Joshua Ashley Sampo (born July 24, 1984) 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 most recently competed in

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 ( ...

flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing up to and including 51 kg (112 lb) for a title fight. Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of boxin ...

division.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Sampo started his professional career in 2009. He fought mainly for Missouri-based promotions as ''Fight Me MMA'', ''Wright Fights'' and ''Rumble Time Promotions''. He is now a high school science teacher at Francis Howell High School in St. Charles county, Missouri.

Legacy Fighting Championship

Sampo was expected to face Rafael de Freitas on September 14, 2012, at Legacy FC 14. However, instead he faced

Antonio Banuelos Juan Antonio Banuelos (born September 23, 1979) is an American former mixed martial artist who competed in the Bantamweight division. Mixed martial arts career Banuelos made his professional mixed martial arts debut in June 2001, knocking out ...

. He won via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) .

Championship Fighting Alliance

Sampo faced Olympic medallist and

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) was an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 by Bjorn Rebney and operated until 2025. The promotion takes its name from ''wikt:bellator, bellātor ...

veteran Alexis Vila on January 19, 2013, at ''CFA 9: Night of Champions'' for the inaugural flyweight title. Sampo defeated Vila via submission due to a guillotine choke in the fifth round and became the CFA flyweight champion. Sampo defended his title once against Sam Thao on October 12, 2013, at ''CFA 12: Sampo vs. Thao''. He won via unanimous decision (49–46, 49–46, 49–46) after five rounds. In November 2013, it was announced that Sampo had signed with the

UFC 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 larg ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Sampo made his promotional debut against fellow newcomer

Ryan Benoit Ryan Benoit (born August 25, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist and bare knuckle boxer who competes in the Flyweight division. A professional competitor since 2009, he is currently signed to the BKFC and has competed for the Ultimate Fig ...

on November 30, 2013, at

The Ultimate Fighter 18 Finale ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate'' (also known as ''The Ultimate Fighter 18'') is the eighteenth U.S.-based installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. Th ...

. Sampo won via submission due to a rear-naked choke and the performance earned both participants ''Fight of the Night'' honors, but Sampo was not eligible for the bonus due to missing weight. Sampo faced

Zach Makovsky Zachary Paul "Zach" Makovsky (born April 19, 1982) is an American former mixed martial artist who competed in the flyweight division. He has competed in EliteXC, ShoXC, Bellator, Brave Combat Federation, and Ultimate Fighting Championship. He i ...

on February 22, 2014, at

UFC 170 ''UFC 170: Rousey vs. McMann'' was a mixed martial arts held on February 22, 2014, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event was released on DVD on May 27, 2014. The DVD was distributed by ''Anchor Bay Entertainment''. Ba ...

. Sampo had his first octagon defeat via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 29–28). Sampo faced promotional newcomer Paddy Holohan on July 19, 2014, at UFC Fight Night: McGregor vs. Brandao. He lost via submission due to a rear-naked choke in the first round. Sampo faced

Justin Scoggins Justin Craig Scoggins (born May 2, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist and former full-contact kickboxer currently competing in the Rizin Fighting Federation. A professional mixed martial artist since 2010, Scoggins has previously competed ...

on May 23, 2015, at

UFC 187 ''UFC 187: Johnson vs. Cormier'' was a mixed martial arts event held on May 23, 2015, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was expected to be headlined by a UFC Light Heavyweight Championship bout between then ...

. Sampo lost the fight via unanimous decision. Subsequently, he was released from the promotion.

Bellator MMA

Sampo faced Dominic Mazzotta at Bellator 197 on April 13, 2018. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

** Fight of the Night (one time) vs. Ryan Benoit * Championship Fighting Alliance ** CFA flyweight title (one time) ** One successful title defense * Cage Championships ** CC amateur bantamweight title (one time)

Amateur wrestling

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for higher education, colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic schola ...

** NAIA Wrestling National Championship

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

out of

Lindenwood University Lindenwood University is a private university in St. Charles, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1832 by George Champlin Sibley and Mary Easton Sibley as The Lindenwood School for Girls, it is the second-oldest higher-education institution wes ...

(2005, 2006, 2007) ** NAIA Wrestling National Championship 125 lb: Fourth place out of

(2006) ** NAIA Wrestling National Championship 125 lb: Fifth place out of

(2005, 2007) *

Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association The Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association (NIAA) is the governing body of athletic programs for high schools in the state of Nevada. In addition, five schools in the state of California (Coleville, Needles, North Tahoe, South Tahoe, and T ...

** Nevada State High School Wrestling 103 lb: Champion out of Pahranagat Valley High School (2001) ** Nevada State High School Wrestling 112 lb: Champion out of Pahranagat Valley High School (2002)

Mixed martial arts record

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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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Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The city is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida and is located southwest of Greater Downtown Miami, Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

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Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

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Will Campuzano William Campuzano (born May 27, 1986) is a Mexican professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Bantamweight division. A professional competitor since 2008, Campuzano has also formerly competed for the UFC, WEC, Vale Tudo Japan ...

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Salina, Kansas Salina is a city in and the county seat of Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,889. In the early 1800s, the Kanza tribal land reached eastward from the middle of the Kansas Territory. In 1858 ...

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Gary, Indiana Gary ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 69,093 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it Indiana's List of municipalities in Indiana, eleventh-most populous city. The city has been historical ...

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Sedalia, Missouri Sedalia is a city located approximately south of the Missouri River and, as the county seat of Pettis County, Missouri, Pettis County, Missouri, United States, it is the principal city of the Sedalia Micropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 ...

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Mixed martial arts amateur record

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St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

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Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in Missouri, United States. It was founded in 1821 as the county seat of Boone County, Missouri, Boone County and had a population of 126,254 as recorded in the 2020 United States census, making it the List of cities in Misso ...

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