Torrez Finney continued his winning career start on Saturday night, directly proving Dana White wrong at the UFC Apex.
The super-jacked middleweight contender is tiny for the division at 5’8″, but makes up for it with massive takedowns and strength that makes him a nightmare for opponents. He was forced to go through Dana White’s Contender Series three times before finally getting a contract, and made his debut in Las Vegas.
Finney seemingly controlled the fight with a grappling performance that wasn’t at all fan friendly, and drew criticism from Michael Bisping on commentary. However, one judge amazingly scored all three rounds against him despite monstrous control time numbers.
Torrez Finney’s UFC debut ends with split decision win over Robert Valentin
Heading into UFC Vegas 105, Torrez Finney was a fan favorite who many felt had been hard done by during his efforts on the Contender Series. He landed two stoppage wins, but was forced to fight a third time by Dana White, who felt he would be ‘decimated’ in the UFC proper.
While the boss wasn’t at the Apex to watch Finney make his debut – he was competing in a Baccarat tournament at the MGM – his name was a key one in the narrative. Even though Finney did win and have constant control time, he was separated multiple times by referee Mike Beltran for not doing enough.
His opponent Robert Valentin had a frustrating time getting away from the cage, but seemed to have been dominated throughout at least two rounds. However, that didn’t stop judge Tony Weeks from scoring all three rounds for the former TUF finalist in a bizarre scorecard.
It wasn’t enough to sway the contest, however, as Finney won 29-28 on the other two cards and scored his first win under the UFC banner.
Fans want Torrez Finney cut from the UFC after debut win
A win in his debut wasn’t enough for Torrez Finney to impress fans in Las Vegas, with social media demanding his head after the performance. They felt it was a cowardly way to fight, and called for his removal from the promotion despite being unbeaten.
Controversial YouTuber MMA Guru wrote: “Torrez Finney is actually the biggest b—- we have ever seen in the UFC. I have never seen someone desperately try to avoid a fight for 15 straight minutes like that before. MORE SEPERATIONS. He made Merab look like prime Lawler Cut that coward from the sport.”
Dillon Danis also got involved with the trolling, joking that Finney was going to be the next fighter to land on the UFC Roster Tracker. “This is the reason Torrez Finney didn’t get signed until the 3rd DWCS fight,” one fan wrote. “Nobody wants to see this s—.”
