2022 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC Apex, Las Vegas.

Njokuani had beaten 3 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going the distance twice.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he was victorious against Elizeu Zaleski at UFC Fight Night: Vettori vs. Dolidze 2 on 15th March 2025 by knockout in the 2nd round at UFC Apex, Las Vegas, United States.

Previous to that, he had won against Jared Gooden at UFC Fight Night: Royval vs. Taira on 12th October 2024 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC Apex, Las Vegas.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Rhys McKee at UFC Fight Night: Blanchfield vs. Fiorot on 30th March 2024 by split decision in their 3 round contest at Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City.

Before that, he had been defeated by Michal Oleksiejczuk at UFC Fight Night – Holloway vs. Korean Zombie on 26th August 2023 by knockout in the 1st round at Singapore Indoor Stadium, Kallang, Singapore.

He had lost to Albert Duraev at UFC Fight Night San Antonio on 25th March 2023 by split decision in their 3 round contest at AT&T Center, San Antonio, United States.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Chidi Njokuani had been fighting more than Jake Matthews.

Going to this contest, Jake Matthews had last fought 5 months and 8 days ago, while Chidi Njokuani's last outing had been 4 months and 1 day ago.

Matthews' last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 6 months and 29 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 6 months and 7 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 14 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.8 rounds on average.

Njokuani's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 3 months and 21 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 5 months and 17 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 12 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.4 rounds on average.

What time did Matthews vs Njokuani start?

The fighters were expected to walk out at around 12:40 AM UTC , which was 8:40 PM EST or 5:40 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 1:40 AM BST in the UK.

What were the odds on Matthews vs Njokuani?

Jake Matthews was a 91/100 (-110) underdog going into the contest, while Chidi Njokuani made his way into the ring at 91/100 (-110) with oddsmakers.