Oban Elliott secured his first finish inside the Octagon in the second fight of the night at UFC 309 when he squared off with Bassil Hafez at welterweight.
“The Welsh Gangster” came into the fight off back-to-back wins since signing via Dana White’s Contender Series last year but wanted to produce a statement this time around.
His displays against Val Woodburn and Preston Parsons showed a lot of sides to his game, but with both wins coming via decision, a finish is what he wanted at UFC 309. That’s exactly what he delivered at the world’s most famous arena.
The opening two rounds weren’t particularly action-packed, with Elliott seemingly winning the fight convincingly with his striking from the outside, utilizing his speed and a variety of kicks to stop Hafez from closing the distance. Despite the favorite appearing in control up until the finish, two judges had the fight even going into the third whilst one had Hafez up two.
At the start of the third frame, a huge right overhand from the Welshman sent his opponent crashing to the canvas.
Several follow-up strikes on the ground forced Marc Goddard to step in and wave the fight off, producing the first finish of the night back in the old gloves.
Watch the highlight reel finish below:
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