Malcolm Wellmaker moved his family, then suffered third UFC loss

Malcolm Wellmaker says he gave his all in preparing for his latest bout, which ended in his third straight Ultimate Fighting Championship defeat.

Wellmaker faced Otari Tanzilovi in the main card opener at UFC Vegas 122 on Saturday. He had moments of success but was stopped in the second round after Tanzilovi landed a head kick and follow-up punches.

Wellmaker said he suffered no major injuries. His game plan was to close the distance to neutralize Tanzilovi’s kicks, an approach he felt was working early. He also said he moved his family to Florida to prepare at American Top Team.

“The Machine” believes he has improved during his few months at ATT. Although uncertain about his next step, he intends to continue fighting as long as it offers a way to provide for his family.

“First and foremost, I’m healthy, no major injuries, so that’s the biggest blessing so far,” Wellmaker said on Instagram. “As far as fight night goes, I was working it, and I felt like it was working well. We wanted to focus on the body, try to stay inside the kicking range, because obviously, he is a dangerous kicker. And really abuse the pace and volume. And it was going good until it wasn’t. And I got caught. And hats off to Otari, because he is a great striker. We all knew how dangerous he was. As far as my camp and preparation, I gave everything I had to it. Moved my whole family to Florida to prepare for this this one. I showed up to every training session I could and gave a 110%. And I improved and I felt like some of those improvements showed during the fight. Obviously, I still have a ton of room for improvement. I’ve only been at ATT for a few months; I didn’t even start fighting or training at all until the age of 23. As far as what’s next for me, I don’t know yet. But as far as the possibility of me providing for my family with fighting is there, I’m gonna pursue it.”

Wellmaker (10-3) gained attention with first-round knockout victories on Dana White’s Contender Series and in his first two UFC bouts, both of which earned post-fight bonuses. He then lost a decision to Ethyn Ewing, who accepted the matchup on two days’ notice, and has been finished in his last two appearances.