Video: UFC veteran Clay Collard pulls off another boxing upset

Mikey Williams/Top Rank

Collard has quickly become a boxer that you don’t want your young prospect to face.

Clay Collard’s UFC career may not have lasted long, but he’s carved out quite the reputation for playing spoiler in the boxing ring.

“Cassius” Clay (7-2-3, 2 KOs) was able to win an entertaining six-round split decision over the previously unbeaten David Kaminsky (6-1, 3 KOs) on Thursday’s Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card. Collard entered the fight as a +400 underdog on 5Dimes, but his high-volume, rough-and-tumble style proved to be very difficult for Kaminsky to handle.

By the end of the bout, Kaminsky’s face was cut up and busted, and while the 19-year-old native of Israel had his moments attacking Collard’s body in the middle rounds, Collard consistently outlanding his opponent paved the way for another upset victory. It’s the third fight in a row in which he’s handed an unbeaten fighter his first L, and you will find that his strength of schedule is impressive for his level of fighting.

Watch the highlights below, including that uh… interesting combination that Collard threw.

Collard went 1-3 in the UFC, notably losing his debut on short notice to future (and now former) featherweight champion Max Holloway. He last fought in MMA in April of 2019 and intended to compete in the Professional Fighters League before the COVID-19 pandemic postponed the season.

As a boxer, Collard fought eight times in 2019 and this was his third appearance of 2020. In his previous outing he won a wild brawl over Raymond Guajardo, and it’s abundantly clear now that he’ll be a tough out for many prospects on the rise.

Meanwhile, Kaminsky was taken to the hospital as a precautionary measure, and believe it or not this wasn’t the first time he’d boxed a former UFC fighter. Last year he won a four-round decision over Estevan Payan, but he was unable to solve Collard’s MMA angles on Thursday night.