Erik Jon Koch (born October 4, 1988) 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 last competed in the

Welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

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 ( ...

. A professional competitor since 2007, he formerly competed for the WEC.

Background

Koch was enrolled in

Tae Kwon Do Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In a ...

classes at the age of four, and reached his black belt by the age of ten, piquing his interest in MMA. With help from his older brother, Keoni, who helps run an MMA gym in

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

with Dave Sherzer (Hard Drive MMA), Erik started MMA-style striking and grappling before the age of 14. Koch would later drop out of Washington High School (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) to pursue a professional career in mixed martial arts.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

After compiling a 2–0 amateur record, Koch made his professional MMA debut in 2007. Fighting primarily in

, he amassed an undefeated streak of 8–0 before being signed to

World Extreme Cagefighting World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion founded in 2001. It was purchased by Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), in 2006. In its final incarnation, it was mad ...

World Extreme Cagefighting

Koch was scheduled to fight

Wagnney Fabiano Wagnney Silva Fabiano-Santos (born July 14, 1975) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He is best known for fighting in the WEC, as well as for the Toronto Dragons of the International Fight League and is the former IFL Featherweight Champion ...

WEC 43 ''WEC 43: Cerrone vs. Henderson'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on October 10, 2009, at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. Background The event was scheduled to take place on September 2, 2009, at the Co ...

on September 2, 2009, but was forced to withdraw from the bout due to an undisclosed injury while training. Koch was replaced by WEC newcomer

Mackens Semerzier Mackens Semerzier (born November 3, 1980) is an American retired professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Featherweight division. A professional competitor from 2008 until 2012, he competed for the UFC and WEC. Background In ...

. Now Koch made his WEC debut against Jameel Massouh on December 19 for

WEC 45 ''WEC 45: Cerrone vs. Ratcliff'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on December 19, 2009 at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas.www.wec.tv/index.cfm It marked the first time the WEC has held back-t ...

. Koch defeated Massouh via unanimous decision. Koch was defeated by WEC newcomer

Chad Mendes Chad Eduardo Mendes (born May 1, 1985)Archived
from th ...

via unanimous decision on March 6, 2010, at

WEC 47 ''WEC 47: Bowles vs. Cruz'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on March 6, 2010. It was held at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio Background The only WEC event held in Ohio, WEC 47 coincided with the Arnold ...

. Koch rebounded from his first professional loss as he faced Bendy Casimir on June 20, 2010, at

WEC 49 ''WEC 49: Varner vs. Shalorus'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on June 20, 2010 at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Background WEC 49 was the only event the organization had held outsi ...

. Koch won via first-round triangle choke submission. Koch was expected to face Josh Grispi on November 11, 2010, at

WEC 52 ''WEC 52: Faber vs. Mizugaki'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on November 11, 2010 at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas. Background Urijah Faber made his bantamweight debut against Japanese striker Takeya ...

. However, due to the UFC/WEC merger, the fight was scratched as Grispi was awarded a title fight with current WEC Featherweight Champion José Aldo to determine the inaugural

UFC Featherweight Champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight clas ...

. Koch defeated promotional newcomer Francisco Rivera via first-round TKO, earning ''Knockout of the Night'' honors.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

2011

On October 28, 2010,

merged with the

. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC. Koch was expected to face

Cub Swanson Kevin Luke "Cub" Swanson (born November 2, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight (MMA), Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2004, S ...

on March 3, 2011, at UFC Live: Sanchez vs. Kampmann. However Swanson was forced out of the bout with an injury. Koch faced Raphael Assunção at

UFC 128 ''UFC 128: Shogun vs. Jones'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on March 19, 2011, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Background This event was expected to take place in Abu Dhab ...

, replacing the injured Manvel Gamburyan. He won the fight via first round knockout, earning ''Knockout of the Night'' honors. Koch was expected to face

on July 2, 2011, at UFC 132. However, Swanson was forced out of the bout with another injury. Koch faced The Ultimate Fighter 12 winner Jonathan Brookins on September 17, 2011, at UFC Fight Night 25. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

2012

Koch was expected to face Dustin Poirier on February 4, 2012, at UFC 143. However, Koch pulled out of the bout citing an injury and was replaced by Ricardo Lamas, who was then replaced by

Max Holloway Jerome Max Keli'i Holloway (born December 4, 1991) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight and Lightweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Fea ...

due to injury as well. Koch was expected to face José Aldo for the UFC Featherweight Championship on July 21, 2012, at UFC 149. However, Aldo was forced out of the bout citing an injury and the bout was postponed. Koch was expected to face José Aldo on October 13, 2012, at

UFC 153 ''UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 13, 2012, at the HSBC Arena (Rio de Janeiro), HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Background Vitor Belfort was expec ...

for the UFC Featherweight Championship. However, Koch was forced out of the bout with another injury and replaced by Frankie Edgar.

2013

Koch faced Ricardo Lamas on January 26, 2013, at UFC on Fox 6. He lost via TKO in the second round. Koch faced Dustin Poirier on August 31, 2013, at UFC 164. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

2014

After two consecutive losses, Koch returned to lightweight and faced Rafaello Oliveira on February 22, 2014, at UFC 170. He won the fight by TKO in the first round. Koch faced Daron Cruickshank on May 10, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 40. He lost the fight via TKO due to a head kick and punches in the first round.

2015

Koch was expected to face Ramsey Nijem on July 25, 2015, at UFC on Fox 16. However, Koch was forced from the bout with injury and replaced by promotional newcomer Andrew Holbrook.

2016

Koch was expected to face Drew Dober on January 2, 2016, at UFC 195. However, Koch pulled out of the bout in early December citing another injury and was replaced by Scott Holtzman. Koch was expected to face Joe Proctor on May 29, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 88. However, Proctor pulled out of the fight on April 21 citing injury and was replaced by Shane Campbell. Koch won the fight via submission in the second round. A rescheduled bout with Drew Dober was expected to take place on September 10, 2016, at UFC 203. However on August 11, Koch pulled out again due to injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Jason Gonzalez.

2017

Koch was expected to face Tony Martin on January 15, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 103. However, Koch pulled out of the fight on December 12 with yet another injury and was replaced by Alex White. Koch faced Clay Guida on June 25, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 112. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

2018

Koch faced

Bobby Green King Green (born Bobby Ray Green; September 9, 1986) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2008, Green is the former ...

on January 27, 2018, at UFC on Fox: Jacaré vs. Brunson 2. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Koch was scheduled to face promotional newcomer Dwight Grant in a welterweight bout on December 15, 2018, at UFC on Fox 31. However, Koch was removed from the card on November 28 for undisclosed reasons and replaced by Zak Ottow.

2019

Koch faced Kyle Stewart on July 27, 2019, at UFC 240 in a welterweight bout. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

2020

On December 23, 2020, it was reported that Koch was released by the UFC. Koch was suspended by USADA for 18 months for testing positive for 3'-hydroxy-stanozolol, a metabolite of

stanozolol Stanozolol (Abbreviation, abbrev. Stz), sold under many brand names, is a synthetic androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) medication derived from dihydrotestosterone (DHT). It is used to treat hereditary angioedema. It was developed by American ph ...

, as the result of a urine sample collected on October 3, 2020. He became eligible to return on April 3, 2022.

Championships and accomplishments

** Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. Francisco Rivera *

** Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. Raphael Assunção *Mainstream MMA **Mainstream MMA Lightweight Championship (2008) *Midwest Cage Championship **MCC 20 Featherweight Tournament Winner (2009)

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

Official UFC Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Koch, Erik American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Iowa Featherweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing taekwondo Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Living people 1988 births Sportspeople from Cedar Rapids, Iowa Sportspeople from Linn County, Iowa American male taekwondo practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters