Jackson McVey kept wedding-related face promise at UFC Fight Night 274

Jackson McVey kept wedding-related face promise at UFC Fight Night 274

LAS VEGAS – Jackson McVey met the media Saturday after his win over Sedriques Dumas at UFC Fight Night 274.

McVey (7-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) dispatched of Dumas (10-5 MMA, 3-5 UFC) with relative ease and a first-round submission on the prelims at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas. McVey put Dumas away with a D'Arce choke in less than half a round.

McVey's win was his first in the UFC, and it was final under a reasonably normal circumstance. Ahead of his UFC debut in 2025, Dumas pulled out when he had to stay home with an ankle monitor on under a judge's orders. His replacement, Chris Ewert, had weight cut issues and their late-notice fight was scrapped entirely.

A few weeks later, McVey fought Brunno Ferreira for his debut and was submitted. His follow-up was against Zach Reese – another late change after Robert Valentin pulled out. Again, he was forced to tap. So tapping Dumas – and very likely bouncing him from the UFC – had McVey feeling pretty good.

"To get this win means a lot, especially because I felt like I didn’t really showcase my grappling very well in either of those fights," McVey said at his post-fight news conference. "I won this fight by submission, and it just kind of rights that wrong, in my eyes. I feel like, 'All right, cool – I've got a submission now.' I’m feeling good – first round … let’s do it."

McVey said a large part of his success against Dumas – he gave him the quickest loss of his career – is owed to his move to The MMA Lab, where head coach John Crouch and former UFC and WEC lightweight champion Benson Henderson have been chief among the key players helping him level up.

"They’ve just been such a huge help," McVey said. "Everybody on that team — it really is a family. John Crouch has really taken me under his wing. Being around people like Rob Emerson and Benson Henderson just really changes your perspective on a lot of stuff. The Lab was a huge part of that. Obviously, I appreciate my former coaches and everything they taught me, but being surrounded by that environment has been a huge step for me, and this is just the beginning."

McVey's submission of Dumas was one of just two finishes at UFC Fight Night 274 – and as such, it made him a guaranteed winner of a $100,000 performance bonus. That bonus check alnoe likely was several times larger than what his payday was for the fight.

It also could not have been better timed. McVey said his wedding is set for May 30, and his fianceé in St. Louis has been handling all the prep work while he trained in Phoenix. Now he can go home and help – and the $100,000 check might make for an elevated honeymoon.