Abdul Razak Alhassan (born August 11, 1985) is a

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

who competes in the

welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify the ...

division of the UFC. A professional since 2013, he formerly fought in Bellator and

Legacy Fighting Championship Legacy Fighting Alliance is an American mixed martial arts promotion, created as a result of the ''Legacy Fighting Championship'' and ''Resurrection Fighting Alliance'' merger in early 2017. History Resurrection Fighting Alliance On October 11, ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

After training and competing in

judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo") ...

for 22 years and earning his black belt, Alhassan transitioned to

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...

. He made his professional debut in 2013, winning via TKO in just 25 seconds. Alhassan then compiled an overall record of 6–0 before being signed by the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Alhassan made his promotional debut at UFC Fight Night: Mousasi vs. Hall 2 against Charlie Ward on November 19, 2016. He won via knockout 53 seconds into the first round and was awarded a ''Performance of the Night'' bonus. Alhassan then lost a split decision to Omari Akhmedov at UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Teixeira on May 28, 2017. Alhassan faced Sabah Homasi on December 2, 2017, at UFC 218, winning by TKO in the first round; some felt referee Herb Dean had stopped the fight prematurely. Due to the controversial stoppage in the first fight, a rematch with Homasi was held on January 20, 2018, at

UFC 220 ''UFC 220: Miocic vs. Ngannou'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on January 20, 2018, at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Background A UFC Heavyweight Championship bout between curre ...

. Alhassan indisputably knocked him out in the first round. The win earned him the Performance of the Night bonus Alhassan was expected to face Muslim Salikhov on April 14, 2018, at UFC on Fox 29. He was replaced by Ricky Rainey due to injury. Alhassan knocked out Niko Price in 43 seconds on September 8, 2018, at UFC 228. Alhassan faced

Mounir Lazzez Mounir Lazzez (born November 16, 1987) is a Tunisian mixed martial artist who competes in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional fighter since 2012, he is the first fighter that was born and raised in an A ...

on July 16, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Ige. At the weigh-ins, Alhassan weighed in at 174 pounds, 3 pounds over the welterweight non-title fight limit. He was fined 20% of his purse which went to his opponent Lazzez and the bout proceeded at a catchweight. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. This fight was named Fight of the Night bonus; however, Alhassan was disqualified for bonus due to missing weight, as a result a third Performance of the Night bonus was awarded and Lazzez took home an extra $50,000 from the fight. Alhassan faced Khaos Williams on November 14, 2020, at UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. dos Anjos. At the weigh-ins, Alhassan weighed in at 172.5 pounds, one and a half pounds over the welterweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at a catchweight and Alhassan was fined 20 percent of his purse, which went to his opponent Williams. He was defeated via first-round knockout. Alhassan faced Jacob Malkoun in a return to middleweight on April 17, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 22. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Alhassan was scheduled to face

Antônio Braga Neto Antônio Braga Neto (born October 29, 1987) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and grappler. He competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is a gold medalist in both the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship and Pan American Cham ...

on August 21, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 29. However, Neto was pulled from the event for undisclosed reasons and Alhassan was scheduled to face

Alessio Di Chirico Alessio Di Chirico (born December 12, 1989) is an Italian former mixed martial artist who competed in Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Di Chirico was born in Rome, Italy. He attended University of ...

instead. Alhassan won the fight via knockout seventeen seconds into round one. This win earned him the '' Performance of the Night'' award. Alhassan was scheduled to face Joaquin Buckley on January 15, 2021 at UFC on ESPN 32. However, the pairing was cancelled after Alhassan withdrew for undisclosed reasons and the pair was rescheduled to

UFC Fight Night 201 ''UFC Fight Night: Walker vs. Hill'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 201'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 59'' and ''UFC Vegas 48'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 19, 2022, at the UFC ...

. Alhassan lost the fight via split decision. Alhassan was scheduled to face Jamie Pickett on July 9, 2022 at UFC on ESPN 39. However, Alhassan pulled out of the bout and was replaced by Denis Tiuliulin. Alhassan faced Claudio Ribeiro on January 14, 2023, UFC Fight Night 217. He won the fight via knockout in the second round.

Personal life

Alhassan and his wife have a son and a daughter.

Rape indictments and acquittal

Alhassan was indicted on September 24, 2018, in

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, on charges related to the alleged rapes of two women in one night in March 2018. He pleaded not guilty. The trial began on March 5, 2020. Alhassan's attorney argued that the two women consented to having sex with Alhassan, and that the allegations of sexual assault were fabricated. After deliberation, the jury found Alhassan not guilty on sexual assault charges.

Championships and awards

Ultimate Fighting Championship 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 Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

** Performance of the night (Three times)

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Alhassan, Abdul Razak 1985 births Welterweight mixed martial artists Living people Ghanaian male mixed martial artists Ghanaian Muay Thai practitioners Ghanaian male judoka American male mixed martial artists American Muay Thai practitioners American male judoka Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Ghanaian emigrants to the United States Sportspeople from Accra Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters