Marine veteran Sean Sharaf needed just 12 seconds to turn UFC 331 upside down Saturday, knocking out heavily favored opponent Gable Steveson in a stunningly quick heavyweight finish.

The victory came after Sharaf entered the fight as the clear underdog.

Sharaf brought a professional record of four wins and two losses into the matchup.

He had also entered the bout after suffering two consecutive defeats, a difficult stretch that left him questioning and doubting himself.

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Steveson arrived with far different expectations surrounding him.

He held an unbeaten professional record of four wins with no losses and had earned an Olympic gold medal in freestyle wrestling.

Those credentials made Steveson the heavy favorite before the fight began.

His wrestling background also suggested the matchup could involve grappling, but the action ended before the contest could develop in that direction.

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The opening seconds featured both fighters trading a handful of jabs and low kicks.

Neither man had much time to establish any rhythm before Sharaf launched the decisive sequence that brought the fight to an abrupt end.

Sharaf followed a right hand punch with a hard left hook that connected with Steveson’s chin.

The impact dropped Steveson and gave Sharaf an immediate opportunity to move in for another strike.

Sharaf went forward to deliver another hit, but the match was called with Steveson knocked out. Just 12 seconds had passed from the opening of the fight to the stoppage.

The result ranked among the quickest finishes in a UFC heavyweight fight.

It also delivered a sharp reversal from the expectations surrounding Steveson, whose unbeaten professional record and Olympic wrestling achievement had made him the overwhelming favorite.

For Sharaf, the surprise victory carried added weight because of the defeats that preceded it. He explained after the fight that the difficult stretch had tested his confidence before he stepped in against Steveson.

“I’m just proud. I kept believing in myself, you know.” Sharaf said during an interview after the fight.

“I’m coming off of two losses. It was really hard.” His remarks described the doubts that followed him during the buildup to the UFC 331 matchup.

“I was questioning, doubting myself the whole way. But I just had to trust in myself, and everyone’s praying for me and believing in me,” he said.

Sharaf also credited his faith as he reflected on the 12 second victory.

“I just went out there, and I just, I left it in God’s hands. It paid off.”

His path to professional fighting followed more than half a decade of military service. Sharaf joined the Marine Corps in 2014 and trained at Camp Pendleton in California.

He initially served as a 3043 supply administration and operations specialist. He later served as a Marine Security Guard, remaining in that role until he left active duty after six years in the Marine Corps.

Sharaf has competed professionally since 2021. At UFC 331, the Marine veteran overcame the heavily favored Steveson with a compact striking combination before grappling could ever become a factor.

The finish required only a few exchanges, one right hand punch and the left hook that dropped Steveson.

For an underdog coming off two losses, 12 seconds proved enough to produce one of the quickest heavyweight finishes in UFC competition.

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