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Steve Garcia throws heavy punches, and apparently curveballs, too.
Entering his first UFC main event, Garcia (19-5 MMA, 8-2 UFC) came in with a ton of momentum for his featherweight bout against David Onama. Garcia made the absolute most of his opportunity, finding a first-round TKO finish at 3:34 to close out UFC Fight Night 263 with a statement finish.
From the start, Garcia steadily stalked forward, punching at the first sight of an opening. The volume and accuracy were on point early for Garcia as he kept Onama (14-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) on the back foot, circling away from danger.
Suddenly, Garcia blasted Onama with a huge left hand, sending him crashing to the canvas. Onama made it back to his feet momentarily, but Garcia kept the pressure high. More punches connected as Onama tried to survive the onslaught, but he hit the canvas again, and referee Herb Dean closed in to stop the fight.
During his post-fight interview, Garcia acknowledged he wants another step up in competition next, but also called for a big BMF showdown against Max Holloway.
“I’m gonna throw a little curveball in there: I want the Rocky Balboa story. I want the one with Max Holloway, the BMF title, man,” Garcia told Daniel Cormier.
Since his last loss in June 2022, Garcia has steamrolled his competition. He’s now on a seven-fight winning streak that includes six finishes – four of which came in the first round.
Full UFC Fight Night 263 results include:
- Steve Garcia def. David Onama via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:34
- Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Ante Delija via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:59
- Jeremiah Wells def. Themba Gorimbo via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Yadier del Valle def. Isaac Dulgarian via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:41
- Charles Radtke def. Daniel Frunza via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:29
- Allan Nascimento def. Cody Durden via submission (anaconda choke) – Round 2, 3:13
- Billy Elekana def. Kevin Christian via technical submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:33
- Timmy Cuamba def. ChangHo Lee via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Donte Johnson def. Sedriques Dumas via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 1:25
- Norma Dumont def. Ketlen Vieira via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Alice Ardelean def. Montserrat Conejo via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- SeokHyeon Ko def. Phil Rowe via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
- Talita Alencar def. Arianne Carnelossi via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:36
