Marcus McGhee passed another test in the Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight division but not without considerable difficulty.
The MMA Lab representative outstruck and outlasted Jonathan Martinez to a unanimous decision in the featured UFC 309 prelim on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York. McGhee (10-1, 4-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with matching 29-28 marks from all three members of the cageside judiciary.
Martinez (19-6, 10-5 UFC) was slow out of the gate. The muscular McGhee cracked him with stout jabs, multi-punch bursts and the occasional kick to the leg or midsection. The approach bought him a two-rounds-to-none lead, and he needed every bit of it. Martinez hobbled him with a heavy leg kick at the end of the middle stanza, then continued to attack the appendage throughout the third round. By the time it was over, McGhee had been reduced to a one-legged fighter but managed to hold on and send it to the scorecards.
Meanwhile, former Cage Fury Fighting Championships titleholder Jim Miller once again kept Father Time at bay and dismissed Damon Jackson with a guillotine choke in the first round of their lightweight tiff. The ageless 41-year-old Miller (38-18, 27-17) drew the curtain 2:44 into Round 1.
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Jackson (23-8-1, 6-6-1 UFC) zeroed in on the New Jersey native with one-twos, inside leg kicks and front kicks to the body. All his good work was erased when he ducked into range and left his neck exposed. The opportunistic Miller bit down on the guillotine, wrapped up the Fortis MMA mainstay in full guard and prompted the tapout with an unshakable squeeze.
It was the 16th first-round finish of Miller’s remarkable career.
Further down the undercard, Factory X product David Onama rode a sharp jab and crisp combination punching to a unanimous decision over promotional newcomer Roberto Romero in a three-round featherweight dogfight. All three cageside judges scored it 30-27 for Onama (13-2, 5-2 UFC).
A short-notice substitution for Lucas Almeida, Romero (8-4-1, 0-1 UFC) acquitted himself well under less-than-ideal circumstances. He surprised and floored Onama with a right hand in the first round, advanced to the back and flirted with a rear-naked choke. However, Romero’s luck soon ran out. Onama waded through the initial adversity and let fly with exquisite two- and three-punch volleys, targeting the head and body with power and precision. He bullied his way into top position in the third round, capitalized on a fatiguing Romero, briefly climbed to full mount and piled up points with ground-and-pound.
Onama, 30, will head into his next assignment on the strength of a three-fight winning streak.
Elsewhere, former M-1 Global champion Marcin Tybura forced a doctor stoppage against previously unbeaten Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Jhonata Diniz in their heavyweight clash. Referee Herb Dean was advised to wave it off after 10 minutes.
Tybura (26-9, 13-8 UFC) withstood an early knockdown and managed to force the Brazilian kickboxer out of his comfort zone. He ducked into a takedown roughly two minutes into the middle stanza and methodically progressed from half guard to full mount. Diniz (8-1, 2-1 UFC) had no answers. Tybura unleashed a hailstorm of elbow strikes with time winding down, opening cuts on both eyelids and across the bridge of the Santa Fe Team standout’s nose. Worse, a visibly concussed Diniz retreated to his corner on unsteady legs for the one-minute respite. Upon examination by the cageside physician, he was deemed unfit to continue.
The 39-year-old Tybura has posted four wins across his last six outings.
Deeper into the preliminary draw, Fortis MMA’s Ramiz Brahimaj wiped out onetime Phil “CM Punk” Brooks tormentor Mickey Gall with punches in the first round of their welterweight encounter. Brahimaj (11-5, 3-3 UFC) closed it out 2:55 into Round 1.
Gall (7-7, 6-7 UFC) put an effective jab into play, often marrying it with a knifing cross. Brahimaj responded by crowding the Kill Cliff Fight Club rep in the clinch, where he leaned on uppercut-heavy dirty boxing and found his sweet spot in close quarters. He pushed Gall backward, felled the New Jersey native with an overhand right and pounced with follow-up punches until the job was done.
Winless since 2021, Gall has lost four fights in a row.
Finally, surging Shore MMA prospect Oban Elliott put away former Fury Fighting Championship titleholder Bassil Hafez with punches in the third round of their welterweight pairing. Hafez (9-5-1, 1-2 UFC) succumbed to blows 40 seconds into Round 3, suffering the first stoppage loss of his 15-fight career.
Elliott (12-2, 3-0 UFC) chipped way with push kicks to the leg, jabs and body kicks, as he stayed patient and composed against a tightly wound counterpart. Early in the third round, the Welshman stepped into a devastating overhand right and folded Hafez where he stood. Elliott trailed him to the canvas and cut loose with short punches and hammerfists for the clean finish.
The 26-year-old Elliott has rattled off eight consecutive victories.
In other action, Eduardo Moura (11-1, 2-1 UFC) called upon punishing counter right hands, timely takedowns and stifling top control ahead of a unanimous decision over Veronica Hardy (9-5-1, 4-5 UFC) in a three-round women’s flyweight tilt, drawing 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 marks from on the scorecards.
