Do you remember that UFC fighter who absorbed 230 strikes from Sean O’Malley at UFC 264?
Well, that was none other than Kris Moutinho, who is set to make his return to the organisation at UFC Atlanta.
The Milford-born fighter had only two UFC bouts, both of which ended badly.
The first was, of course, on his UFC debut against O’Malley at the T-Mobile Arena, where he suffered a third-round TKO loss.
The second battle was at UFC Vegas 50, where he was stopped by first-round TKO against Guido Canetti.
Making his comeback to the UFC
After two consecutive knockout losses, Moutinho had to find a way to revive his career and return to the most prominent MMA organisation.
Just one year after his most recent TKO loss, before his UFC release.
He fought at Combat Zone 79, where he redeemed his two-fight losing streak with a second-round submission win over Antonio Castillo.
The Massachusetts mixed martial artist went on to fight in Rhode Island just four months later at CES 74.
Moutinho faced Matheus Silva to win by second-round TKO after a vicious ground and pound.
The American Bantamweight continued to shine when he returned to Combat Zone 82 and submitted Jay Pressley with a Guillotine Choke in the first round.
Seven months later, Moutinho squared off with Elijah Harris at Combat Zone 84 to secure a third-round TKO triumph.
In his next battle, the 32-year-old took on a familiar opponent, Johnny Campbell, after previously fighting him at CES 57 back in July 2019, where he lost by second-round TKO.
The former UFC fighter exacted his revenge and increased his winning streak to five after stopping Campbell at the end of round two by TKO (Retirement) at Cage Titans 68.
Just four days ago, it was confirmed that Moutinho would make his return to the UFC, on short notice, appearing on the upcoming fight night in Atlanta at the State Farm Arena.
Who is Moutinho facing at UFC Atlanta?
Still in search of his first win with the organisation, the Milford fighter takes on Malcolm Wellmaker, who made a very good impression on his UFC debut.
The Augusta-born fighter earned a contract with the biggest MMA company after a first-round knockout win on Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS).
‘The Machine’ made his first UFC appearance just over a month ago at UFC Kansas City, where he knocked out Cameron Saaiman in just under two minutes of the first round.
Wellmaker is undefeated with nine victories, five by KO/TKO and two by submission, as he’s aiming to make another statement win to put himself close to the Bantamweight rankings.
While Moutinho is up for the challenge, it seems that he will be a rather big underdog, as all six of his losses have not gone the distance.
Wellmaker is also slightly taller and possesses a 3.5-inch reach advantage, which will most certainly favour the undefeated fighter if the battle stays on the feet.
However, Moutinho has faced a four-inch reach disadvantage and a significant height difference when faced with O’Malley, almost going the full three rounds in that slugfest.
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