Nate Maness (born June 27, 1991) 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 competed in the

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class ...

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 ( ...

Background

Maness played basketball throughout high school, aspiring to continue playing in college but instead opted to pursue a career in mixed martial arts.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Maness made his amateur debut in 2013, winning four bouts before turning professional in the same year. Outside the UFC, Nathan Maness collected three belts at three different weight classes, ranging from 135 through 155 lbs. in 12 professional fights, “Mayhem” won six of them via stoppage, four in the very first frame. After he won the bantamweight championship of the Quebec-based TKO promotion in 2018, his sole loss came when he dropped the belt to former UFC competitor Taylor Lapilus in May 2019 but came back with a first-round stoppage win in February in his next bout.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Maness was scheduled to face

Ray Borg Ray Borg (born August 4, 1993), is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Flyweight and Bantamweight divisions. A professional MMA competitor until 2023, Borg is best known for his 12–fight tenure in the Ultima ...

on August 1, 2020, at UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Shahbazyan. However, Borg was removed from the fight on the day of the event's weigh-in for undisclosed reasons. Maness went on to face

Johnny Muñoz Jr. Johnny Muñoz Jr (born February 16, 1993) is an American mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight (MMA), Bantamweight division. A professional since 2015, he is most notable for his stint in the Ultimate Fighting C ...

in a featherweight bout. He won the close bout via unanimous decision. 5 out of 15 media scores gave it to Muñoz, 6 out of 10 gave it to Maness, and 4 scored it a draw. Maness faced Luke Sanders on November 28, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Blaydes vs. Lewis. He won the fight via second round submission. He earned a ''Performance of the Night'' bonus for the win. Maness was scheduled to face

Tony Gravely Tony Gravely (born September 28, 1991) is an American mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight (MMA), Bantamweight division. A professional since 2015, he is most notable for his time in the Ultimate Fighting Cham ...

at UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Gastelum on April 17, 2021. However, Maness was removed from the bout for undisclosed reasons. The bout with Gravely was rescheduled for September 18, 2021, at UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Spann. Maness won the fight via technical knockout in round two after being knocked down and almost finished in the first round. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award. As the first bout of his new four-fight contract, Maness faced

Umar Nurmagomedov Umar Magomednabiyevich Nurmagomedov (; born January 3, 1996) is a Russian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Nurmagomedov has previously competed in ...

on June 25, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 38. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Maness faced Tagir Ulanbekov on November 5, 2022, at

UFC Fight Night 214 ''UFC Fight Night: Rodriguez vs. Lemos'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 214, UFC on ESPN+ 72'' and ''UFC Vegas 64'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on November 5, 2022 at the UFC ...

. He lost the fight via a guillotine choke in the first round. Maness was scheduled to face Zhalgas Zhumagulov on May 6, 2023, at UFC 288. However, Nate Maness pulled out of the fight due to injury and was replaced by UFC Newcomer Rafael Estevam, who was originally scheduled to face Carlos Candelario on April 22, 2023, at

UFC Fight Night 222 ''UFC Fight Night: Pavlovich vs. Blaydes'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 222, UFC on ESPN+ 80'' and ''UFC Vegas 71'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 22, 2023, at the UFC A ...

. Maness faced Mateus Mendonça on October 7, 2023, at UFC Fight Night 229. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award. Maness was scheduled to face Azat Maksum on February 3, 2024, at UFC Fight Night 235. However, Maness pulled out in early January due to injury and was replaced by Charles Johnson. As the last bout of his prevailing contract, Maness faced Jimmy Flick on June 15, 2024, at UFC on ESPN 58. He won the fight by unanimous decision. On June 29, 2024, it was reported that Maness was removed from UFC's roster. On an interview in July 2024, Maness stated that he was not given a reason for the non-renewal of his contract but hoped to return. Maness later stated that the UFC let him know that his bouts were not exciting, which is why he was not offered a new contract.

Bare-knuckle boxing

On September 3, 2024, it was reported that Maness signed a multi-fight deal with the

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship The Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is an American bare-knuckle boxing promotion based in Philadelphia. The promotion was founded in April 2018, and is presided over by David Feldman. BKFC is the first promotion to hold an official st ...

(BKFC). Maness made his BKFC debut against Nick Burgos on December 6, 2024 at BKFC 69. He won the fight by technical knockout at the end of the third round.

Personal life

Maness and his wife have a daughter (born 2022).

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

** Performance of the Night (Three times) *Hard Rock MMA **HR MMA Featherweight Championship (One time; former) *TKO Major League MMA **TKO Bantamweight Championship (One time; former) *Warrior FC **Warrior FC Lightweight Championship (One time; former) *Bluegrass Brawl **BB Bantamweight Championship (One time; former)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 16–3 , Jimmy Flick , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on ESPN: Perez vs. Taira , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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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Shepherdsville, Kentucky Shepherdsville is a home rule-class city on the Salt River in Bullitt County, Kentucky, United States. It is the second largest city and seat of its county, located just south of Louisville. The population was 14,201 during the 2020 U.S. Cens ...

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Gatineau, Quebec Gatineau ( ; ) is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is located on the northern bank of the Ottawa River, directly across from Ottawa, Ontario. Gatineau is the largest city in the Outaouais administrative region of Quebec and is also par ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 10–0 , Jesse Arnett , TKO (punches) , TKO 44 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:53 ,

Québec City, Québec Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 9–0 , Caio Machado , Decision (unanimous) , TKO 42 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Laval, Québec Laval is a city in Quebec, Canada. It is in the southwest of the province, north of Montreal. It is the largest suburb of Montreal, the third-largest city in the province after Montreal and Quebec City, and the thirteenth largest city in Cana ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0 , Marc McDonald , Submission (brabo choke) , Premier MMA Championship 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:10 ,

Covington, Kentucky Covington is a list of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in Kenton County, Kentucky, United States. It is located at the confluence of the Ohio River, Ohio and Licking River (Kentucky), Licking rivers, across from Cincinnati to the north ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Brandon Bell , Decision (unanimous) , Warrior FC: Caged Chaos , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Harlan, Kentucky Harlan is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in and the county seat of Harlan County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,745 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, down from 2,081 at the 2000 census. Harlan is ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Michael Ricketts , TKO (punches) , Colosseum Combat 33 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:42 ,

Kokomo, Indiana Kokomo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States. Its population was 60,093 according to the U.S. Census Bureau 2024 estimate. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana metropolitan area, Kokomo metropol ...

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Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Brandon Sandefur , TKO (punches) , Hardrock MMA 60 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:13 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Jason Blackford , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Hardrock MMA 58 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:55 ,

Bowling Green, Kentucky Bowling Green is a city in Warren County, Kentucky, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 72,294 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Kentucky, third-most populous city in the stat ...

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Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

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Bare knuckle record

, - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Nick Burgos , TKO , BKFC 69 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:59 ,

Duluth, Georgia Duluth ( ) is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. Located north of Interstate 85, it is approximately northeast of Atlanta. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Duluth had a population of 31,873, and the United Stat ...