Kyle Bochniak (born February 5, 1987) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

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 ...

currently competing in the

Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, ...

division. A professional competitor since 2014, he has 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 ( ...

Professional Fighters League The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) promot ...

(PFL), and

CES MMA CES MMA (Classic Entertainment & Sports) is a mixed martial arts promotional firm based out of Providence, Rhode Island founded by boxing promoter Jimmy Burchfield Sr. It promoted the first sanctioned professional mixed martial event in the stat ...

. Bochniak also runs his own gym, North Andover BJJ, which he opened in January 2023.

Background

Bochniak associated with the wrong crowd when he was growing up where he was drinking excessively and engaging in

substance abuse Substance misuse, also known as drug misuse or, in older vernacular, substance abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods that are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder, differing definition ...

activities. His unhealthy habits led him to drop out of school, and he was in a coma for a week due to overdosing on prescription pills. Bochniak eventually ended up in jail where he found out his father, who left his mother when Bochniak was two, was in the next cell from his. Bochniak realized he did not want to end up like his father, so he made a pledge with the judge with a heartfelt arraignment speech. The judge granted Bochniak five year probation of his offense where he was transferred to

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

. In Hartford, Bochniak started learning welding and eventually landed a job as a welder. He later stumbled into Broadway Jiu-Jitsu where he started his journey to be a mixed martial artist, which turned his life around.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

He began training in mixed martial arts in 2010 and starting competing in amateur fights a year later. After compiling a record of 5–1 as an amateur, he started fighting professionally in 2014. Bochniak compiled an undefeated record of 6–0 on the regional circuit, competing exclusively for

in nearby

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

. He was signed by the UFC in early 2016.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Bochniak made his promotional debut on January 17, 2016, as a short notice replacement for

Jimy Hettes James Michael Hettes (born June 9, 1987) is a retired American mixed martial artist who competed as a Featherweight (MMA), featherweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Hettes is a 2-time Keystone State Games Judo Gold Medalist ...

against

Charles Rosa Charles Rosa (born August 24, 1986) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Featherweight division. A professional since 2012, he is most notable for his time in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background ...

UFC Fight Night 81 ''UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 81'') was a mixed martial arts event held on January 17, 2016, at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Background A UFC Bantamweight Championship bout between defending c ...

. Despite knocking Rosa down in the first round, Bochniak lost the fight via unanimous decision. Bochniak returned to face

Enrique Barzola Enrique Johnatan Barzola Acosta (born 28 April 1989) is a Peruvian mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight and Featherweight divisions of Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA). He was the lightweight winner on The Ultimate Fighter: ...

on August 27, 2016, at

UFC on Fox 21 ''UFC on Fox: Maia vs. Condit'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 21'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on August 27, 2016, at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Background This was t ...

. He won the fight via split decision. Bochniak was expected to face

Godofredo Pepey Godofredo Castro (born July 2, 1987), better known as Godofredo Pepey, is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who currently fights in the lightweight division of Brave Combat Federation. A professional MMA competitor since 2003, Pepey has also compe ...

on March 11, 2017, at

UFC Fight Night 106 ''UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 106'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 11, 2017, at the Centro de Formação Olímpica do Nordeste in Fortaleza, ...

. However, both fighters pulled out of the fight during the week leading up to the event citing injuries and the bout was scrapped. Bochniak faced

Jeremy Kennedy Jeremy Michael Fitz-Kennedy (born September 16, 1992) is a Canadians, Canadian mixed martial artist, currently competing in the Featherweight (MMA), Featherweight division of Bellator MMA. In addition to competing for Bellator, Kennedy has also c ...

on July 22, 2017, at

UFC on Fox 25 ''UFC on Fox: Weidman vs. Gastelum'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 25'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on July 22, 2017, at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. Backgroun ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Bochniak faced

Brandon Davis Brandon Michael Davis (born May 8, 1990) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Davis began training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at the age of 20, while ...

on January 20, 2018, at

UFC 220 ''UFC 220: Miocic vs. Ngannou'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on January 20, 2018, at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Background A UFC Heavyweight Championship bout between curren ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Bochniak faced

Zabit Magomedsharipov Zabit Akhmedovich Magomedsharipov (; born March 1, 1991) is a Russia, Russian former professional Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. He competed in the Featherweight (MMA), Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC ...

on April 7, 2018, at

UFC 223 ''UFC 223: Khabib vs. Iaquinta '' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on April 7, 2018, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Background A UFC Lightweight Championship bout between ...

. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. The fight earned him a '' Fight of the Night'' bonus. Bochniak faced

Hakeem Dawodu Hakeem Tyrone Dawodu (born July 2, 1991) is a Canadian mixed martial artist who competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He also competed for the World Series of Fighting. Early life Dawodu was born in Calgar ...

on December 8, 2018, at

UFC 231 ''UFC 231: Holloway vs. Ortega'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on December 8, 2018 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Background A UFC Featherweight Championship bout between M ...

. He lost the fight via split decision. Bochniak faced promotional newcomer

Sean Woodson Sean Lawrence Woodson (born June 7, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Growing up in North County, Sean Woodson’s dad was the driving ...

on October 18, 2019, at UFC on ESPN: Reyes vs. Weidman. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. On January 9, 2020, it was announced that Bochniak was released by UFC.

Post-UFC career

Bochniak was scheduled to face Jonathan Gary in a featherweight bout at CES MMA 61 on April 24, 2020. However, the event was postponed indefinitely due to the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

pandemic. Bochniak was then scheduled to fight Tim Teves at Taura MMA 11 on October 30, 2020. However, the bout was cancelled due to an unknown reason. Bochniak then faced Caio Uruguai at XMMA 1 on January 30, 2021. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Bochniak was scheduled to face

Derek Campos Francisco Derek Campos (born April 1, 1988) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Featherweight division. A professional competitor since 2009, Campos has competed for Bellator MMA, Shark Fights and King of t ...

at XMMA 2 on July 30, 2021. However Campos withdrew due to injury and was replaced by

Marcus Brimage Marcus Clyde Brimage (born April 6, 1985) is a retired American mixed martial artist who competed in the Featherweight division. A professional competitor since 2007, he has formerly competed for the UFC and was a competitor on The Ultimate Figh ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Bochniak faced Carlton Minus on April 2, 2022, at XMMA 4. He won the bout via split decision.

Professional Fighters League

Bochniak, replacing Sung Bin Jo, faced

Bubba Jenkins Bubba Jenkins (born February 5, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist and former amateur wrestler. He currently competes in the featherweight division. He has also notably competed for Bellator MMA, Absolute Championship Berkut, Professiona ...

on April 28, 2022, at PFL 2. He lost the bout via unanimous decision. Bochniak faced Chris Wade on June 24, 2022, at PFL 5. He lost the bout via head kick and then ground and pound TKO in the first round.

Championships and accomplishments

** Fight of the Night (One time) **UFC.com Awards ***2018: Ranked #10 Fight of the Year

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 11–7 , Chris Wade , TKO (head kick and punches) , PFL 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:10 ,

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–6 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , PFL 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal c ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–5 , Carlton Minus , Decision (split) , XMMA 4: Black Magic , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , XMMA 2: Saunders vs. Nijem , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville ( ; ) is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, sixth-most pop ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–5 , Caio Uruguai , Decision (unanimous) , XMMA: Vick vs Fialho , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, Florida, Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lag ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC on ESPN: Reyes vs. Weidman , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–4 ,

, Decision (split) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–3 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 ,

, , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–2 ,

, , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fox: Weidman vs. Gastelum , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Uniondale, New York Uniondale is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in central Nassau County, New York, on Long Island, in the Town of Hempstead, within the New York metropolitan area. The population was 32,473 at the time of the 2020 United States census ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 ,

, Decision (split) , UFC on Fox: Maia vs. Condit , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Taylor Trahan , Submission (rear-naked choke) , CES MMA 32 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:58 ,

Lincoln, Rhode Island Lincoln is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 22,529 at the 2020 census. Lincoln is located in northeastern Rhode Island, north of Providence. Lincoln is part of the Providence metropolitan statistica ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Dominic Warr , KO (punch) , CES MMA 28 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:49 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Tom English , Decision (unanimous) , CES MMA 27 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Ruslan Khubejashvili , Decision (unanimous) , CES MMA 26 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Marius Enache , TKO (punches) , CES MMA 22 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:44 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Peter Bertucci , Submission (rear-naked choke) , CES MMA 21 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:05 ,

, United States , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bochniak, Kyle Living people American male mixed martial artists Featherweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Mixed martial artists from Massachusetts Sportspeople from Gloucester, Massachusetts 1987 births Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People from Gloucester, Massachusetts

Background

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Post-UFC career

Professional Fighters League

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

See also

References

External links