Tommy McMillen continues to build momentum inside the Octagon, and his latest victory at UFC Oklahoma City came with a record and plenty of bold statements. After stopping Alberto Montes in the third round, the rising featherweight prospect compared himself to one of the sport’s most famous fighting families.
McMillen improved to 2-0 in the UFC with another stoppage win and added a historic performance to his résumé.
McMillen Shatters Nate Diaz’s Three-Round UFC Striking Record
McMillen put on a relentless offensive display against Montes, pouring on nonstop pressure from the opening bell before securing a third-round TKO at the Paycom Center.
The performance also earned him a place in the UFC record books. McMillen connected on an astonishing 252 significant strikes from 517 attempts, surpassing Nate Diaz’s previous mark for the most significant strikes landed in a three-round UFC bout.
The performance also moved McMillen into third place on the UFC’s all-time list for significant strikes landed in a single fight. Only Max Holloway’s performance against Calvin Kattar and Rob Font’s bout with Marlon Vera rank higher, both of which lasted five rounds.
Heated rivalry carried into fight week
McMillen told Full Send MMA that the tension with Montes started well before they entered the cage.
“Montes wasn’t cut like me at all.”
He explained how things escalated after Montes spoke about him during fight week.
“He was in these interviews all week talking s—t about me, running his mouth that I’m all an act.”
McMillen added that he wanted to settle things immediately instead of waiting for fight night.
“I’m like, ‘You were running your mouth all week, but now you wanna dap me up. I’m not like that.”
He also revealed that security kept a close eye on him during weigh-in day.
“They made me sit with a cop at the weigh-ins all day because I was trying to fight him because he was running his mouth about me. I really do this s—t; I’m a real American gangster.”
‘I’m the third Diaz brother’
After surpassing Nate Diaz’s long-standing record, McMillen joked that he now belongs alongside one of MMA’s most recognizable families.
“They said I broke the record of one of the Diaz brothers.”
“I’m the third Diaz brother, so it’s only right that that record goes to me.”
McMillen now has consecutive UFC stoppage victories and has earned a “Performance of the Night” bonus in both appearances. He has already set his sights on returning at Noche UFC 4 in Arizona this September, where he hopes to face a Mexican opponent.