Daniel Aaron Marcos Moreno (born March 7, 1993) is a Peruvian professional

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 ...

. He currently competes in the

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 ...

division of the

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). He is also a former 300 Sparta Bantamweight Champion.

Background

Born on March 7, 1993, in

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

. His interest in

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

began at the age of 21. Marcos, since the age of nine, played in the San Miguel towers. He wanted to play for "U" (

Club Universitario de Deportes Club Universitario de Deportes is a Peruvian sports club based in Lima, which has Association football, soccer as its main activity. It also has women's football, volleyball and basketball sections. The football team, popularly known as Universi ...

), but he couldn't due to financial reasons. Marcos worked as a mobile phone lines salesman until his coach convinced him to quit his job to pursue

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Marcos made his amateur debut in 2015, at the age of 21. After six consecutive victories and no defeats, Marcos began his professional career. He debuted in professional MMA on September 11, 2015, at the age of 22, at the '300 SPARTA 8' event. Marcos faced, and defeated by technical knockout, Marcos Cubas. In his early professional MMA career, Marcos fought in Peru, accumulating a 12-0 record with seven finishes, all by TKO or KO. He became the bantamweight champion of 300 Sparta by facing Wanderson Targino on March 10, 2017, where he won the fight by unanimous decision. He subsequently defended the title successfully six times.

Dana White's Contender Series

On September 13, 2022, Marcos faced Brandon Lewis for a UFC contract on Dana White's Contender Series Season 6, Week 8. Marcos won the contract by defeating Lewis via unanimous decision.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Marcos made his promotional debut against Saimon Oliveira on January 21, 2023, at

UFC 283 ''UFC 283: Teixeira vs. Hill'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 21, 2023, at the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Background The event marked the promotion's return ...

. He won the fight by KO in the second round. Marcos faced

Davey Grant David Jeremy Grant (born 18 December 1985) is an English mixed martial artist. He was one of the cast members for UFC TV series The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate and currently competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate ...

on July 22, 2023, at UFC Fight Night 224. He won the fight by split decision. 12 of 14 media outlets scored the contest for Grant. Marcos was scheduled to face Daniel Santos on November 4, 2023, at UFC Fight Night 231. However, Santos pulled out due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by promotional newcomer Victor Hugo. However, the bout was scrapped after Hugo weighed in at 138.5 pounds, two and a half pounds over the bantamweight non-title fight limit. Marcos was scheduled to face Carlos Vera on December 9, 2023, at

UFC Fight Night 233 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 large ...

. However, the fight was canceled due to visa issues on Marcos's part. Marcos faced Aori Qileng on February 10, 2024, at UFC Fight Night 236. The fight resulted in a no contest due to repeated accidental low blows. Marcos faced

John Castañeda John Castañeda (born December 18, 1991) is an American mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2012, he formerly competed for Combate Global. Ba ...

on June 8, 2024, at UFC on ESPN 57. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Marcos was scheduled to face

Said Nurmagomedov Said Makhachevich Nurmagomedov (; born April 5, 1992) is a Russian professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2009, he formerly competed ...

on December 14, 2024, at

UFC on ESPN 63 ''UFC on ESPN: Covington vs. Buckley'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 63'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on December 14, 2024, at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, United States. B ...

. However, Nurmagomedov withdrew from the fight for unknown reasons and was replaced by

Adrian Yañez Adrian Yañez (born November 29, 1993) is an American professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Adrian Yañez was born in Houston and grew up in L ...

. Marcos won the fight by split decision. Marcos faced

Montel Jackson Montel Samuel Jackson (born April 24, 1992) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Bantamweight (MMA), Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of May 6, 2025, he is #14 in the ...

on May 3, 2025 at

UFC on ESPN 67 ''UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Figueiredo'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 67'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on May 3, 2025 at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa Des M ...

. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Personal life

Marcos married his wife, Katia Ponce, on January 19, 2022, in Peru, and they have 2 children.

Championships and accomplishments

* 300 Sparta **300 Sparta Bantamweight Champion (One time) ***Six successful title defenses

Mixed martial arts record

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Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

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Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

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Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

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Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

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, Peru , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Luis Zuniga , KO (flying knee) , 300 Sparta 18 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:47 ,

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, Peru , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Miguel Martinez , Decision (split) , Tatya FC 7 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Marcos, Daniel Peruvian male mixed martial artists 1993 births Living people Bantamweight mixed martial artists Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing