On a night when not one of the ten battles went to the scorecards, it seems somewhat fitting that one of the stars of the night was a man with the last name Osman.
Kamaru Usman is the UFC welterweight champion, the highest pound per pound fighter in the world and one of the greatest MMA fighters in history.
His younger brother, Muhammad, doesn’t have his reputation or fame, but he made some history on Saturday. Zack Baoga, a former coaching squad member, has been kicked out Houston Texas, 36 seconds from round two at Apex in Las Vegas to win the heavyweight division for Season 30 of The Ultimate Fighter. In the process, Osman became the first group of brothers to win TUF.
Camaro Usman, who won his season 21 welterweight season in 2015, was in his younger brother’s corner on Saturday. Muhammed Othman’s last name may have helped him join the TUF team, but once he got there, he achieved his own success.
With former WBC Heavyweight Champion Deontay Wilder watching from the front row in the ring, Muhammad Usman circled Pauga with a left hook on his chin to finish things off early.
It earned him the UFC contract three years after the tragic death of his 3-year-old son Nash, who accidentally drowned.
“It means the world to me,” Usman said of winning the TUF for his son. “It means the world to me and it’s the reason I’m here now. Don’t get me wrong, man. I can sit here and tell you it’s easy, but it’s not. I hurt every single day of my life. I’m in pain now and I’m sitting here talking about it. I know it’s He wants me to have a good life He wants me to take care of my children in the future [as well as] my current children. He wants me to be a blessing to them.
“That’s thing #1. I’m just trying to be the best dad that I can be and showing my future children and grandchildren that there’s nothing you can’t achieve in this world if you put your mind to it.”
He’s been in his brother’s shadow for much of this time, working hard while serving as the Camaro’s noise man in his fights. But he made up his mind to win the TUF and earn the UFC deal and he did it in a big way.
Mohamed Osman gave a show on Saturday, but he wasn’t the only one. Each of the 10 fights ended with an ending, only the second time in UFC history that it had occurred.
Jeff Neal beats slow second round, angry boss
Jeff Neal was fantastic in the first round of his welterweight fight with Vicente Luke. Neil rocked 52 big hits in the first round, repeatedly rocking Loki with his straight left hand. Neil was strong, meticulous and in control.
But in the second he took his foot off the gas and it was more even. He said it was a problem he often had. His Fortis MMA coach, Saif Saud, knew about this and told him about it after the tour. Saud walked into Neil’s face during the rest period and told him in no uncertain terms to go.
“I have a tendency to go off in the second round, especially when I’m going through a tough first round,” Neal said. “I just go, ‘Let me see if I can get past this round and come back in the third,’ but that’s just stupid of me.”
Neil hit Loki with a left straight cut that sent him into the cage. Then he threw Neal eight times in a row to the left before the fight stopped at 2:01 of the third.
Jamhal Hill is in fourth place after the uneven third
Thiago Santos defeated Jamal Hill five times in the third round of the main event in a light heavyweight fight. But Hill, who called Apex “the Playground of Sweet Dreams” because of his success there, didn’t deter him.
It was suspected Santos would be tired of the heavy third in wrestling, when he brought down Hill five times in 11 attempts. Hill ran out fast in the fourth inning and hit Santos.
He dropped it and finished off a wicked land and pound. Referee Herb Dean stopped her at 2:31 pm as Hill was elbowing Santos.
“I just don’t stop working,” Hill said. “That’s what I learned from my coach and what I learned from my team, keep working.”
Hill came into the bout 10th in the Light Heavyweight, while Santos finished 6th. He’s hoping to win the next title against champion Jerry Prochazka, but said that if that doesn’t happen, he wants former champion Jan Blachovich, who is No. 2.
Juliana Miller wins TUF flyweight title
Juliana Miller had a 4-4 in takedowns on Saturday to take control of Brogan Walker and win the TUF 30 title at flyweight via a third-round TKO. Walker stopped my elbow to his head from a mount at 3:57 in the third and final round.
It was a dominant performance by Miller, who had 9:40 of control time in 13:57 of time in the match.
Miller landed 54 of her 85 major hits, pegging at 63 percent, plus a perfect effort on takedowns.
It was the biggest highlight Brian Battle’s head kick KO
The former TUF winner Bryan Battle was perhaps the most memorable moment of the night. He needed just 44 seconds to stop Takashi Sato in their fight, which resulted in Soto being sent off with a head kick.
At camp, Patel said, he and his coaches noticed that Sato was prone to head kicks.
“It’s something we were expecting,” he said. “I didn’t expect it to happen so soon. It was probably the most beautiful blow I’ve ever had.”
After the fight, he summoned Brian Barberina and Ian Garry for a match.
“Total coffee junkie. Tv ninja. Unapologetic problem solver. Beer expert.”