Oban Elliott shocked he was en route to split decision before KO at UFC 309

NEW YORK – Oban Elliott beat Bassil Hafez with a third-round knockout Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Take a look inside the fight with Elliott, who was even on two scorecards and down two rounds on a third before his finish.

Oban Elliott def. Bassil Hafez

Result: Oban Elliott def. Bassil Hafez via knockout (punches) – Round 3, 0:40
Updated records: Elliott (12-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC), Hafez (9-5-1 MMA, 1-2 UFC)
Key stats: Elliott outstruck Hafez 66-24.

Elliott on the fight’s key moment

“It’s a mixture of happiness and relief. Not that I’ve put pressure on myself, but I know what I can do in the octagon and to go out and do it, regardless of the stage, to go out and get it done in Madison Square Garden like I dreamed of, that’ll live forever.”

Elliott on the scoring

“I thought I was up 2-0. Did anybody not think I was two up? Stupid – 1-1. (It was) 2-0. That’s everybody in the room (thinks that). Stupid, that is, (that I was down 2-0 on one card). But hey, don’t leave it in the hands of the judges. I’ve done that loads lately. … But the right hand from god landed (against Hafez).”

Elliott on what he wants next

“Sky’s the limit here. I’m just going to keep going and keep going. I’m going to keep getting better every fight. Every time you do that walk, the weight cut, you improve as a man. I just fought a good guy there. Everyone was loving that battle. … Big respect to Bassil, but we’re still just scratching the surface. I’ve got a mental career planned out here and it’s just slowly starting to unfold in front of everybody else.”

To hear more from Elliott, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.