It’s unfortunate both Donald Cerrone and Anthony Pettis came into their UFC 249 matchup badly in need of a victory Saturday night, because the two veteran warriors put on a show in which neither could fairly be called a loser.

The scorecards, though, declared Pettis (23-10 MMA, 10-9 UFC) the winner in their welterweight preliminary card headliner after a hard-fought battle, earning 29-28 scores across the board.

“I thought it was close,” Pettis admitted in his post-fight interview. “I just went in and fought. He’s a legend, man. He’s a friend.”

The matchup started at a tentative pace, with the duo taking their time working out their range. Cerrone (36-15 MMA, 23-12 UFC) had his highlight in the first round when he stymied Pettis’ attempt at a switched kick and turned it into a double-leg takedown.

Pettis, though, landed the heavier shots in the round. By the second round. Cerrone’s left eye begin swelling, and it was clear Pettis’s confidence in his striking was growing. Cerrone, however, had the best of the wrestling game throughout the fight. and this managed to keep the second round close.

The fighters went for broke in the final round, but things really picked up after an accidental eye poke by Pettis went uncalled by the referee. Cerrone responded with a wicked head kick that Pettis somehow absorbed, and by keeping himself together, Pettis managed to survive to the end and leave with the decision victory.

Pettis, a former UFC and WEC lightweight champion, improved to 2-2 in his past four with his fifth career decision victory. Cerrone, after his seventh career decision loss, has now lost fought straight fights.

The fight was a rematch. Pettis took the first bout in January 2014 with a first-round TKO.

The welterweight bout closed out the UFC 249 preliminary card at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. It aired on ESPN/ESPN+ following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+ and ahead of a main card on pay-per-view.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 249 results include:

• Anthony Pettis def. Donald Cerrone via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Aleksei Oleinik def. Fabricio Werdum via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
• Carla Esparza def. Michelle Waterson via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 30-27)
• Vicente Luque def. Niko Price via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) – Round 3, 3:37
• Bryce Mitchell def. Charles Rosa via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-24)
• Ryan Spann def. Sam Alvey via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)