There are good ways to make a UFC debut, and then there’s what this man did 16 years ago…
UFC 102 took place on this day, August 29, in 2009. The event at Rose Garden in Portland was headlined by Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s win over Randy Couture.
Also on the card were the likes of Keith Jardine and Demian Maia, both of whom were brutally knocked out, as well as Chris Leben, Brandon Vera, and Gabriel Gonzaga.
But that event is perhaps best remembered for the debut of a once highly touted heavyweight prospect, who announced his arrival on the global stage with a record-setting knockout that still holds top spot in his division to this day.
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Todd Duffee flattened Tim Hague just seven seconds into his UFC 102 debut
The UFC 102 prelims featured the first fight inside the Octagon for Todd Duffee, an ex-American football player who had transitioned to MMA and started life in the cage with nothing but knockouts. That trend continued in his sixth fight, which marked his first time competing in front of the UFC fans.
Tasked with spoiling Duffee’s debut was former King of the Cage Canada champion Tim Hague. Unfortunately for ‘The Thrashing Machine’, his hopes of doing so came crashing down almost instantly on fight night.
Just before the fight got underway, Joe Rogan noted on commentary that Hague had offered out his hand but been firmly told not to expect a glove touch once the fight got underway.
“Something really interesting (just happened),” Rogan remarked.
“Tim Hague put his fist out as if to say, ‘Do you want to touch gloves?’ Todd Duffee shook his head, ‘No.'”
If that wasn’t evidence enough that the UFC newcomer was locked in, the rapid knockdown that followed did the trick.
A straight jab sent Hague down straight away, and Duffee quickly followed his 10-1 opponent to the canvas and put him out in devastating fashion with ground-and-pound strikes. The official time of Duffee’s debut KO was just seven seconds.
Back then, that went down as the fastest finish in UFC history. While Duffee has since been surpassed by Jorge Masvidal’s flying knee against Ben Askren, his debut win remains the quickest stoppage in heavyweight history.
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Todd Duffee failed to live up to his promise in the UFC
After an emphatic debut that left him 6-0 in MMA, big things were expected of Duffee on the sport’s biggest stage. Unfortunately, the subsequent years did not go to plan for the Indiana native.
He would compete just once more during his first stint in the Octagon, falling victim to one of the greatest comebacks of all time against Mike Russow. After dominating the first two rounds, Duffee was shockingly knocked out by Russow in the third after getting caught with two straight right hands.
Duffee was surprisingly then cut from the UFC, leaving him signing with DREAM. Alistair Overeem knocked the American out in their title fight but Duffee soon rebounded and found himself back in MMA’s leading promotion.
Following two victories to announce his return, the American Kickboxing Academy-trained heavyweight was stopped by Frank Mir before a four-year stint on the sidelines. A No Contest against Jeff Hughes marked his final UFC fight and Duffee’s most recent MMA venture saw him finished in one round by Phil De Fries under the KSW banner in 2023.
Duffee appeared in BKFC just last year, losing to Ben Rothwell after sustaining an injury just 43 seconds into the fight.