LAS VEGAS — Great Falls native Tommy McMillen overcame his toughest challenge to date Tuesday on Dana White’s Contender Series, outlasting undefeated featherweight David Mgoyan for a majority decision (28-28, 29-28, 29-28) and a likely UFC contract.
McMillen, who trains under fellow Great Falls native Tim Welch at the Red Hawk Academy, had to dig deep. He absorbed several powerful shots from his opponent and withstood a very tight guillotine attempt to escape the round.
“That was tight,” McMillen (8-0) admitted in a post-fight interview. “You’re going to have to kill me to get me to quit in here. I’m never going to quit. I’ve been doing this my whole life."
One judge scored the fight a draw after giving Mgoyan a 10-8 edge in the first.
But McMillen found his footing in the second and third. He controlled the grappling and found success on his feet as Mgoyan began to fade. By the third round, both fighters emptied the tank— trading punishing shots that left both wearing damage on their face.
“I think it was cool to go in there, test my cardio, show people I’m that dog that I say I am,” McMillen said. “They had me as an underdog in Vegas. I don’t know what the hell they were thinking."
The victory, which brought UFC president Dana White to his feet, keeps McMillen unbeaten and positions him to follow in the footsteps of Helena native Sean O’Malley, who also broke through on the Contender Series eight years ago before moving on to UFC stardom and a world championship.
“I moved out here right after Sean got his UFC contract,” McMillen said. “They’ve taken me under their wing, and I’ve become a complete martial artist inside and outside the cage. All I’m trying to do is show them that Red Hawk Academy, we really got it like that”
Multiple times during the fight, the broadcast cut to a shot inside the Halftime sports bar in Great Falls where dozens of fans were going wild cheering on the man with the nickname “Gunz”.
And shortly before the decision was announced, UFC commentator Michael Chiesa proclaimed: "Great Falls, Montana, you have yourself a fighter!”
And he’s just getting started.
