How Often Do UFC Fights End in a Draw? 8,954-Fight Data

Quick answer

UFC draws are rare. FightMatrix's all-time decision table lists 64 across 8,954 fights. That is 0.71%, or about one per 140 bouts. A 2025 result later overturned to a draw sits outside that column, so current final records contain 65. Either count rounds to about 0.7%. A tied card in a three- or five-round fight normally requires a 10-8, a 10-10, or a point deduction.

Data snapshot: FightMatrix's UFC tables cover 1993 through August 2, 2026. They list 8,954 bouts, 4,170 decisions and 64 decision-category draws; one overturn makes 65 final-record draws.

How often do UFC fights end in a draw?

The clean answer is about 0.7% in the current all-time sample. That rate is easier to grasp as one draw in about 140 UFC fights.

The classification matters too. FightMatrix counts 64 draws inside its decision-type table, or 1.53% of 4,170 decisions. A 2025 win was later overturned to a majority draw but remains outside that column. Counting final records instead gives 65 draws, which barely changes the rounded all-fight rate.

FightMatrix also breaks decisions down by year. The annual count jumps around because the event is so rare. There were seven draws in 493 fights during 2016, six in 549 during 2023, and none in 548 during 2024. The 2026 table lists three through 334 fights.

That isn't a clean trend. A difference of two or three unusual scorecards can move a whole season.

Which UFC divisions have the most draws?

In FightMatrix's decision table, lightweight has the largest raw count, with 12. It also has the largest fight sample. Heavyweight has the highest draw share among decisions at 3.0%, followed by light heavyweight at 2.7%.

These gaps don't prove that heavyweight judging creates more draws. Eight heavyweight draws remain a tiny sample. Divisions also entered the UFC in different years and passed through different scoring eras.

Women's flyweight shows the same trap. Its 2.2% draw share among decisions sounds high, but it comes from four draws. One future result would move that percentage much more than one result at lightweight.

What scorecards create a UFC draw?

The Association of Boxing Commissions lists four draw types in the Unified Rules.

• A unanimous draw means all three judges score the fight level.
• A majority draw means two judges return tied cards. The third may favor either fighter.
• A split draw means one judge picks each fighter and the third scores the bout level.
• A technical draw can follow a later stoppage tied to an intentional-foul injury, once enough of the scheduled fight has passed.

The labels describe the judges' final cards. They do not measure how entertaining, close, or controversial the action looked.

That distinction matters. One fighter can receive the only winning card and still not win the bout. If the other two cards are tied, neither fighter has the two winning verdicts needed for victory.

Why does a tied card need an unusual round?

UFC judges use the 10-point must system. The round winner gets 10, while the loser normally gets nine or fewer. The Unified Rules reserve 10-10 for a rare round with no advantage either way. A large winning margin can produce 10-8.

Now count the rounds. Standard UFC bouts have three rounds, while main events and title fights can have five. Both totals are odd. If every round is 10-9, each judge must have a winner after the final bell.

So a close fight alone cannot make that judge's total level. The arithmetic needs a balancing event. That can be a 10-8, a 10-10, or a referee's point deduction applied by the scorekeeper.

On a three-round card, two 10-9 wins one way and a 10-8 the other way produce 28-28. Over five rounds, three 10-9 wins can be balanced by one 10-9 and one 10-8. That card ends 47-47.

How can a point deduction change the result?

Deiveson Figueiredo versus Brandon Moreno at UFC 256 is the clearest modern example. The official cards were 48-46 for Figueiredo and 47-47 twice. That made it a majority draw, so Figueiredo kept the flyweight title.

Figueiredo lost one point for a groin strike in round three. UFC's own rivalry recap says both tied cards followed that deduction. Without it, those judges' totals would not have been level.

This is why you cannot read a draw from striking totals alone. A single referee decision can change two final cards without changing who won any round. The official score is the round total after deductions.

Point deductions don't guarantee a draw. They only create the arithmetic for one. The remaining rounds still need to divide in the right way on at least two cards, or across three different cards for a split draw.

What does a split draw look like in a title fight?

Jan Błachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev supplied a clean example at UFC 282. One judge scored the vacant light heavyweight title fight 48-47 for Błachowicz. Another had it 48-46 for Ankalaev. The third returned 47-47.

No fighter received two winning cards. The result was a split draw, and the vacant championship stayed vacant.

This also shows why adding the three card totals together is wrong. Ankalaev's wider card does not outweigh Błachowicz's card. Each judge casts one independent verdict. A fighter needs at least two winning verdicts for a decision victory.

Is a draw the same as a close decision?

No. A fight can be razor-close and still produce a unanimous decision. If all three judges give the same fighter two of three rounds, every card can read 29-28.

A draw needs a specific card pattern, not a general feeling that neither fighter dominated. This makes draws poor evidence for judging quality by themselves. The cards may follow the rules even when fans strongly favor one fighter.

The reverse is also true. A majority draw can include one card that favors a fighter, as Figueiredo's 48-46 card did. The two tied cards control the result because no fighter has the required majority.

What does a draw change for records, titles and models?

A draw enters each fighter's record separately from wins and losses. It is not a loss, and it is not a no contest. UFC Stats fighter pages display draws in the record and list the bout result as “draw.”

For a title fight, context decides what remains after the cards. A defending champion keeps the belt after a draw, as Figueiredo did at UFC 256. If the championship is vacant, a draw crowns nobody, as UFC 282 showed.

Prediction models need an explicit rule too. A binary win-loss model can exclude draws, treat them as half a result, or build a third outcome. Those choices are not interchangeable. With only 64 draws in this all-time table, a separate draw class has far less training data than either win class.

The honest approach is to publish the choice. Otherwise, two models can use the same fights yet report different accuracy because they handled draws differently.

How solid is this data?

The main estimate comes from FightMatrix's UFC outcome tables. We added its 12 division rows to get 8,954 fights, 4,170 decisions and 64 decision-category draws. Its year table independently sums to the same draw total. Official UFC result pages and scorecards verify the named examples.

This is a strong count, but classification creates one edge case. A Georgia commission changed a 2025 win to a majority draw after the event. Current final records therefore contain 65 draws, while FightMatrix's decision table lists 64. The table also does not separate unanimous, majority, split, and technical draws.

The archive spans more than three decades. Rules, judging guidance, roster size and division mix changed across that period. The 38-fight women's featherweight sample should not be compared casually with 1,491 lightweight fights.

The ABC document gives the current rule definitions. Local commissions can work under rules adopted at different times. For research or model testing, record the event date and commission instead of assuming one rulebook covered every UFC bout.

FAQ

How rare is a draw in the UFC?

FightMatrix's decision table lists 64 draws across 8,954 UFC fights, a rate of 0.71%. One overturned result makes 65 final-record draws. Either scope works out to about one draw per 140 bouts.

What causes most UFC draws?

A tied judge's card usually needs a 10-8 round, a rare 10-10 round, or a point deduction. A fight becomes a draw when the three final cards form a unanimous, majority, or split-draw pattern.

Does a majority draw mean one fighter won?

No. In a majority draw, two judges score the fight level while the third favors one fighter. One winning card is not enough for a decision victory, so both fighters receive a draw.

What happens if a UFC title fight ends in a draw?

The defending champion keeps the title, as Deiveson Figueiredo did against Brandon Moreno. If the belt is vacant, neither fighter wins it, as Jan Błachowicz versus Magomed Ankalaev showed.

Is a UFC draw the same as a no contest?

No. A draw is a scored result where neither fighter earns enough winning cards. A no contest means the bout has no winner for another reason, often an accidental foul before enough rounds pass for scorecards.