While UFC 289 is the third Canadian walk to the Octagon for Nelson, it is the first for “Proper” Mike Malott, who earned his contract on Dana White’s Contender Series and has become one of the brightest new stars in Canadian MMA. At 289, Malott is the final Canadian to make the walk as he makes his pay-per-view debut.
Between his Contender Series bout and two UFC fights, Malott hasn’t seen the stool once. After his latest first-round finish (a submission win over Yohan Lainesse in February 2023), Malott all but knew he would end up on this card. It was just a matter of opponent and, eventually, he got the name Adam Fugitt. When he hits the tunnel on June 10, it’ll be the moment his dream of representing Canada in Canada comes true.
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“As a kid, I didn’t know necessarily that I was going to be a fighter, but I always knew I was a dreamer,” Malott said. “Pumping my legs on swing sets as a kid, getting higher and higher, and just visualizing like, ‘Someday, something big is going to happen. I’m going to be in stadiums, I’m going to be in arenas, and there are going to be Canadian flags everywhere.’”
