Kiwi featherweight Shane Young has made an unsuccessful return to the Octagon, falling to a unanimous decision defeat against Blake Bilder at UFC 284 in Perth on Sunday.
Fighting for the first time in almost two years, Young wasn't able to match the late output from his Californian opponent in the decisive latter stages of the contest, as the fresher Bilder ramped up the volume of his strikes to leave the most lasting impression on the judges.
The official scorecards read 30-27, 30-27, 29-28, with only one of the judges scoring the second round in the Kiwi's favour.
Neither fighter had a clear-cut moment of dominance throughout a razor-close bout.
Young was effective in defending numerous takedown attempts from the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, only once being taken to the mat, where his grappling defence helped him prevent any damage.
But Bilder consistently found his marks with his leg kicks, while making himself a difficult target for Young to locate with his relentless and varied movement.
Young found more of a rhythm with his strikes later in the second round, but not enough to sway the judges.
Bilder found some reserves in his gas tank later in the third round to ramp up the volume and land a couple of clean hooks, while Young couldn't keep pace, as the American marked his UFC debut with a win.
The defeat is Young's third straight inside the Octagon, dropping his record with the promotion to 2-4.
