# UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Medeiros
**UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Medeiros** (also billed UFC Fight Night 126 and UFC Austin) was a mixed martial arts event held by the [Ultimate Fighting Championship](https://www.edgepedia.org/ultimate-fighting-championship) on February 18, 2018, at the [Frank Erwin Center](https://www.edgepedia.org/frank-erwin-center) in [Austin, Texas](https://www.edgepedia.org/austin-texas), headlined by a five-round welterweight bout between Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone and Yancy Medeiros[1](https://www.ufc.com/event/ufc-fight-night-austin-february-18-2018) • [2](https://www.ufc.com/news/austin-gets-cerrone-medeiros-main-event-orlando-adds-strawweight-showdown). Cerrone won by first-round technical knockout and, in doing so, tied the UFC records for most victories and most finishes in the promotion's history[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date and venue | Sunday, February 18, 2018, Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas[1](https://www.ufc.com/event/ufc-fight-night-austin-february-18-2018) |
| Main event | Donald Cerrone def. Yancy Medeiros, TKO (punches), round 1, 4:58, referee Herb Dean[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) |
| Records tied | Cerrone reached 20 UFC wins, tying Georges St-Pierre and Michael Bisping, and 14 UFC finishes, tying Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish) • [5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365) |
| Streak ended | Cerrone halted a three-fight losing streak, the longest of his career[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish) |
| Co-main event | Derrick Lewis def. Marcin Tybura, KO (punches), round 3, 2:48[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) |
| Card size | 12 bouts, six on the main card and six preliminaries[6](https://www.mmafighting.com/2018/2/18/17024474/ufc-austin-results-cowboy-vs-medeiros) |
| Viewership | 893,000 average viewers for the Sunday broadcast[5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365) |
## Background
The UFC announced the Austin date with Cerrone and Medeiros, described by the promotion as "a pair of welterweight gunslingers", in the five-round main event[2](https://www.ufc.com/news/austin-gets-cerrone-medeiros-main-event-orlando-adds-strawweight-showdown). Cerrone came in ranked No. 11 at welterweight and Medeiros No. 15[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish). Cerrone had lost all three of his 2017 bouts, a career-worst skid that included a knockout defeat to [Darren Till](https://www.edgepedia.org/darren-till) in his previous outing[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish).
## Main event
The fight began at a fast pace, with Medeiros landing the harder blows early while Cerrone countered. Cerrone produced a flash knockdown of the Hawaiian during the round, and, bleeding from a cut on his forehead, surged in the closing seconds: a right hand to the head stunned Medeiros, who stumbled to the mat, and referee [Herb Dean](https://www.edgepedia.org/herb-dean) stopped the bout at 4:58 of the first round after follow-up punches on the ground[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish). The finish came with two seconds remaining in the opening frame[7](https://us.ufcespanol.com/news/ufc-fight-night-cerrone-vs-medeiros-fantasy-rewind). Cerrone landed three knockdowns in the bout[5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
With the win, the No. 11-ranked Cerrone moved to 33-10 with 1 no contest, and the No. 15-ranked Medeiros fell to 15-5[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish).
## Records
The victory placed Cerrone in a three-way tie with [Georges St-Pierre](https://www.edgepedia.org/georges-st-pierre) and [Michael Bisping](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-bisping) for the most victories in UFC history at 20, and tied him for the most UFC finishes[3](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish). Sherdog's statistical review, using FightMetric data, put his UFC finish count at 14, level with [Anderson Silva](https://www.edgepedia.org/anderson-silva) and Vitor Belfort, and counted 18 finishes across UFC and WEC competition, third-most among fighters with experience in the UFC, WEC, Pride, or Strikeforce, behind Mirko Filipovic (21) and Wanderlei Silva (20)[5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365). The three knockdowns raised Cerrone's career total to 17, moving him past Chuck Liddell (14) into a tie with Jeremy Stephens for second place on the UFC's all-time knockdown list, behind Anderson Silva's 18[5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
## Main card
- **Derrick Lewis def. Marcin Tybura**, heavyweight co-main, KO (punches) at 2:48 of round 3, refereed by Dan Miragliotta[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971). The knockout was Lewis's ninth in UFC competition, tying [Andrei Arlovski](https://www.edgepedia.org/andrei-arlovski) for the second-most in heavyweight division history, behind [Cain Velasquez](https://www.edgepedia.org/cain-velasquez)'s 10[5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
- **James Vick def. Francisco Trinaldo**, lightweight, unanimous decision (29-28 on all three cards)[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) • [6](https://www.mmafighting.com/2018/2/18/17024474/ufc-austin-results-cowboy-vs-medeiros). Vick outlanded Trinaldo by 42 significant strikes, using his reach to win every round on significant strikes[5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
- **Curtis Millender def. Thiago Alves**, welterweight, KO by knee at 4:17 of round 2 in Millender's Octagon debut, his third straight knockout win and seventh consecutive victory overall[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) • [5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
- **Brandon Davis def. Steven Peterson**, featherweight, unanimous decision; Davis outlanded Peterson in every round, defended nine of 10 takedowns, and the pair combined for 187 significant strikes[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) • [5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
- **Sage Northcutt def. Thibault Gouti**, lightweight, unanimous decision. Northcutt landed 125 total strikes to Gouti's 30, but Gouti landed 4 of 5 takedowns and rocked Northcutt on multiple occasions; 13 of the 19 unofficial media scorecards tracked by MMADecisions.com went to Gouti[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) • [5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
## Preliminary card
The six prelims produced five finishes[6](https://www.mmafighting.com/2018/2/18/17024474/ufc-austin-results-cowboy-vs-medeiros):
- [Carlos Diego Ferreira](https://www.edgepedia.org/carlos-diego-ferreira) def. [Jared Gordon](https://www.edgepedia.org/jared-gordon), TKO (punches), round 1, 1:58[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971)
- [Geoff Neal](https://www.edgepedia.org/geoff-neal) def. Brian Camozzi, submission (rear-naked choke), round 1, 2:48[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971)
- Roberto Sanchez def. Joby Sanchez, submission (rear-naked choke), round 1, 1:50[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971)
- Lucie Pudilova def. Sarah Moras, women's bantamweight, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27); Pudilova outlanded Moras by 32 significant strikes and scored two knockdowns[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) • [5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365)
- Alex Morono def. Joshua Burkman, submission (guillotine choke), round 1, 2:12, leaving Burkman at 1-7 in his last eight Octagon appearances[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971) • [5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365)
- Oskar Piechota def. Tim Williams, middleweight, KO (punches), round 1, 1:54[4](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971)
## Viewership
The Sunday card averaged 893,000 viewers, according to a Sherdog ratings report cited in its own statistical review of the event[5](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365).
## References
1. [UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs Medeiros, event page, UFC](https://www.ufc.com/event/ufc-fight-night-austin-february-18-2018)
2. [Austin gets Cerrone-Medeiros main event as Orlando adds a strawweight showdown, UFC](https://www.ufc.com/news/austin-gets-cerrone-medeiros-main-event-orlando-adds-strawweight-showdown)
3. [Cowboy ties for multiple UFC records with Medeiros finish, UFC](https://www.ufc.com/news/cowboy-ties-multiple-ufc-records-medeiros-finish)
4. [UFC Fight Night 126 - Cerrone vs. Medeiros, Sherdog](https://www.sherdog.com/events/UFC-Fight-Night-126-Cerrone-vs-Medeiros-63971)
5. [By the Numbers: UFC Austin, Sherdog](https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/By-the-Numbers-UFC-Austin-132365)
6. [UFC Austin Results: Cowboy vs. Medeiros, MMA Fighting](https://www.mmafighting.com/2018/2/18/17024474/ufc-austin-results-cowboy-vs-medeiros)
7. [UFC Fight Night: Cerrone vs Medeiros Fantasy Rewind, UFC](https://us.ufcespanol.com/news/ufc-fight-night-cerrone-vs-medeiros-fantasy-rewind)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Individual sports and outdoor recreation › Combat sports and professional wrestling › Mixed martial arts › UFC Fight Night events › UFC Fight Night events 2014–2018*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 20, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 20, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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