Tommy McMillen needed just two UFC fights to announce himself as one of the promotion's rising featherweight prospects.
The Great Falls native overwhelmed Alberto Montes with a relentless pace Saturday night, earning a third-round TKO victory in the opening bout of the main card at UFC Fight Night: Usman vs. Du Plessis at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
McMillen improved to 11-0 as a professional and 2-0 inside the Octagon after the referee stopped the bout 1:31 into the third round. Montes' record fell to 12-2.
McMillen immediately took control, marching Montes backward with relentless pressure as chants of "Tommy! Tommy!" broke out in the arena in the opening round.
The former Great Falls High wrestler who won three state championships consistently beat Montes to the punch, wobbling the Venezuelan late in the first before pouring on combinations in search of an early finish.
The second round followed a similar script. Working behind a sharp jab, McMillen refused to give Montes room to breathe.
The decisive moment came early in the third.
McMillen dropped Montes with an uppercut followed by a body shot, then swarmed his opponent as he returned to his feet. After another barrage of unanswered strikes, the referee stepped in to stop the fight.
The numbers underscored just how dominant the performance was.
McMillen threw an astonishing 502 strikes and landed 250, including 248 significant strikes while scoring two knockdowns. He set a new UFC record for significant strikes landed in a three-round featherweight bout.
McMillen said he could tell his opponent was fading long before the stoppage.
"I could feel him fading after the first round. I was super comfortable," McMillen said during a post-fight interview in the ring.
The undefeated featherweight also credited his training team at Arizona's Red Hawk Academy, led by fellow Great Falls native Tim Welch and Helena native Sean O’Malley.
"I train with the best mixed martial arts team in the world ... Tim, Sugar Sean back in Arizona. They were by my side this whole camp," McMillen said.
Now 11 fights into his professional career and still unbeaten, McMillen made it clear he has no intention of slowing down.
"I'm grateful to be in the position I'm in. I'll be damned if I let another man step in this cage and take the blessings that I've been earning.”
McMillen didn’t name an opponent but called for his next fight to be at UFC Fight Night in Glendale, Ariz., on Sept. 12.
