Joaquin Buckley vs. Mike MalottW
UFC Fight Night · October 17, 2026 · Rogers Place · Main Card 8:00 PM ET
The brief
- The result
- Mike Malott by KO/TKO (strikes), R2
- What kind of fight
- Explosive finisher vs. well-rounded finisher
- Finish likelihood
- High
- The line
- Buckley +120 · Malott -142DraftKings
- The stakes
- Welterweight · Main event
The result
Mike Malott def. Joaquin Buckley — KO/TKO (strikes), R2 2:32
Mike Malott scored his fifth straight knockout, stopping Joaquin Buckley in the second round of their welterweight main event in front of his home-country crowd.
Malott hurt Buckley with a strike to the head and followed up on the ground until referee Jason Herzog halted it at 2:32 of round two.
The breakdown below was written before the fight.
The read
Both men finish fights at a high rate, which makes an early night a real possibility either way.
Buckley's knockout power and athletic ceiling still make him dangerous, but a decision loss to Sean Brady in his last outing means he arrives with something to prove, and Malott's ability to finish on the feet or the mat means he is never out of the fight.
Expect fireworks from the opening bell in front of a fired-up Canadian crowd.
The matchup
This is a legitimate step-up test for both men, pairing one of the welterweight division's most explosive knockout artists against a Canadian who just delivered the best win of his career.
Buckley's power and athleticism have carried him past a string of ranked names, while Malott's balanced finishing instincts and newfound confidence off the Burns stoppage make him a live threat everywhere the fight goes.
A hometown-adjacent Canadian crowd adds extra juice to Malott's side of the cage.
Tale of the tape
| 21-8 | Record | 14-2-1 |
| 32 | Age | — |
| 5'8" | Height | — |
| 76" | Reach | — |
| Southpaw | Stance | — |
| United States | Country | Canada |
| Finney's MMA | Team | Niagara Top Team |
The numbers
Career UFC averages. Red bar = statistical edge.
The fighters
Joaquin Buckley 21-8
“New Mansa”
Joaquin 'New Mansa' Buckley is a 32-year-old American welterweight who trains out of Finney's MMA and has built a reputation as one of the roster's most explosive finishers, with 15 of his 21 career wins coming by knockout. A former middleweight who moved down to welterweight, he has strung together notable wins over the likes of Stephen Thompson, Vicente Luque, Andre Fialho and Colby Covington on his march toward the top of the division. He heads to Edmonton looking to bounce back from a lopsided unanimous-decision loss to Sean Brady at UFC 328 in May 2026, taking on a red-hot Canadian in Mike Malott.
- LSean Brady · Decision (unanimous)UFC 328 · May 9, 2026
Mike Malott 14-2-1
“Proper”
Mike 'Proper' Malott is a Canadian welterweight who trains at Niagara Top Team in St. Catharines, Ontario, and carries a 7-1 UFC record built on an even split of knockout and submission finishes. He announced himself as a legitimate contender in his first UFC main event, stopping former title challenger Gilbert Burns in the third round at UFC Winnipeg in April 2026 to bank a Performance of the Night bonus. He now gets a marquee step-up in competition against Joaquin Buckley on home soil in Edmonton.
- WGilbert Burns · TKOUFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Malott · April 18, 2026