McKee Jr. vs Hughes

Who won McKee Jr. vs Hughes?

Paul Hughes beat AJ McKee Jr by split decision in their 3 round contest during the main card of PFL Super Fights, on Saturday 19th October 2024 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.

The scorecards were announced in favor of the winner Paul Hughes.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 3 rounds in the Lightweight division, which meant the weight limit was 155 pounds (11.1 stone or 70.3 KG).

McKee Jr. vs Hughes stats

AJ McKee Jr stepped into the octagon with a record of 22 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws, 6 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 8 by submission.

Paul Hughes made his way to the cage with a record of 12 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws, 6 of those wins coming by knock out and 3 by submission.

This was AJ McKee Jr's 2nd fight in the PFL, having made his debut for the promotion in 2024. Paul Hughes marked his 2nd fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2024.

AJ McKee Jr's PFL record stood at 1-1-0, while Paul Hughes' came in at 1-1-0.

The stats suggested Hughes had a large advantage in power over McKee Jr, boasting a 50% knock out percentage over McKee Jr's 27%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested McKee Jr had an advantage over Hughes, with a 36% submission rate over Hughes' 25%.

AJ McKee Jr was the older man by 2 years, at 30 years old.

McKee Jr had a height advantage of 1 inch over Hughes.

McKee Jr was the more experienced professional fighter, having had 10 more fights, and made his debut in 2015, 1 year and 10 months earlier than Hughes, whose first professional fight was in 2017. He had fought 14 more professional rounds, 51 to Hughes' 37.

McKee Jr. vs Hughes form

McKee Jr had won all 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 1 opponent and going to the judges 4 times.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Darrion Caldwell at Bellator 253 on 19th November 2020 by submission in the 1st round at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, United States.

Previous to that, he had beaten Derek Campos at Bellator 236 on 21st December 2019 by submission in the 3rd round at Neal S. Blaisdell Center, Honolulu.

Going into that contest, he had defeated Pat Curran at Bellator 221 on 11th May 2019 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Allstate Arena, Rosemont.

Before that, he was victorious against Daniel Crawford at Bellator 212 on 14th December 2018 by submission in the 1st round at Neal S. Blaisdell Center, Honolulu.

He had won against John Teixeira at Bellator 205 on 21st September 2018 by knockout in the 1st round at Centurylink Arena, Boise.

Hughes had won all 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 3opponents and going the distance twice.

In his last fight before this contest, he had beaten Bobby King at Bellator Champions Series: Dublin on 22nd June 2024 by knockout in the 2nd round at 3Arena Dublin, Dublin, United Kingdom.

Previous to that, he had defeated Fabiano Silva at Cage Warriors 170: Sheehan vs. Konrad on 6th April 2024 by knockout in the 1st round at Simmonscourt Ros, Dublin.

Going into that contest, he was victorious against Jan Quaeyhaegens at Cage Warriors 161 – Dublin on 14th October 2023 by knockout in the 1st round at 3Arena, Dublin, Ireland.

Before that, he had won against Jordan Vucenic at Cage Warriors 145 on 4th November 2022 by unanimous decision in their 5 round contest at Indigo at the O2, London, United Kingdom.

He had beaten Morgan Charriere at Cage Warriors 128 on 1st October 2021 by majority decision in their 5 round contest at York Hall, London, England.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Paul Hughes had been fighting more than AJ McKee Jr.

Going to this contest, AJ McKee Jr had last fought 4 years, 6 months and 10 days ago, while Paul Hughes' last outing had been 11 months and 7 days ago.

McKee Jr's last 5 fights had come over a period of 6 years, 8 months and 8 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 1 year, 4 months and 3 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 9 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.8 rounds on average.

Hughes' last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 7 months and 28 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 8 months and 24 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 14 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.8 rounds on average.

What time did McKee Jr. vs Hughes start?

The fighters were expected to walk out at around 5:40 PM UTC , which was 1:40 PM EST or 10:40 AM PST on the West Coast of America, or 6:40 PM BST in the UK.

What were the odds on McKee Jr. vs Hughes?

AJ McKee Jr was a 4/7 (-180) favourite going into the contest, while Paul Hughes made his way into the ring at 13/10 (+130) with oddsmakers.