Devonte Smith (born July 30, 1993) 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 ...

who competed in the

Lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing (sport), rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) boxing weight classes, weight class in the spor ...

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 ( ...

Background

Smith started training mixed martial arts around the age of 14 after seeing

Quinton Jackson Quinton Ramone Jackson (born June 20, 1978), known by his ring name of Rampage Jackson, is an American rapper, former mixed martial artist, actor, kickboxer, and professional wrestler. During the course of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career, ...

fight in

PRIDE Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

. He attended Bedford High School where he wrestled every year.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

After compiling an amateur record of 7–2–1, Smith started his professional MMA career in 2015 and fought primarily in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. He amassed a record of 7–1 before competing in

Dana White's Contender Series Dana White's Contender Series, formerly named Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series, is an American mixed martial arts promotion. In May 2017, the UFC announced White would hold the competition weekly on UFC Fight Pass (It has since been mov ...

web-series program.

Dana White's Contender Series

Smith appeared in Dana White's Contender Series 16 on August 7, 2018, facing Joseph Lowry. He won the fight via knockout in the first round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Smith made his UFC debut on November 10, 2018, against

Julian Erosa Julian Ricardo Dulican Erosa (born July 31, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Erosa is also a former CageSport Featherweight and Lightweight Champ ...

at UFC Fight Night: The Korean Zombie vs. Rodríguez. He won the fight via knockout in round one. His next fight came on February 9, 2019, at

UFC 234 ''UFC 234: Adesanya vs. Silva'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on February 10, 2019, at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Background A UFC Middleweight Championship ...

against

Dong Hyun Ma Kim Dong-hyun (; born September 9, 1988), anglicized as Dong Hyun Kim, also known as "The Maestro", is a South Korean mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the UFC's lightweight division. At the turn of 2019, he began to use the rin ...

. He won the fight via technical knockout in round one. The win earned him the '' Performance of the Night'' bonus. Smith was scheduled to face

John Makdessi John Makdessi (born May 3, 1985) is a Canadian professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division and competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Makdessi was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on May 3, ...

on August 17, 2019, at UFC 241. However, it was reported on July 30 that Makdessi was forced to withdraw for undisclosed reasons. Returning veteran Clay Collard was briefly linked as the replacement. In turn, Collard was removed from the bout during the week leading up to the event due to an undisclosed medical issue and he was replaced by promotional newcomer

Khama Worthy Khama Worthy (born October 15, 1986) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. A professional since 2012, he has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), King of the Cage and CES MMA. B ...

. He lost the fight via technical knockout in round one. Smith was expected to face

Alex da Silva Coelho Alex da Silva Coelho (born February 4, 1996) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. A professional since 2014, he most notably competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Mixed martial arts car ...

on February 6, 2021, at

UFC Fight Night 184 ''UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 184'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 42'' and ''UFC Vegas 18'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 6, 2021 at the UF ...

. However, Coelho pulled out due to undisclosed reasons, and was replaced by Justin Jaynes. Smith won the fight via technical knockout in round two. Smith faced

Jamie Mullarkey Jamie Mullarkey (born 17 August 1994) is an Australian mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Mullarkey grew up in Central Coast area, attending Erina High School. He ...

on October 2, 2021, at

UFC Fight Night 193 ''UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Walker'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 193'', ''UFC Vegas 38'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 51'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 2, 2021 at the UFC A ...

. He lost the fight via technical knockout in round two. Smith was scheduled to face Erick Gonzalez on March 5, 2022, at

UFC 272 ''UFC 272: Covington vs. Masvidal'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on March 5, 2022, at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area, United States. ...

. However, Gonzalez was forced to withdraw from the event due to foot injuries and was replaced by

Ľudovít Klein Ľudovít Klein (born February 22, 1995) is a Slovak mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Ľudovít Klein was born in Nové Zámky, where he also started his sports career ...

. Smith lost the fight via split decision. In May 2022, it was reported that Smith was released by the UFC.

Personal life

While preparing for his fight against

, Smith's sister Dariene was killed by a stray bullet in Columbus, Ohio, on July 11, 2020.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

** Performance of the Night (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Devonte 1993 births Living people Lightweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Martial artists from Cleveland Mixed martial artists from Ohio American male mixed martial artists American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters 21st-century American sportsmen