Nick Pace (born April 17, 1987) is an American former 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 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. A professional MMA competitor from 2008 to 2017, Pace mostly fought in the Ring of Combat promotion where he was the reigning and inaugural Ring of Combat Bantamweight champion until he signed with

World Extreme Cagefighting World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion founded in 2001. It was purchased by Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), in 2006. In its final incarnation, it was mad ...

. After the WECs merger with the UFC, Pace became a member of the UFC. After he retired from MMA in 2017, he became a professional Jiu jitsu competitor and competed in the Combat Jiu-Jitsu Worlds tournament hosted by

Eddie Bravo Edgar Bravo (Birth name, né Cano; born May 15, 1970) is an American martial arts instructor, podcaster, stand-up comedian, and musician. After earning a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in 2003, Bravo began teaching his own self-developed styl ...

Mixed martial arts career

Background

Pace trains with the Tiger Schulmann Fight Team in

Elmwood Park, New Jersey Elmwood Park is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and is a bedroom suburb located from New York City. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 21,422, an increase of 2,019 (+10.4%) from ...

, alongside former Bellator champion Lyman Good and former UFC Bantamweight title contender Jimmie Rivera. Pace is head instructor at the Staten Island branch of Tiger Schulmann's Mixed Martial Arts and has trained with the team since the age of 10, influenced by his childhood love of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Bellator

Pace began his career in the Ring of Combat promotion at Ring of Combat 22. He defeated Sean Santella via unanimous decision. Pace then joined the

Bellator Fighting Championships Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) was an American mixed martial arts promotion founded in 2008 by Bjorn Rebney and operated until 2025. The promotion takes its name from '' bellātor'', the Latin word for "warrior". Bellato ...

and gained notice in the media with a flying knee KO of Collin Tebo. Pace later said "I hope Bellator calls me because I know I can win their tournament, but I hope the WEC calls me too."

Ring of Combat

Despite his wishes to compete in the Bellator tournament, he did not return and instead rejoined Ring of Combat where he defeated Lennox Chance via submission (rear naked choke) in the first round. He followed this up with a unanimous decision victory over Jose Adriano at Ring of Combat 29. Pace was then rewarded with a Ring of Combat Bantamweight Championship fight against Steve DeAngelis. Pace was able to neutralise the wrestling of his opponent to keep himself out of trouble. Pace then secured a D'Arce Choke for the tapout, to take the title and become the inaugural champion. Pace would later have to relinquish the title, however, after signing with World Extreme Cagefighting.

World Extreme Cagefighting

Pace made his WEC debut against Demetrious Johnson on September 30, 2010, replacing Clint Godfrey. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In October 2010,

merged with 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 ( ...

. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC. Pace faced

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 ...

on December 4, 2010 at The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck Finale. Pace failed to make weight for the bout, so it was fought as a catchweight bout. Pace defeated Campuzano in the 3rd round with a

pillory The pillory is a device made of a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, used during the medieval and renaissance periods for punishment by public humiliation and often further physical abuse. ...

choke, which was the first time the submission was used in a professional mixed martial arts bout. However, despite the rare submission, Pace was ineligible for the Submission of the Night bonus due to missing weight, which instead went to

Cody McKenzie Cody Steven McKenzie (born December 16, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 2007, McKenzie mostly competed in his regional circuit, before signing with the Ultimate Fighting Championship to appear on '' Th ...

. Pace was expected to face Michael McDonald on August 6, 2011 at

UFC 133 ''UFC 133: Evans vs. Ortiz 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 6, 2011, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of mun ...

. However, Pace instead faced

Ivan Menjivar Ivan Menjivar (born May 30, 1982) is a Salvadorean-Canadian retired mixed martial artist who formerly fought in the featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Menjivar was born in La Paz, El Salvador, in 1982. Fl ...

at the event after McDonald was pulled from the bout to compete at

UFC 130 ''UFC 130: Rampage vs. Hamill'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on May 28, 2011 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background This event was to be the third meeting between Frankie Edga ...

. Pace lost via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28). Pace faced Miguel Torres on November 19, 2011 at UFC 139 in a catchweight bout of 141 pounds after missing weight. Pace lost a decisive decision to Torres after three rounds. After losing to Torres, and missing weight for the second time in three fights, Pace was released from the promotion.

Cage Fury Fighting Championships

After four years away from competition, Pace made his return to MMA and fought for the CFFC Bantamweight Championship against Ricky Bandejas on Oct 31, 2015. He won the bout and became the title holder. He then defended his title two years later against Ahmet Kayretli. He retired from MMA shortly after and vacated the title.

Jiu-Jitsu career

A year later, Pace made his comeback to martial arts competition in the Combat Jiu Jitsu Worlds BJJ tournament. He has competed in this tournament twice to date.

Championships and accomplishments

*Ring of Combat **ROC Bantamweight Championship (One time) *Cage Fury Fighting Championships **CFFC Bantamweight Championship (One time) *Opened his own Tiger Schulmanns School in Tottenvile, Staten Island NY where he teaches alongside his brother Ricky Pace

Mixed martial arts record

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Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

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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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WEC 51 ''WEC 51: Aldo vs. Gamburyan'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on September 30, 2010 at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. This was the only event that the WEC hosted in Colorado. Backg ...

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References

External links

*
Official UFC Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pace, Nick American male mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Living people Martial artists from New York City 1987 births Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters