Richard Walsh (born 1 December 1988) is an Australian mixed martial artist. He previously competed in the Welterweight division of the UFC. He was also a semi-finalist on '' The Ultimate Fighter: Canada vs. Australia''.

Background

Walsh graduated from St. Ignatius College in Sydney in 2006. He went on to complete a bachelor's degree in construction at the University of New South Wales before going to study abroad at the

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

in Atlanta. Walsh also enrolled in postgraduate law, but chose instead to pursue mixed martial arts. He trains out of VT1 Martial Arts in Chatswood.

Mixed martial arts career

Amateur career

Walsh competed extensively before becoming a professional athlete. He has fought in both amateur

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

and western boxing where he holds records of 10–0 and 6–0 respectively. He is also a former Brazilian jiu-jitsu state champion.

Early professional career

Walsh made his professional mixed martial arts debut on 29 May 2009 when he defeated Tahu Pauro by first-round submission. He went on to fight seven more times, four of which ended in first round victories, before auditioning for TUF: Nations.

The Ultimate Fighter

On 5 December 2013, it was announced that Walsh had been selected as one of the welterweight fighters representing Australia for The Ultimate Fighter Nations: Canada vs. Australia. The reality show was led by Patrick Côté and Kyle Noke and premiered in early 2014. In episode five of the show Walsh, who was placed on Team Noke, faced Matt DesRoches from Team Cote. Dominating the fight from start to finish, Walsh scored a unanimous decision and earned the second win for his team. He proceeded to the semi-finals of the competition. In the semi-finals, Walsh faced the much-touted Olivier Aubin-Mercier. Walsh was defeated in the first round via rear-naked choke.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Walsh fought former teammate Chris Indich on the undercard of The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale: Bisping vs. Kennedy. The event took place on 16 April 2014 at the Colisée Pepsi in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Walsh was able to control the fight for three rounds and was awarded a unanimous decision as a result. Walsh faced Kiichi Kunimoto at UFC Fight Night 52. He lost the fight via controversial split decision. Many prominent MMA sites and fighters scored the bout in Walsh's favour given his dominance in the first two rounds of the fight. Walsh faced Alan Jouban on 28 February 2015 at UFC 184. Jouban won the fight via knockout in the first round. Walsh faced Steve Kennedy on 15 November 2015 at UFC 193. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Walsh faced Viscardi Andrade on 20 March 2016 at UFC Fight Night 85. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. Walsh next faced Jonathan Meunier on 27 November 2016 at UFC Fight Night 101. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. In May 2017, Walsh was released from the company.

Post Ultimate Fighting Championship

Walsh was awarded his black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu in January 2018. He is currently working at the UFC Performance Institute in Shanghai.

Personal life

Walsh trained at the same gym as fellow UFC fighter and TUF 20 alumni

Alex Chambers Alex Chambers (born 28 October 1978) is an Australian mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division. A professional mixed martial artist since 2010, she has also fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Invicta FC. She ...

prior to the latter's departure in mid 2015. Unlike Chambers, Walsh originally had no intention of competing. However, he has been a longtime fan of MMA and combat sports which finally led to his decision to turn professional.Murray, Oliver
"VT1 Academy fighters Richard Walsh and Alex Chambers take step closer to Ultimate Fighting Championship dreams"
"

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

", Sydney, 16 December 2013. Retrieved on 23 July 2014.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center , 9–4 (1) , Jonathan Meunier , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. Brunson , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , Melbourne, Australia , , - , NC , align=center , 9–3 (1) , Viscardi Andrade , No Contest (overturned) , UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Mir , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , Brisbane, Australia , Originally a unanimous decision for Andrade, overturned when he tested positive for stanozolol , - , Win , align=center , 9–3 , Steve Kennedy , Decision (unanimous) , UFC 193 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , Melbourne, Australia , , - , Loss , align=center , 8–3 , Alan Jouban , KO (elbow and punches) , UFC 184 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 2:19 , Los Angeles, California, United States , , - , Loss , align=center , 8–2 , Kiichi Kunimoto , Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Nelson , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center , 8–1 , Chris Indich , Decision (unanimous) , The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale: Bisping vs. Kennedy , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , Quebec City, Quebec, Canada , , - , Win , align=center , 7–1 , Aaron Forsterling , Decision (unanimous) , BRACE 18 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

, Australia , , - , Win , align=center , 6–1 , Amer Hussein , TKO (punches) , Proud Warrior Productions 5: Magalhaes vs. Brown , , align=center , 1 , align=center , ,

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Australia , , - , Win , align=center , 5–1 , Callan Potter , KO (knee) , Gladiators Cage Fighting: Series 2 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 4:15 , Cronulla, Australia , , - , Win , align=center , 4–1 , Josh Russell , KO (punches) , War on the North Shore 15 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 1:10 , Kallangur, Australia , , - , Win , align=center , 3–1 , Adriano Magnani , TKO (punches) , Pro Cagefighting 1: Gladiators , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 4:30 ,

, Australia , , - , Loss , align=center , 2–1 ,

Robert Whittaker Robert Whitaker or Whittaker may refer to: *Robert Whittaker (fighter) (born 1990), Australian mixed martial artist *Robert Whitaker (equestrian) (born 1983), British showjumper *Robert Whitaker (author) (active since 1989), American author *Robert ...

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , Cage Fighting Championships 11 , , align=center , 2 , align=center , 2:40 ,

, Australia , , - , Win , align=center , 2–0 , Blake Doering , Decision (unanimous) , War on the North Shore 10 , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

, Australia , , - , Win , align=center , 1–0 , Tahu Pauro , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Elite Fight Night 8 , , align=center , 1 , align=center , 3:30 , Penrith, Australia ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Richard 1988 births Sportsmen from New South Wales Living people Australian male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Australian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu