Hector Sandoval (born July 19, 1986) is a Mexican

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

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 ( ...

. He currently competes in the flyweight division. At 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m), he is the shortest male fighter in the history of the UFC.

Background

Born in

Uruapan Uruapan () is the second largest city in the Mexico, Mexican state of Michoacán. It is located at the western edge of the Tarascan Plateau, Purépecha highlands, just to the east of the Tierra Caliente (Mexico), Tierra Caliente region. Since the c ...

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo, is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City, compose the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The stat ...

, Mexico, Sandoval moved to

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, as a child. He began training in mixed martial arts in 2006 at the age of 19.

Mixed martial arts career

Sandoval made his professional debut in July 2008. He compiled a record of 12–2 on the regional scene in California, including stints for

Palace Fighting Championship Palace Fighting Championship (PFC) was a mixed martial arts (MMA) organization based in the United States that was created in 2007 by Christian Printup. It ceased operations in 2009. In 2001, Printup helped promotional newcomers Reed Harris and ...

and Tachi Palace Fights, before signing with the UFC on the heels of a four fight winning streak in June 2016.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Morales made his promotional debut as a short notice replacement against

Wilson Reis Wilson Reis (born January 6, 1985) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division. Reis is the former EliteXC Bantamweight Champion and has also competed for UFC, Bellator, ShoXC and Cage Warriors. Reis also appeared ...

on July 30, 2016, at

UFC 201 ''UFC 201: Lawler vs. Woodley'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on July 30, 2016, at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Background This was the third event that the organization has hosted in Atl ...

. He lost the fight via submission in the first round. Sandoval faced

Fredy Serrano Freddy Alejandro Serrano Sichaca (born September 22, 1979) is a male former Olympic freestyle wrestler from Colombia and a current mixed martial artist. A professional MMA competitor since 2013, he has formerly competed for the UFC and was als ...

on December 17, 2016, at

UFC on Fox 22 ''UFC on Fox: VanZant vs. Waterson'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 22'') was a mixed martial arts event promoted by the Ultimate Fighting Championship and held on December 17, 2016, at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. Background After pr ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Sandoval faced

Matt Schnell Matthew Christopher Schnell (born January 15, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Schnell formerly competed for Legacy Fighting Alliance ...

on April 22, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 108. He won via knockout in the first round. Sandoval faced

Dustin Ortiz Dustin Ortiz (born December 25, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division and is currently signed to the Brave CF. A professional competitor since 2010, Ortiz has also formerly competed for the UFC, RFA, Ta ...

on August 5, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 114. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Sandoval was scheduled to face

Jarred Brooks Jarred Brooks Ford (born May 2, 1993) known professionally as Jarred Brooks, is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in ONE Championship, where he is the former ONE Strawweight World Champion and former Interim ONE ...

on June 1, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 131. However, Sandoval was removed from the bout on May 22 for undisclosed reasons and replaced by promotional newcomer Jose Torres. It was reported in November 2018 that Sandoval was released from UFC.

Post-UFC career

After being released from the UFC, Sandoval next faced Jorge Calvo Martin at Combate 37 on May 10, 2019. Sandoval won the fight via unanimous decision. Sandoval was expected to face

John Moraga John Anthony Moraga (born March 20, 1984) is an American professional boxer and mixed martial artist who competes as a flyweight and featherweight in MMA and boxing, respectively. He is best known for his lengthy career in the Ultimate Fighting ...

at ARES 2 on April 3, 2020. However, due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the event was postponed until October 30, 2020.

Championships and accomplishments

* Tachi Palace Fights ** TPF Flyweight Championship (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

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Stockton, California Stockton is a city in and the county seat of San Joaquin County, California, San Joaquin County in the Central Valley (California), Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. It is the most populous city in the county, the List of municipal ...

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Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

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Lemoore, California Lemoore (formerly La Tache and Lee Moore's) is a city in Kings County, California, United States. Lemoore is located west-southwest of Hanford, at an elevation of . It is part of the Hanford-Corcoran Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA Code 252 ...

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Richmond, California Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was municipal corporation, incorporated on August 3, 1905, and has a Richmond, California, City Council, city council.

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Redding, California Redding is a city in and the county seat of Shasta County, California, and the economic and cultural capital of the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California. Redding lies along the Sacramento River, north of Sacramento, California, Sacrame ...

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Pleasanton, California Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the Amador Valley, it is an upscale suburb in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 79,871 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 cens ...

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Santa Rosa, California Santa Rosa (Spanish language, Spanish for "Rose of Lima, Saint Rose") is a city in and the county seat of Sonoma County, California, Sonoma County, in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay A ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sandoval, Hector 1986 births Mexican male mixed martial artists Flyweight mixed martial artists Living people Sportspeople from Uruapan Mexican emigrants to the United States People from Ukiah, California Sportspeople from Mendocino County, California Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters 21st-century Mexican sportsmen