Capping off UFC London 2025’s preliminary card were lightweights Chris Padilla and Jai Herbert, the latter no stranger to London’s O2 Arena.
Herbert, a.k.a. “The Black Country Banger,” was competing at the famed London venue for the fifth time in six fights. Despite a mixed bag of results at home, he was coming off a victory over Rolando Bedoya in Abu Dhabi last August.
There was a bit of feeling out in the opening round of Herbert and Padilla, as both threw out kicks, probing punches, and feints. Padilla mixed in stance switches, and used lateral movement on the outside to keep Herbert guessing. Towards the end of the round, Padilla put Herbert on the fence, working for a takedown, but quickly ran out of time.
Round two had Herbert again walking his opponent down, while Padilla took a big swing on a low kick and missed. In a clinch, the pair spun around, Padilla thinking takedown, but Herbert showed impressive balance to stay on his feet. From there, he was in defensive mode, with Padilla continuing to hunt a takedown while firing knees. A hip toss almost got the job done, but Herbert only went to a knee and was immediately upright.
After two close rounds, the lightweight affair was still anyone’s fight. And there was still a lack of punches in bunches, with more focus on single strikes and grappling, including a decent head kick landed by Herbert earlier in the fight. With two minutes left on the clock, Padilla again changed levels, driving Herbert into the fence looking for a takedown. They’d spin around, with Padilla maintaining the clinch and continuing to pursue the takedown, to no avail. Instead they’d go back to center, with Herbert landing a knee and getting his hands going in the final 25 or so seconds. Certainly not a barnburner, and not much uproar at the result, which saw Padilla earn the nod on two scorecards.
Official Result: Chris Padilla def. Jai Herbert by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
