Ty Miller | Second Helpings

“It was a little bit different — obviously a much bigger venue than I’ve fought at before and I went against an experienced vet in the UFC who went against the likes of Michael Morales and Mike Malott,” continued the New Mexico product, who kicked off the first fight card off the year with a first-round stoppage win over Fugitt and earned a bonus for his efforts. “At the same time, it was just another fight too… It was a really cool experience and I’m happy to have been the first fight for the Paramount+ era and the first fight of the year. I’m glad they picked me to open up the card.”

Miller turned the bonus money into a sizeable down payment on a house, moving he and his family from Albuquerque to nearby Rio Rancho. Once settled, the 26-year-old welterweight set himself up with a decent home gym setup as well, which turned out to be a pretty sound investment.

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A pro since 2022, Miller had a difficult time finding opportunities on the regional circuit as his Golden Gloves pedigree and early success made willing dance partners hard to come by. He logged less than five minutes of cage time in the year leading up to his appearance at the Meta APEX and hoped the biggest stage in the sport and competing in the very first bout of the year would present an opportunity to fight four or five times in 2026.

Instead, Miller has spent the last eight months honing his craft and biding his time, waiting for another opportunity to step into the Octagon, which finally comes this weekend against Goff.

Saturday’s sophomore voyage into the Octagon comes nearly a year-to-the-day since his win on Dana White’s Contender Series, making it another memorable moment for the unbeaten prospect. Miller takes a great deal of pride in having opened his career with a win over a veteran like Fugitt and believes he’s ready for much of what Billy Ray Goff is going to bring his way this weekend.

“It was a good first fight to have against Adam because, again, he had gone against some big names, really tough opponents; he didn’t have a single easy fight,” explained Miller. “I’m sure a lot of the fights I’m gonna have are gonna be mostly against vets too, so it’s cool to have a win over him because he was no slouch — he was a big, lanky southpaw with hard kicks, pretty versatile, so I was happy to have a name like that under my belt… I think the main things (for Goff) are his durability, pace, and output. He’s real light on his feet, bouncy, and possibly the wrestling and grappling too; I expect him to shoot.

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“I’ve fought a lot of guys like him — same frame, same size, same height, and I’m assuming kind of the same game plan to come over the top with hooks, kick the leg, shoot every now and then. I feel like the things that separate him the most is his durability — he seems pretty f*****’ tough, not gonna lie, so I need to be ready for that… But he eats a lot of shots coming in and I think he’s gonna run into something hard.”

Flush with confidence from an excellent debut showing and itching to finally make the walk for a second time, Miller is more than ready to blend what he’s always done with what he’s been working on for the last seven months on Saturday night, with another win and another finish standing as his targets, and the skills and approach to make another bonus a real possibility as well.

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“I think I just need to do what I’ve done in the past: fight behind my jab and keep him at range, incorporate more knees, elbows, and kicks,” Miller said, forecasting his path to victory. “I think I’ll be able to get him out of there in the first or second round.”