Walel Watson (born July 16, 1984) is an American

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

and bare knuckle boxer. A professional since 2008, he has fought in the

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...

Titan FC Titan Fighting Championship (Titan FC) is an American mixed martial arts promotion based out of Pompano Beach, Florida. Their shows were originally run in and near Kansas City and have since expanded to include venues all over North America and e ...

, and

Tachi Palace Fights Tachi Palace Fights (TPF) was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion which hosted events at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, California. Matchmaker for TPF was former fighter Richard Goodman. Regarded as a regional promotion, ...

MMA career

Watson made his professional debut in 2008 for MMA Xtreme in Mexico at the age of 24. He lost his debut via submission, but went undefeated in his next 7 bouts and never going to the third round. Prior to joining the UFC, he amassed a record of 8 wins and 2 losses.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In August 2011, it was announced that Watson signed with the UFC. Watson's UFC debut took place against Joseph Sandoval on October 1, 2011, at

UFC on Versus 6 ''UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson'' (also known as ''UFC on Versus 6'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 1, 2011 at the Capital One Arena, Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. Background This event f ...

. He was successful in his debut, winning the fight early via TKO in the first round. In his second fight, Watson faced

Yves Jabouin Fernand Yves Jabouin (born May 30, 1979) is a retired Haitian-Canadian mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2001, Jabouin also formerly comp ...

on December 10, 2011, at

UFC 140 ''UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 10, 2011 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was the penultimate event for the UFC in 2011. The event fe ...

. After three close rounds Watson lost a controversial split decision. Watson returned quickly to face

T.J. Dillashaw Tyler Jeffrey Dillashaw (born February 7, 1986) is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former two-time UFC Bantamweight Champion. Dillashaw competed on th ...

on February 15, 2012, at

UFC on Fuel TV 1 The year 2012 was the 20th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. 2012 started with UFC 142, UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes and ended with UFC 155, UFC 155: dos Santos ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Watson was defeated by

Mitch Gagnon Mitch Gagnon (born October 10, 1984) is a retired Canadians, Canadian mixed martial artist who competed in the Bantamweight (MMA), Bantamweight division. He is most notable for his time in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts c ...

on September 22, 2012, at

UFC 152 ''UFC 152: Jones vs. Belfort '' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 22, 2012, at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Background Rory MacDonald was expected to face fo ...

via first round rear naked choke. After posting a 1–3 record inside the promotion, Watson was released from the UFC.

Post-UFC career

A short two months after his UFC release, Watson signed on to face Anthony Moore at Xplode Fight Series: Damage on November 17, 2012. He won the fight via first-round TKO. Watson then made a quick turnaround and faced Joey Apodaca at XFS: Vengeance on January 19, 2013. He won the fight via guillotine choke submission, just under twenty-seconds into the first round. Watson faced

Tom Niinimäki Tom Niinimäki (born July 25, 1982) is a Finnish professional mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Early career Niinimäki began training in ki ...

at Cage 23 on September 21, 2013. He lost the fight via kimura submission. He then faced Rodrigo Almeida at CZ 46: Throwdown at The Rock on November 22, 2013. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. In his latest fight, Watson submitted William Joplin at Titan FC 28: Brilz vs. Davis on May 16, 2014. Watson is expected to face Anthony Gutierrez at Titan FC 30 on September 26, 2014. Watson defeated Gutierrez by Submission in the first round. On March 20, 2015, he faced Brett Johns for the inaugural Titan FC Bantamweight Championship at Titan FC 33. He lost the fight via submission in the second round. Watson faced Ricardo Palacios at

Golden Boy Promotions Golden Boy Promotions, Inc. is an American boxing promotional firm based in Los Angeles, California. The company was established in 2002 by eight-time world champion (in six divisions) Oscar De La Hoya, borrowing his nickname "Golden Boy." Hist ...

' inaugural MMA event on November 24, 2018. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round. After a long layoff, Watson returned against Marvin Garcia on January 14, 2023 at LXF 8, winning the bout via first round guillotine. Less than two month later, Watson faced Serhiy Sidey for the BTC Bantamweight Championship at BTC 19 on March 18, 2023, losing the bout via TKO stoppage in the first round.

Bare knuckle boxing

Watson made his bare knuckle debut on July 16, 2021 against Alberto Martinez Jr. Watson was defeated from a series of left hooks in the first round. Watson returned on August 27, 2022 against Brandon Birr. He was defeated via second-round knockout.

Championships and accomplishments

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

**UFC.com Awards ***2011: Ranked #9 Newcomer of the Year

Mixed martial arts record

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São José dos Pinhais São José dos Pinhais () is a municipality in the state of Paraná in Brazil. It is a part of the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba. Etymology With geographical and religious origins the city's name is a homage to São José (Saint Joseph) and ...

Paraná Paraná, Paranã or Parana may refer to: Geology * Paraná Basin, a sedimentary basin in South America Places In Argentina *Paraná, Entre Ríos, a city * Paraná Department, a part of Entre Ríos Province In Brazil *Paraná (state), a state ...

, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–9 , Elias Boudegzdame , Submission (kimura) , Brave Combat Federation - Brave 2: Dynasty , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:47 ,

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Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, ...

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Brett Johns Brett Johns (born 21 February 1992) is a Welsh professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the featherweight division of PFL. Prior to signing with PFL, Johns competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Bellator MMA ...

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , Titan FC 33 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:06 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–7 , Anthony Gutierrez , Submission (triangle choke) , Titan FC 30: Brilz vs. Magalhaes , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:02 ,

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Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class ...

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, Finland , , - , Win , align=center, 11–5 , Joey Apodaca , Submission (guillotine choke) , Xplode Fight Series: Vengeance , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:17 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Ismael Leon , Submission (anaconda choke) , Ultimate Warrior Challenge: To The Edge , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:58 ,

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, Mexico , For the UWC Bantamweight Championship; won the UWC Bantamweight Championship. , - , Loss , align=center, 7–2 ,

Cody Gibson Cody Gibson (born September 11, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Born in Blackwell, Oklahoma, in 1987, Gibson and his brother Keith were a ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Kisack Monroy , Submission (guillotine choke) , Ultimate Warrior Challenge 4: Rebirth , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:33 ,

, Mexico , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 , Peter Martinez , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Gladiator Challenge: Never Quit , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:33 ,

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, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Enrique Cuellar , Submission (anaconda choke) , MMA Xtreme 22: Revolution , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A , Mexico ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Walel 1984 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Sportspeople from El Paso, Texas Martial artists from San Diego Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters