James William Vick (born February 23, 1987) is an American former

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

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 ...

and

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 ...

divisions 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).

Background

Vick was born to a modest Texan family on February 23, 1987. He grew up in Olney, Texas with his five siblings. Vick took up boxing following his senior year at Olney High School in 2005. Mixed martial arts piqued his interest initially when he saw

The Ultimate Fighter 1 The debut season of The Ultimate Fighter (later designated ''The Ultimate Fighter 1'') premiered on January 17, 2005. Sixteen mixed martial arts fighters (eight light heavyweights weighing from 186 to 205 lb and eight middleweights weighing from ...

around the time he graduated from high school. Nevertheless, he wound up playing basketball in

junior college A junior college is a type of post-secondary institution that offers vocational and academic training that is designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations or support roles in professions such as engineering, a ...

only to be kicked out of the team due to physical altercations and eventually dropping out of college too. After the failed attempt at college, Vick started training boxing under Jarred Kemp. Eventually, he became two-time

Golden Gloves The Golden Gloves of America is an organization that promotes annual competitions of amateur boxing in the United States, in which winners are awarded a belt and a ring, and the title of national champion. The organization currently owns 30 fr ...

champion in the open division, winning the first title in 2007. Having already been training mixed martial arts during his amateur boxing tenure, Vick decided to drop off boxing in order to pursue an MMA career.

Mixed martial arts career

After a 4-1 Amateur Record. Vick began his professional career fighting in regional shows in his home state of Texas. His first four fights all came in 2011, where he went undefeated with four straight wins.

The Ultimate Fighter

Vick was one of 32 lightweight fighters announced by the UFC to participate in the first live season of

The Ultimate Fighter ''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...

reality show. Vick won his way into the house when he defeated Dakota Cochrane by split decision after one round. He was then chosen to be part of Team Cruz as Cruz's fifth pick and ninth overall. For the first official fight of the show, he was chosen to fight Team Faber's third pick Daron Cruickshank. After a rough first part of the round, Vick landed a knee on Cruickshank as he shot in for a takedown, and won the fight by knockout in the first round. His quarter-final fight came against Team Faber's Joe Proctor. Vick was able to dominate the fight, out-striking Proctor on the feet and successfully defending all of Proctor's take down attempts. Vick won the fight by unanimous decision, earning his way into the semi-final round. Vick was selected to fight Team Faber fighter and eventual show winner,

Michael Chiesa Michael Keith Chiesa (; born December 7, 1987) is an American professional Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and sports analyst who currently competes in the Welterweight (MMA), Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship ( ...

, in the semi-final round. Vick lost the fight via TKO in the second round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Vick was scheduled to face castmate Vinc Pichel on June 1, 2012, at The Ultimate Fighter: Live Finale. However, due to his TKO loss in the semifinals, Vick was unable to compete at the event and Pichel was pulled from the card as well. In his official debut, Vick faced Ramsey Nijem on August 17, 2013, at UFC Fight Night 26. He won the fight via submission at just 58 seconds into the first round. Vick was expected to face promotional newcomer Valmir Lazaro on August 2, 2014, at UFC 176. However, after UFC 176 was cancelled, Vick/Lazaro was rescheduled and eventually took place on August 23, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 49. He won the back-and-forth fight via unanimous decision. Vick faced

Nick Hein Nick Hein (born April 24, 1984) is a German retired mixed martial artist and actor, who is best known for appearing in the German television show '' Diese Kaminskis''. Before Hein became an actor, he was also a national judo champion and police o ...

on November 22, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 57. Vick won the fight by unanimous decision. Vick faced Jake Matthews on May 10, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 65. Vick won the fight via submission in the first round. The win also earned Vick his first ''Performance of the Night'' bonus award. Vick next faced Glaico França on April 23, 2016, at UFC 197. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Vick was expected to face Evan Dunham on June 4, 2016, at

UFC 199 ''UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held on June 4, 2016, at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Background While this was the first time the organization has held an event at the venue, it was the fifth time that ...

, filling in for an injured Leonardo Santos. In turn, Dunham pulled out for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Beneil Dariush. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Vick was scheduled to face

Johnny Case Johnny Case (born June 28, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist and professional boxer who currently competes in the Lightweight division of RIZIN. A professional since 2007, he formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Pro ...

on February 4, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 104. However On January 19, Case pulled out the fight citing injury and was replaced by Abel Trujillo. Vick won by submission via submission in the third round. Vick faced Polo Reyes on May 13, 2017, at UFC 211. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. After the bout with Reyes, Vick signed a new, four-fight contract with UFC. Vick faced Joseph Duffy on November 4, 2017, at UFC 217. He won the fight via TKO in the second round. Vick faced Francisco Trinaldo on February 18, 2018, at UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Medeiros. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Vick was scheduled to face Paul Felder on July 14, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 133. However, Vick was pulled from that fight in favor of a main event bout with Justin Gaethje on August 25, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 135. He lost the fight via KO in the first round. Vick faced Paul Felder on February 17, 2019, at UFC on ESPN 1. He lost via unanimous decision. Vick faced Dan Hooker on July 20, 2019, at UFC on ESPN 4. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Subsequently, Vick announced he will be moving up to the welterweight division. Vick faced Niko Price on October 12, 2019, at UFC on ESPN+ 19. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Following this fight, Vick's contract expired and the UFC elected not to renew it, making him a free agent.

Post-UFC career

Following his release from the UFC, Vick fought

André Fialho André Fialho Mensurado (born April 7, 1994) is a Portuguese mixed martial artist who competes in the Welterweight division. He is the former UAE Warriors champion and has also competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), PFL, Bellat ...

at XMMA event on January 30, 2021. Vick lost the fight by second-round technical knockout. Vick announced his retirement after the loss, stating:

Professional boxing career

After a successful amateur boxing career, Vick turned professional in 2010, losing his debut via majority decision. Following retirement from mixed martial arts after a decade in the sport, Vick returned to boxing in 2022. He faced Simon Alejandro Heredia Cortes on March 26, 2022, and won the bout via second-round technical knockout. Nearly two months later on May 5, 2022, Vick stepped into the ring with Robert Lartigue and won the fight again via second-round technical knockout. Vick last fought Rodrigo Octavio Gonzalez on September 24, 2022, losing the fight via decision.

Karate Combat

On October 29, 2022, Vick would debut with Karate Combat, suffering a unanimous decision loss to Jorge Perez. Returning to the promotion on April Vick 1st, 2023, Vick secured his first Karate Combat win via unanimous decision against opponent Gabriele Cera. Vick most recently faced Rafael Alves at Karate Combat 47 on June 29, 2024, suffering a KO loss via head kick. Vick’s record with the promotion stands at 1-2-0.

Personal life

James and his wife Ada have a son, James Jr (born 2018).

Championships and accomplishments

** Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Jake Matthews **

Semi Finalist **UFC.com Awards ***2015: Ranked #7 Upset of the Year

Mixed martial arts record

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Mixed martial arts exhibition record

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Professional boxing record

Professional kickboxing record

, - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Jeremiah Truhler , Decision (unanimous) , , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

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Karate Combat Record

, Loss , align=center, 1–2 , Rafael Alves , KO (switch kick) , Karate Combat 47 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:24 ,

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References

External links

* *
Asterios & Sirancha , creating THE LOUDEST PODCAST, Christory, DarkSyde Jills & mooooo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vick, James 1987 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Lightweight mixed martial artists Welterweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu People from Mineral Wells, Texas Mixed martial artists from Texas American male boxers American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters

Background

Mixed martial arts career

The Ultimate Fighter

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Post-UFC career

Professional boxing career

Karate Combat

Personal life

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

Mixed martial arts exhibition record

Professional boxing record

Professional kickboxing record

Karate Combat Record

See also

References

External links