Ronald Edward "Ron" Stallings, Jr. (born February 25, 1983) 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 competes in the

Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...

division. A professional competitor since 2003, Stallings has also formerly competed for

Strikeforce Strike Force may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games *Strike Force (video game), ''Strike Force'' (video game), a 1991 arcade game *''Commandos: Strike Force'', a 2006 video game *''Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce'', a 2009 video game *' ...

Titan FC Titan Fighting Championship (Titan FC) is an American mixed martial arts promotion based out of Pompano Beach, Florida. Their shows were originally run in and near Kansas City and have since expanded to include venues all over North America and e ...

, and the

UFC 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 larg ...

Background

Stallings was born and raised in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

and began training in

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

at the age of seven. Stallings attended Joppatowne High School and later

Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a Public university, public historically black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically bla ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Stallings began training in 2000 and made his professional MMA debut in July 2003. He competed primarily in regional promotions where he compiled a record of 12-6 with one no contest before signing with the UFC.

Strikeforce

With a record of 9-4 with one no contest, Stallings made his

debut on July 22, 2011 at Strikeforce Challengers: Voelker vs. Bowling III against

Adlan Amagov Adlan Mairbekovich Amagov (; born 30 October 1986) is a Russian former mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and kickboxing, kickboxer who most recently competed in the Welterweight (MMA), welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Champ ...

. Stallings lost via split decision.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Stallings made his promotional debut as a short notice replacement against

Uriah Hall Uriah Alexander Hall (born July 31, 1984) is a Jamaican-American former professional Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, Kickboxing, kickboxer, and current Professional boxing, boxer. He competed in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight divi ...

on January 18, 2015 at UFC Fight Night 59, replacing an injured

Louis Taylor Louis Taylor (born May 12, 1979) is an American former mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the welterweight division of the Professional Fighters League. A professional competitor from 2007 to 2018, Taylor also formerly competed ...

. Hall won via TKO in the first round after knocking Stallings down with a punch and following up with several more on the ground. When Stallings returned to his feet, referee Herb Dean stopped the fight to check a cut that had opened up on Stallings' face, and the ringside doctor declared the cut too severe for Stallings to continue. Stallings faced Justin Jones on April 4, 2015 at UFC Fight Night 63. Stallings won via unanimous decision. Stallings faced

Joe Riggs Joseph Jonathan Riggs (born September 23, 1982) is an American professional bare-knuckle boxer and former mixed martial artist who was most recently signed to Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship where he lost via KO to Lorenzo Hunt. He former ...

on September 5, 2015 at UFC 191. Stallings lost the bout via disqualification after he landed an illegal upkick, which rendered Riggs unable to continue. Subsequently, Stallings was released from the promotion.

Titan Fighting Championship

Stallings made his promotional debut against Rashaun Spencer on August 5, 2016 at Titan FC 40. Stallings won via split decision.

Mixed martial arts record

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Nah-Shon Burrell Nah-Shon Burrell (born February 5, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor since 2010, Burrell has competed for Bellator MMA, the Ultimate Fighting Champio ...

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Herbert Goodman Herbert Goodman (born August 31, 1977) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist and former NFL running back for the Green Bay Packers. A professional competitor from 2007 until 2011, Goodman competed for Bellator MMA, Bellator, M- ...

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Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

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