Christian Duncan disappointed with anti-climactic debut at UFC 286, wants quick turnaround

LONDON – Christian Duncan beat Dusko Todorovic with a first-round injury TKO Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC 286 at The O2 in London.

Take a look inside the fight with Duncan, a who vacated his Cage Warriors middleweight title to sign with the UFC earlier this year.

Christian Duncan vs. Dusko Todorovic

Result: Christian Duncan def. Dusko Todorovic via TKO (injury) – Round 1, 1:52
Updated records: Duncan (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC), Todorovic (12-4 MMA, 3-4 UFC)
Key stat: Duncan has seven of his eight wins by stoppage, including six knockouts or TKOs.

Duncan on the fight's key moment

Mar 18, 2023; London, UNITED KINGDOM; Dusko Todorovic (blue gloves) lies on the mat during his fight with Christian Leroy Duncan (not pictured) fights during UFC 286 at O2 Arena. Mandatory Credit: Per Haljestam-USA TODAY Sports

“I didn’t know what happened. I just heard him kind of collapse, and then I realized something had happened, so I didn’t pressure him. It’s out of our control. Certain things are out of our control. But I’m just glad that I got to experience this whole fight.

“I felt I had the strength advantage in the clinch. I was just kind of getting the feel for him … and then what happened happened.”

Duncan on a win by injury in his UFC debut

Mar 18, 2023; London, UNITED KINGDOM; Christian Leroy Duncan (red gloves) fights Dusko Todorovic (blue gloves) during UFC 286 at O2 Arena. Mandatory Credit: Per Haljestam-USA TODAY Sports

“I think celebrating that kind of win there was – you can’t really do it. It’s so disrespectful to him, No. 1, because he didn’t actually get a full loss given to him. In my head, it’s kind of a fake celebration. So now I just think I’ve got the full experience here with the fight week preparations, all the stuff behind the scenes, and I’ve got the feeling of walking out and such a big event like this at The O2. So I’ll just take that, put that in my pocket and move on.”

Duncan on what he wants next

Mar 18, 2023; London, UNITED KINGDOM; Christian Leroy Duncan (red gloves) fights Dusko Todorovic (not pictured) during UFC 286 at O2 Arena. Mandatory Credit: Per Haljestam-USA TODAY Sports

“I overheard somebody speaking. I don’t know if this is true. Is there a card here again in July? Well if that’s the rumor and it comes to be, comes to light, then yeah, I definitely want to be on that card over here.

“I’m just finding my feet right now. I vision myself being up there with the top-ranked guys, and then from there on, we’ll see. We’ll see what happens. But I look forward to the experience and actually getting a full fight here in the UFC. (I have) no names in particular. I just want to fight and actually finish, get to finish a whole fight. And then from there we’ll look and see how the landscape is.”

To hear more from Duncan, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 286.