Kelvin Gastelum was confident UFC 287 would mark a positive turning point in his career, and he accomplished the first step with a much-needed win over Chris Curtis.

After dropping five of his past six fights prior to Saturday, “The Ultimate Fighter 17” winner Gastelum (18-8 MMA, 12-8 UFC) earned a unanimous victory over Curtis (30-10 MMA, 4-2 UFC) in what many viewed as a crossroads fight in his career. He used his striking to get the job done with scores of 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27.

Unanimous for KG!!@KelvinGastelum takes the decision over Chris Curtis to close the #UFC287 Prelims pic.twitter.com/B7oQVtrYbc

— UFC (@ufc) April 9, 2023

The middleweight bout closed out the UFC 287 preliminary card at Kaseya Center in Miami.

Gastelum came out of the gate sharp, working behind his slick jab and sticking combinations through the defensive guard of his opponent. Curtis stayed composed and marched forward with some decent shots of his own, but Gastelum’s variety of punches and leg kicks gave him the advantage after the opening five minutes.

Curtis came out with some more urgency in the second frame, and Gastelum obligated in a firefight in the opening minutes. A clash of heads as both men came in briefly sent Curtis to the canvas, but he recovered and got back to his feet. Gastelum kept control of the standup for the remainder of the round, mixing up his punches and kicks as Curtis desperately tried to counter with head and body punches.

In desperate need to turn the tide in the final round, Curtis came out with effective pressure. Gastelum absorbed the shots and used his foot movement to stay out of the way as much as possible, but Curtis started to build momentum within the final minutes. Gastelum stood in the pocket and traded back as they went to to the closing bell with the crowd going wild for their efforts.

“He has risen,” Gastelum said in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan. “Ahhh. A year-and-a-half. Yes! Yes! I had to make a radical change in me, in my soul, in my phycological. Joe, I had to go through the valley of the shadow of death to be here. … I struggled every day to be here and I earned this.”

There is NOBODY in Miami more fired up than @KelvinGastelum right now! #UFC287 pic.twitter.com/HFsN7gpLqQ

— UFC (@ufc) April 9, 2023

At 31, Gastelum has already been in the UFC for a decade. April 13 will mark the 10-year anniversary of his octagon debut, but the recent years have been the most trying of his career.

With some momentum back on his side, the former interim UFC title challenger Gastelum said he hopes beating Curtis is the start of some momentum.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 287 results include:

• Kelvin Gastelum def. Chris Curtis via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Luana Pinheiro def. Michelle Waterson-Gomez via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Joe Pyfer def. Gerald Meerschaert via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:15
• Loopy Godinez def. Cynthia Calvillo via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
• Ignacio Bahamondes def. Trey Ogden via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Steve Garcia def. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke via knockout (body kick, punches) – Round 2, 0:36
• Sam Hughes def. Jaqueline Amorim via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 287.