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UFC Welterweight

Ding Meng VS Jose Henrique Souza

Galaxy Arena, MacauSAR, China

Tale of the Tape

Ding Meng VS Jose Henrique Souza
35-11-0 Record 9-0-0
31 Age 24
188 cm Height 190 cm
— Reach 201 cm
unknown Stance orthodox
86% Finish rate 67%
80% KO rate 67%
6% Sub rate 0%

Result Summary

Jose Henrique Souza def. Ding Meng Decision (split) · R3 5:00

Jose Henrique Souza defeated Ding Meng by split decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) in a welterweight preliminary bout at UFC Fight Night: Song vs. Figueiredo in Macau on May 30, 2026. The fight went the full three rounds, presenting judges with a clear contrast in styles: Meng pressed forward with persistent low kicks throughout, while Souza countered off the back foot with sharp jabs and headhunting power shots. A second-round knee strike from Souza landed flush and left Meng visibly hurt, the clearest single turning point in the bout. The split verdict reflected how closely contested the fight was, with one judge siding with Meng (28-29) while the other two scored for Souza. The victory extended Souza's winning streak to four consecutive fights, improving his professional record to 9-1.

Fight Overview

Two UFC debutants collide at welterweight in front of a home crowd in Macau, with Chinese veteran Ding Meng — a journeyman with over 30 stoppages across regional titles — facing Nova Uniao prospect Jose Henrique Souza, whose career was delayed by an anti-doping suspension but who brings the reach and athleticism of a long Brazilian prospect with elite camp pedigree. Seasoned regional finisher against polished South American prospect makes for a compelling opener.

Keys to Victory

Ding Meng

  1. Apply early pressure and force scrambles that lead to stoppages, leveraging his finishing-heavy experience advantage.
  2. Exploit Sanda-influenced clinch work and short power shots on the inside to negate Souza's reach.
  3. Keep the fight moving quickly and deny Souza time to settle into his jiu-jitsu game or use his longer reach.

Jose Henrique Souza

  1. Control range with his reach advantage using jabs and front kicks to neutralize Ding's forward pressure.
  2. Leverage his jiu-jitsu base by seeking takedowns and transitioning to submissions on the ground.
  3. Stay composed under early pressure and trust his youth and athleticism to take over in the later rounds.

Last 5 fights

Ding Meng

  1. W Mirali Huseynov TKO · R2 2:45 · 4 OCT 2025
  2. L Rami Hamed Decision · R3 5:00 · 13 AUG 2024
  3. W Tuluosibake Kuerbanjiang KO · R3 0:24 · 28 OCT 2023
  4. W Qi Wang KO · R2 1:31 · 9 JUL 2023
  5. L Tuluosibake Kuerbanjiang Decision · R3 5:00 · 30 APR 2023

Jose Henrique Souza

  1. W Porfirio Alves Jr. KO · R2 2:13 · 13 NOV 2024
  2. W Alexandre Silva Decision · R3 5:00 · 20 JAN 2024
  3. W Alan Silva KO · R3 4:55 · 3 FEB 2023
  4. W Pedro Oliveira Decision · R3 5:00 · 13 MAY 2022
  5. W Carlos Eduardo de Freitas KO · R2 1:05 · 13 NOV 2021

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AI-generated This analysis was generated with AI and may contain errors.

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