Curtis Millender on Early Celebration vs. Alves: ‘I Don’t Want to Permanently Hurt Someone’

Curtis Millender is a knockout artist with a heart.

In the first round of his Octagon debut against former title contender Thiago Alves at UFC Fight Night 126 in Austin on Sunday, the 30-year-old Californian appeared to be on the verge of victory after dropping his opponent twice. After the second knockdown, however, Millender raised his arms in triumph and began to walk away from the fallen Alves. What he didn’t initially realize was that referee Jacob Montalvo was not ready to halt the fight.

As a result, Alves survived the opening stanza. Allowing a veteran like that a second chance could have doomed Millender, but he had his reasons for responding the way he did.

“I knew I had him in the first round and I didn’t want to hit him again, but now I know: no brakes,” Millender said. “This is how we feed our kids. I don’t want to permanently hurt someone. When you see someone’s eyes roll back, I didn’t want to go back in for more.”

As it turns out, Millender wouldn’t regret his actions. A knee to the jaw sent Alves back to the canvas in the second frame, and this time, “Curtious” was correct in his decision to walk away, as the welterweight contest was halted at the 4:17 mark.

“I definitely had seven or eight inches of a reach advantage. Why would I play his game at all?” Millender said. “I feel like that’s when I dropped him when I was closest to him.”

The rangy Millender appeared destined for journeyman status a few years back following back-to-back submission losses to Brennan Ward and Fernando Gonzalez under the Bellator MMA banner. Now, however, he’s riding a seven-fight winning streak that includes three consecutive highlight-reel knockouts. The last of those came on the biggest stage against his most accomplished opponent to date.

“I’m feeling good and I can’t say exactly how I feel —  I almost don’t believe it,” Millender said. “I’ve been envisioning it and seeing it for the last few weeks and I’ve been working hard. My hard work always shows through my fights.”