The Ultimate Fighting Championship(UFC) took centerstage this weekend in Atlanta for UFC Fight Night, but the event meant a little more to those in Covington.
Covington native, Cody Durden, competed on the fight card in what was his first professional fight in his home state in five years.
Durden fought on a UFC Fight Night card in Atlanta that was headlined by a bout between Kamara Usman and Joaquin Buckley in the welterweight division.
For Durden, he was set to compete in a flyweight bout against Peru’s Jose Ochoa, who entered the event with a 7-1 record.
Although he held ground control over Ochoa by a wide margin, Durden was out-struck by the southpaw, who won 11 seconds into the second round via knockout/technical knockout.
Durden graduated from Eastside High School in 2009 and had a long journey before he began his UFC career at the age of 29.
With over 25 professional fights, the Covignton native nicknamed ‘Custom Made’ has had success on the mat.
Durden holds a 17-8-1 record as a professional fighter after his fight against Ochoa on Saturday night.
Before he joined the UFC, Durden competed in other mixed-martial arts leagues such as National Fighting Championship, 864 Fighting Championship and Valor Fighting Championship.
Durden’s first career win in the UFC came in November 2021 when he defeated Aoriqileng in a unanimous decision.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
