Misha Cirkunov (, born February 27, 1987), is a Latvian-Canadian professional

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 the

Light heavyweight Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight. The light heavyweight class has ...

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 ( ...

(UFC).

Background

Son of Oleg (Oļegs) and Olga, Cirkunov was born in

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

( then under Soviet occupation) in 1987. In his childhood, Cirkunov was active in various sports like swimming, basketball, judo and karate. Growing up, Cirkunov dabbled into dubious circles which prompted the family to emigrate to

Toronto 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 ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, when he was 13. With no skills in English, Cirkunov struggled in school but continued training judo and also picked up wrestling. Cirkunov won junior nationals in judo in 2003,

Greco-Roman wrestling Greco-Roman (American English), Graeco-Roman (British English), or classic wrestling (Euro-English) is a style of wrestling that is practiced worldwide. Greco-Roman wrestling was included in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been i ...

national championship in 2005 and national championships in

freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling. It is one of two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games, along with Greco-Roman wrestling, Greco-Roman. scholastic wrestling, High school wrestling and men's collegiate wrestling in the U ...

in 2005 and 2006. After winning the latter championship, Cirkunov became a Canadian citizen. After graduating from high school Cirkunov found Brazilian jiu-jitsu, briefly relocating to Las Vegas to train but returned to Canada to open his own gym. In 2008, Cirkunov won the black belt super heavy division at the Pan No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu Championship. After the unsuccessful venture as a gym owner, he started training at an

Xtreme Couture Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts is an American mixed martial arts training organization headed by former Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC Champion and former co-founder of Team Quest, Randy Couture. Xtreme Couture was founded with the flags ...

satellite gym in

Etobicoke Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district and former city within Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west end, Etobicoke is bordered on the south by Lake Ontario, on the east by the Humber River (Ontario), Humber River, on the ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Cirkunov made his professional debut in January 2010 and amassed a record of 9–2 before signing a four-fight contract with the

in the summer of 2015.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Cirkunov was expected to make his promotional debut against Sean O'Connell on August 23, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 74. O'Connell withdrew from the bout due to injury and was replaced by Daniel Jolly. Cirkunov defeated Jolly via first-round KO after achieving full mount and battering him when he turned his back. Cirkunov faced promotional newcomer Alex Nicholson on February 6, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 82. Cirkunov submitted Alex Nicholson via a second-round neck crank, breaking both sides of his jaw in the process, after earlier breaking his nose. At the post-fight press conference, he told reporters, "I’m just really happy with the performance and especially – not just the submission – but I was able to break his jaw. I’m impressed." Cirkunov next faced another promotional newcomer in Ion Cuțelaba on June 18, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 89. He won the fight via submission in the third round. Cirkunov faced Nikita Krylov on December 10, 2016, at UFC 206. He won the fight via submission in the first round. In March 2017, Cirkunov signed a new, six-fight deal with UFC and fought Volkan Oezdemir on May 28, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 109. He lost the fight via knockout in just 28 seconds of the very first round. Cirkunov was scheduled to face

Glover Teixeira Glover Lucas Teixeira (; born 28 October 1979) is a Brazilian-American former professional mixed martial artist. He competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweig ...

on October 28, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 119. However, the pairing was delayed after a recent hand surgery for Teixeira was slow to heal and the bout eventually took place on December 16, 2017, at UFC on Fox 26. Cirkunov lost the fight via TKO in the first round. Cirkunov faced Patrick Cummins on October 27, 2018, at

UFC Fight Night 138 ''UFC Fight Night: Volkan vs. Smith'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 138'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on October 27, 2018 at Avenir Centre in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada. B ...

. He won the fight by submission in the first round via an arm triangle choke. Cirkunov was expected to face Ovince Saint Preux on March 2, 2019, at

UFC 235 ''UFC 235: Jones vs. Smith'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 2, 2019, at T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area. Background A UFC Light Heavyweight ...

. However, on February 11, it was announced that Saint Preux suffered an injury and was pulled from the fight. Cirkunov instead faced Johnny Walker. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round. Cirkunov faced Jimmy Crute on September 14, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 158. He won the back-and-forth fight via a Peruvian necktie submission in the first round. The win also earned Cirkunov his first ''Performance of the Night'' bonus award. Cirkunov was expected to face Ryan Spann on December 19, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 183. However, Cirkunov pulled out in early December due to an injury. The fight was rescheduled to March 13, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 187. Cirkunov lost the fight via technical knockout in round one. Cirkunov faced

Krzysztof Jotko Krzysztof Jotko (born August 19, 1989) is a Polish mixed martial artist currently competing in the Light heavyweight (MMA), Light Heavyweight division. He has previously fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Professional Fighters Leagu ...

in a middleweight bout on October 2, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 193. He lost the fight via split decision. Cirkunov was scheduled to face Makhmud Muradov on February 26, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 202. However, Muradov pulled out in late January due to a hand injury and he was replaced by Wellington Turman. Cirkunov lost the fight via armbar in the second round. After two straight losses at Middleweight, Misha was scheduled to return to Light heavyweight against Shamil Gamzatov on August 6, 2022, at UFC on ESPN: Santos vs. Hill. However, Gamzatov was unable to obtain a US visa and the bout was scrapped. Cirkunov faced

Alonzo Menifield Alonzo Theodoro Menifield (born October 18, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2015, he has formerly fought in Bellato ...

on October 15, 2022, at

UFC Fight Night 212 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 large ...

. He lost the fight via knockout in round one. In late October 2022, it was reported that Cirkunov was released by the UFC.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

** Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Jimmy Crute **UFC.com Awards ***2019: Ranked #8 Submission of the Year

Mixed martial arts record

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Las Vegas, Nevada 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 ...

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Norcross, Georgia Norcross is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, about 15 miles northeast of Atlanta city limits. According to the 2010 census, the population was 9,116, while in 2020, the population increased to 17,209. Norcross is part of the Atlanta metropol ...

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Sarnia, Ontario Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes, ...

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Orillia, Ontario Orillia () is a city in Ontario, Canada, about 30 km (18 mi) north-east of Barrie in Simcoe County. It is located at the confluence of Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. Although it is geographically located within Simcoe County, the city is a sin ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cirkunov, Misha Living people 1987 births Martial artists from Riga Martial artists from Toronto Latvian male mixed martial artists Latvian emigrants to Canada Latvian male judoka Latvian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Canadian people of Russian descent Latvian people of Russian descent Canadian male judoka Canadian male mixed martial artists Canadian male sport wrestlers Canadian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Mixed martial artists utilizing freestyle wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters 21st-century Canadian sportsmen