Timothy Johnson (born March 13, 1985) 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 ...

currently competing in the

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 ...

division. A professional competitor since 2010, he has also competed for 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 ...

and

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) was an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 by Bjorn Rebney and operated until 2025. The promotion takes its name from ''wikt:bellator, bellātor ...

Mixed martial arts career

After completing his collegiate career as a two-time

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

wrestler at Division II

Minnesota State University Moorhead Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM) is a public university in Moorhead, Minnesota, across the Red River of the North from Fargo, North Dakota. The school has an enrollment of 7,534 students in 2019 and 266 full-time faculty members. MSUM ...

, Johnson made his professional mixed martial arts debut in October 2010. He competed primarily for regional organizations around his adopted home of

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

. He amassed a record of 7–1, finishing all of his opponents, before signing with the

on the heels of a first round finish of

Travis Wiuff Travis Wiuff (born March 15, 1978) is an American mixed martial artist competing in the Heavyweight (MMA), Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2001 and List of mixed martial artists with the most sanctioned fights, veteran of o ...

in October 2014.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Johnson made his promotional debut against

Shamil Abdurakhimov Shamil Gentovich Abdurakhimov (born September 2, 1981) is a Russian former mixed martial artist, who competed in the heavyweight division. He formerly competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Abdurakhimov was born on S ...

on April 4, 2015, at

UFC Fight Night 63 ''UFC Fight Night: Mendes vs. Lamas'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 63'') was a mixed martial arts event held on April 4, 2015, at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia. Background The event was the third that the organization hosted at the ...

. He won the fight via TKO in the final seconds of the first round. Johnson next faced

Jared Rosholt Jared Rosholt is an American former mixed martial artist who competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional competitor from 2011 to 2019, Rosholt competed for the UFC, Titan FC, Professional Fighters League, and Legacy FC. He is the y ...

on August 8, 2015, at

UFC Fight Night 73 ''UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Saint Preux'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 73'') was a mixed martial arts event held on August 8, 2015, at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Background The event was headlined by a light ...

. Despite staggering and nearly finishing Rosholt with strikes in the last minute of the fight, Johnson lost the fight via unanimous decision. Johnson faced promotional newcomer

Marcin Tybura Marcin Tybura (born November 9, 1985) is a Polish professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2011, Tybura previously fought for ...

on April 10, 2016, at

UFC Fight Night 86 ''UFC Fight Night: Rothwell vs. dos Santos'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 86'') was a mixed martial arts event held on April 10, 2016, at the Arena Zagreb in Zagreb, Croatia. Background The event was the first that the organization has hosted ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Johnson next faced Alexander Volkov on November 19, 2016, at

UFC Fight Night 99 ''UFC Fight Night: Mousasi vs. Hall 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 99'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on November 19, 2016 at The SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland Backg ...

. Volkov was awarded a controversial split decision victory. 12 out of 12 media scores gave the bout to Johnson. Johnson faced

Daniel Omielańczuk Daniel Omielańczuk (born August 31, 1982) is a Polish professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and kickboxer currently competing in the Heavyweight (MMA), heavyweight division of Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki (KSW). A professional MMA c ...

on March 18, 2017, at

UFC Fight Night 107 ''UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 107'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 18, 2017, at The O2 Arena in London, England. Background This event wa ...

. He won the back and forth fight by split decision (28–29, 30–27, and 29–28). Johnson faced promotional newcomer

Júnior Albini Júnior Albini (born 15 March 1991) is a Brazilians, Brazilian professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Heavyweight (MMA), Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Early life Albini started boxing at 13 years old ...

on July 22, 2017, at

UFC on Fox 25 ''UFC on Fox: Weidman vs. Gastelum'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 25'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on July 22, 2017, at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. Backgroun ...

. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round. Johnson faced

Marcelo Golm Marcelo Golm (born 15 September 1992) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Heavyweight division of the Bellator MMA. He has also competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Mixed martial arts career Early career St ...

on February 3, 2018, at

UFC Fight Night 125 ''UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Anders'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 125'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on February 3, 2018, at Arena Guilherme Paraense in Belém, Brazil. Background Wh ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. The fight marked the last bout of his prevailing contract, and the UFC opted not to renew it.

Bellator MMA

On April 13, 2018, it was revealed that Johnson had signed a multi-fight contract with

. Johnson made his debut against

Cheick Kongo Cheick Kongo (born May 17, 1975) is a French mixed martial artist and former kickboxer who fights in the Heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2001, he has also competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Bellator. ...

on October 13, 2018, at Bellator 208. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Johnson was scheduled to face Azunna Anyanwu in the prelims of Bellator 225 on August 24, 2019. However, on the day of the fight, it was announced that Johnson would fill in for

Javy Ayala Javier "Javy" Ayala (born August 22, 1988) is an American former mixed martial artist who competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2011, he has competed for Bellator and Tachi Palace Fights. Background Born and rai ...

and face former Bellator Heavyweight champion

Vitaly Minakov Vitaly Viktorovich Minakov (; born February 6, 1985) is a Russian mixed martial artist, sambist and judoka who competed in the heavyweight division. A professional competitor from 2010 till 2021, he competed for Bellator MMA, where he is the fo ...

in the co main event. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Johnson next faced Tyrell Fortune at Bellator 239 on February 21, 2020. He won the fight by knockout in the first round. Johnson next faced

Matt Mitrione Matt Mitrione (born July 15, 1978) is an American retired mixed martial artist and former American football player, who competed for both the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), and most recently for Bellator MMA. Prior to embarking on an MMA c ...

on August 7, 2020, at Bellator 243. He won the fight via technical knockout in the first round. On October 10, 2020, Johnson rematched

at Bellator 248 in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He would avenge his previous loss to Kongo with a split-decision victory. With heavyweight champion

Ryan Bader Ryan Bader ( ; born June 7, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Heavyweight division of RIZIN. He previously competed for Bellator MMA where he was the Bellator Heavyweight Champion, and still holds the record for th ...

moving on in the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix Tournament, Johnson faced

Valentin Moldavsky Valentin Igorevich Moldavsky (; born 6 February 1992) is a Russian mixed martial artist and combat sambo practitioner. He is currently competing for the PFL. He formerly competed for Bellator MMA, where he was an interim Heavyweight World Cha ...

for the Bellator Interim Heavyweight World Championship at

Bellator 261 Bellator 261: Johnson vs. Moldavsky was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on June 25, 2021, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Background With current heavyweight champion Ryan Bader moving on in ...

on June 25, 2021. He lost the bout by unanimous decision. Johnson faced

Fedor Emelianenko Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko; (born 28 September 1976) is a Russian former professional mixed martial artist (MMA), sambist, judoka and politician. Emelianenko was the PRIDE Heavyweight Champion from 2003 to th ...

on October 23, 2021, at Bellator 269. He lost the bout via knockout in the first round. Johnson was scheduled to rematch Tyrell Fortune on April 15, 2022, at Bellator 277. However, on March 1, 2022, it was announced by Bellator that Johnson was expected to face

Linton Vassell Linton Vassell (born 3 June 1983) is an English mixed martial artist, who currently competes in the Heavyweight division of the PFL. A professional since 2008, he has also competed for UCMMA and Cage Warriors. He is the former UCMMA Light Heav ...

and Fortune was set to meet Steve Mowry in the event. Despite rocking Vassell early in the round, Johnson lost the bout via TKO at the end of the first. Johnson faced Said Sowma on April 21, 2023, at

Bellator 294 ''Bellator 294: Carmouche vs. Bennett 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on April 21, 2023, at the Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Background The opening bout of a two-night ...

. He won the bout via unanimous decision.

Post Bellator

Johnson headlined XFC 50 on April 12, 2024 against Darion Abbey. He won by technical knockout in the first round.

Professional Fighters League

Johnson made his PFL debut on June 13, 2024 as he faced

Danilo Marques Danilo Marques (born December 26, 1985) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes for Professional Fighters League in the Heavyweight division. He has also competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in the Light Heavyweight divis ...

at PFL 4. He won the bout via TKO in the first round. Johnson next faced

Denis Goltsov Denis Alexandrovich Goltsov (; born 10 June 1990) is a Russian sambo competitor, mixed martial artist, and former amateur boxer. As a sambist, Goltsov is a two-time world champion, two-time European champion, and three-time Russian champion. As a ...

in the semifinals of the 2024 Heavyweight tournament at PFL 7 on August 2, 2024, losing the bout via TKO in the first round. Johnson next stepped in as a short-notice replacement to face Vadim Nemkov at PFL Champions Series 1 on January 25, 2025. He lost the fight via a rear-naked choke submission in the first round. On March 5, 2025, the promotion officially revealed that Johnson will join the 2025 PFL Heavyweight Tournament. In the quarterfinal, Johnson faced Alexander Romanov on May 1, 2025, at PFL 4. He lost the fight via a guillotine choke submission in the first round.

Championships and accomplishments

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 ( ...

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

(One time) *Dakota Fighting Championships **Dakota FC Heavyweight Championship (One time) *

MMAJunkie.com MMA Junkie is a news website that covers the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). It was founded in 2006, and has been owned by Gannett Company since 2011. The site and its content have been featured in ''Time'' magazine, ''ESPN The Magazine'', ''Th ...

**2020 February Knockout of the Month vs. Tyrell Fortune

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 18–12 , Alexander Romanov , Submission (guillotine choke) , PFL 4 (2025) , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:53 ,

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–11 , Vadim Nemkov , Submission (rear-naked choke) , PFL Champions Series 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:08 ,

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

, United Arab Emirates , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–10 ,

, TKO (punches) , PFL 7 (2024) , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:26 ,

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 18–9 ,

, TKO (punches) ,

PFL 4 (2024) The ''PFL 4'' mixed martial arts event for the 2024 season of the Professional Fighters League was held on June 13, 2024, at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, United States. This marked the fourth regular-season event of the tour ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:14 ,

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is a village in the town of Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is located in southeastern Montville, at the mouth of the Oxoboxo River where it flows into the Thames River. The name is now applied more generally to all of the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 17–9 , Darion Abbey , TKO (punches) , XFC 50 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:42 ,

Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Located along Interstate 4, I-4 east of Tampa and southwest of Orlando, Florida, Orlando, it is the List of municipalities in Florida, most populous city in Polk County. As of the 2020 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16–9 , Said Sowma , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 15–9 ,

, TKO (punches) , Bellator 277 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:21 ,

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 15–8 ,

, KO (punches) , Bellator 269 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:46 ,

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

, Russia , , - , Loss , align=center, 15–7 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 15–6 ,

, Decision (split) , Bellator 248 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France , , - , Win , align=center, 14–6 ,

, TKO (punches) , Bellator 243 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:14 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–6 , Tyrell Fortune , KO (punch) , Bellator 239 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:35 ,

Thackerville, Oklahoma Thackerville is a town in Love County, Oklahoma, United States. It is located near the Texas state border. The population was 400 at the 2020 census. Geography Thackerville is situated near the intersection of U.S. Highway 77 and State High ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–6 ,

, KO (punches) , Bellator 225 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:45 ,

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the List of cities in New England by population, fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Loc ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–5 ,

, KO (punches) , Bellator 208 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:08 ,

Uniondale, New York Uniondale is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in central Nassau County, New York, on Long Island, in the Town of Hempstead, within the New York metropolitan area. The population was 32,473 at the time of the 2020 United States census ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–4 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Anders , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Belém Belém (; Portuguese for Bethlehem; initially called Nossa Senhora de Belém do Grão-Pará, in English Our Lady of Bethlehem of Great Pará), often called Belém of Pará, is the capital and largest city of the state of Pará in the north of B ...

, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–4 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC on Fox: Weidman vs. Gastelum , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:51 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–3 ,

, Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–3 , Alexander Volkov , Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Mousasi vs. Hall 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

, Northern Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Rothwell vs. dos Santos , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, Croatia , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Saint Preux , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Mendes vs. Lamas , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:57 ,

Fairfax, Virginia Fairfax ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia and the county seat of Fairfax County, Virginia, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 24,146. Fairfax is pa ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 ,

, TKO (punches) , Dakota FC 19 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:36 ,

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo is the List of cities in North Dakota, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, Cass County. The population was 125,990 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which was e ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Kevin Asplund , Submission (front choke) , Beatdown at 4 Bears 11 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:41 ,

New Town, North Dakota New Town is a city in Mountrail County, North Dakota. The population was 2,764 at the time of the 2020 census, making it the 18th largest city in North Dakota. New Town was platted in 1950 as a replacement site for the residents of Sanish and ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Brett Murphy , TKO (slam and punches) , Dakota FC 18 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:17 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Brian Heden , TKO (punches) , Dakota FC 17 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:56 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Scott Hough , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , Max Fights 18 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:56 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Dean Lamb , TKO (submission to punches) , Max Fights 17 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:34 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Shane DeZee , Submission (americana) , Max Fights 16 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:49 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Lance Peterson , Submission (kimura) , Max Fights 13 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:52 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Travis Wiley , TKO (punchhes) , Max Fights 11 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:23 ,

, United States , , -

References

External links

Timothy Johnson
at

Bellator Bellator, warrior in Latin, may refer to: * Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States * Bishop Bellator of Sufetula (5th century) Taxonomy * ''Bellator'' (fish), a fish genus in the family Triglidae (sea robins) ** ...

(archived) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Timothy 1985 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling Mixed martial artists from Minnesota Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Bellator male fighters American male sport wrestlers Minnesota State–Moorhead Dragons wrestlers People from Lamberton, Minnesota Sportspeople from Fargo, North Dakota