Geoff Neal needed a little extra motivation heading into the third round of a closely-contested welterweight clash with Santiago Ponzinibbio at UFC 269.
Enter Fortis MMA head coach Sayif Saud, who delivered a fiery pep talk that propelled Neal into his best round of that fight. “Handz of Steel” outlanded his opponent 46 to 39 in significant strikes over a definitive final stanza, helping seal a split-decision triumph.
“It jarred me a lot. He was being truthful,” Neal said of the corner talk during a post-fight interview. “I needed that round.