Dana White has finally given Torrez Finney a chance in the UFC.
On Tuesday night, Torrez stretched his perfect professional MMA record to 10-0 with a first-round TKO win over Abdellah Er-Ramy on the latest Contender Series episode.
This is the third time Finney has won in front of the UFC bossGetty
It was enough to earn him a UFC contract after two previous wins on the show.
“My boy, Torrez,” White said with a chuckle after watching his fight.
“Now, listen to me, kid, you, Uncle Snoop, Aunt Didi, Coach Larry, Uncle Bebe, Mum and Dad, none of you can disagree with me, you brought a different energy tonight than you did the last two fights.
“That’s how you do it. Get over here, welcome to the UFC.”
Finney won his previous Contender Series fights by decision.
On August 20, he outpointed Cam Rowston in front of the UFC boss, who proceeded to ruthlessly refuse to sign him in a clip that went viral on social media.
“Finney, you were here last year and my recommendation to you was to go out and get some experience,” White said in August.
“You’re young. You’re obviously talented and you’re now 9-0. You got one fight. You went out in one year and fought one fight.
“I’m always brutally honest with this stuff. You’d get absolutely decimated in the UFC with the performance you put on tonight. Your performance last year was better than this performance.
“You’re 25 years old, kid. You’re obviously a talented athlete. Go out and get three or four fights this year, then come back and talk to us about the UFC.
White brutally rejected Finney just a few weeks agoGetty
Now he’s joined the UFC middleweight divisionGetty
“You gassed out tonight. You had a tough time getting through three rounds.
“You’re not ready for the UFC. When I said, ‘Go out and get some experience’, I meant get some fights. We’ll see you soon.”
Finney sat expressionless as White delivered the harsh verdict on his performance, but he got tons of support from fans who watched him fight.
So much so that he was invited back to the show a few weeks later.
Now he’s signed to the UFC and ready to prove to White that he can hang with the best middleweight fighters in MMA’s premier promotion.
“I just used that to fuel me,” Finney said about White’s brutal rejection during his post-fight press conference.
“What you saw tonight is what you’re going to see in the UFC.”
