Kurt Holobaugh and Austin Hubbard | Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Kurt Holobaugh has taken a road to his first UFC victory like no other.

Ten years after his first fight with the promotion, Holobaugh (20-7, 1 NC) defeated Austin Hubbard (15-7) at UFC 292 on Saturday in Boston to win The Ultimate Fighter 31 lightweight tournament. Holobaugh is also awarded a new UFC contract with the win.

Hubbard came into this fight looking to use his wrestling to control the action, but it was Holobaugh who out-grappled his Team Michael Chandler teammate in Round 2 before finishing with a triangle choke.

Watch the slick submission finish below.

Saturday marked the beginning of Holobaugh’s third UFC stint, after losing a one-off fight to Steven Siler in 2013 and then going 0-3 in his second run with the promotion, which ended in 2019.

Holobaugh was a dark horse on the latest season of TUF. However, in the opening round of the tournament, he submitted Team Conor McGregor’s top prospect Lee Hammond, and then won a thrilling brawl against veteran Jason Knight to make it to the finals against Hubbard.

Round 1 of their UFC 292 clash looked to go Hubbard’s way as he controlled much of the action with a pair of takedowns. Holobaugh stifled Hubbard’s wrestling in Round 2 and he eventually found an opening to take Hubbard’s back. From there, he transitioned to mount, then to an armbar, and finally into the triangle choke that sealed the win for him at the 2:39 mark of the frame.

Afterwards, Holobaugh called for a fight with the polarizing Paddy Pimblett.