Albert Morales (born May 25, 1991) is an American

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, incorp ...

who competes in the

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. 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 is derived from Ba ...

division. He has also competed in the

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 ...

(UFC) and of

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media cong ...

Background

Born and raised in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

, Morales began training in mixed martial arts in 2013 at the age of 21. He turned to a strict training regimen in hopes of overcoming a checkered background and criminal ways. Albert Morales is of Belizean descent and proudly waves Belizean flag at UFC weigh in events. Morales is a lifelong dedicated fan of gaming and regularly streams and plays fps games.

Mixed martial arts career

After four amateur fights, Morales made his professional debut in January 2015. He compiled an undefeated record of 6 - 0 on the regional scene in Southern California, including two stoppage victories for

and a decision win

World Series of Fighting The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by Venture capital, venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fight ...

. He signed with 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 Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

on the heels of a first round finish of Mario Israel at RFA 38 in June 2016.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Morales made his promotional debut on September 17, 2016 at UFC Fight Night 94 where he was tabbed as a short notice replacement for

Manvel Gamburyan Manvel Gamburyan ( hy, Մանվել Գամբուրյան; born May 8, 1981) is an Armenian mixed martial artist who has competed in the UFC's lightweight, featherweight, and bantamweight divisions. A professional competitor since 1999, he was a c ...

to face Alejandro Pérez. The fight was scored a majority draw. Morales next faced

Thomas Almeida Thomas Guimarães Almeidahttp://boxing.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/boxingnvgov/content/results/2015_Results/07-11-15MMA.pdf (born 31 July 1991) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist, who currently competes in the Bantamweight division. A p ...

on November 19, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 100 ''UFC Fight Night: Bader vs. Nogueira 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 100'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on November 19, 2016, at Ginásio do Ibirapuera in São Paulo, Brazil Background ...

. He lost the fight via TKO in the second round. Morales faced promotional newcomer

Andre Soukhamthath Andre Soukhamthath ( lo, ອານເດຣ ສຸຄຳທັດ, born October 23, 1988) is a retired American mixed martial artist who competed in the Bantamweight division. A professional mixed martial artist from 2011 until 2022, he had compe ...

on March 4, 2017 at

UFC 209 ''UFC 209: Woodley vs. Thompson 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 4, 2017, at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas metropolitan area. Background The event wa ...

. He won the back-and-forth fight by split decision. Morales was tabbed as a short notice replacement for

Mitch Gagnon Mitch Gagnon (born October 10, 1984) is a Canadian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Early career Gagnon began training in 2006 and made his p ...

to face

Brett Johns Thomas Brett Johns (born 21 February 1992) is a Welsh professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the bantamweight division of Bellator MMA. Prior to signing with Bellator, Johns competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (U ...

on July 16, 2017 at

UFC Fight Night 113 ''UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Ponzinibbio'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 113'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on July 16, 2017 at The SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. Background The event w ...

. He lost the bout by unanimous decision. Morales faced

Benito Lopez Benito Francisco Lopez (born 6 April 1994) is an American mixed martial artist. He most competed in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Combat career Mixed martial arts career Early career In April 201 ...

on December 9, 2017 at

UFC Fight Night 123 ''UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 123'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on December 9, 2017, at Save Mart Center in Fresno, California. Background ...

. He lost the back-and-forth fight by unanimous decision. Morales faced promotional newcomer

Manny Bermudez Manny Bermudez (born July 19, 1994) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the bantamweight and featherweight divisions. A professional mixed martial artist since 2015, Bermudez has also competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championshi ...

on February 24, 2018 at

UFC on Fox 28 ''UFC on Fox: Emmett vs. Stephens'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 28'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on February 24, 2018, at Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, United States. Background The even ...

. He lost the fight via submission in the second round. On August 14, 2018, it was announced that Morales was released from UFC.

Post-UFC career

Morales faced James Barnes at

Golden Boy Promotions Golden Boy Promotions, Inc. is an American boxing promotional firm based in Los Angeles, California. The company was established in 2002 by eight-time world champion (in six divisions) Oscar De La Hoya, borrowing his nickname "Golden Boy." Histo ...

' inaugural MMA event on November 24, 2018. He lost the fight via an armbar. Subsequently, Morales decided to change his camp to Black House. Morales next fought Carlos Puente Jr. at CXF 17 on March 9, 2019. He won the fight via first round submission.

Lights Out Xtreme Fighting

In early 2019, Morales signed with

Shawne Merriman Shawne DeAndre Merriman (born May 25, 1984), nicknamed "Lights Out", is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Maryland Terrapins and was s ...

's new promotion Lights Out Xtreme Fighting. Morales headlined the inaugural LXF 1 event against Alfred Khaskakyan on May 11, 2019. The bout was for the inaugural LXF Bantamweight Championship, however Khaskakyan missed weight, making him ineligible for the title. Morales lost the fight via first-round knockout. Morales made his sophomore appearance in the promotion against Ron Scolesdang in a bantamweight title eliminator bout at LXF 3 on September 21, 2019. He won the fight via first-round knockout. Morales got his second change at the LXF Bantamweight Championship against Ryan Lilley at LXF 4 on November 15, 2019. He claimed the title with a third-round doctor stoppage. Morales was expected to defend his title in a rematch against Ryan Lilley at LXF 5 on March 13, 2020. However, the event was tentatively rescheduled to be held on April 24, 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Bellator MMA

Morales, as a replacement for James Gallagher, faced

Patchy Mix Patrick "Patchy" Mix (born August 16, 1993) is an American professional mixed martial artist, currently signed to Bellator MMA where he competes in the Bantamweight division. As of February 1, 2022, he is #2 in the Bellator Bantamweight Rankings ...

Bellator 258 Bellator 258: Archuleta vs. Pettis was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on May 7, 2021 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. This fight card is notable for being Anthony Johnson's final fight before ...

on May 7, 2021. He lost the bout via arm-triangle choke in the third round.

Return to Lights Out Xtreme Fighting

Morales faced Victor Henry at LXF 6 on October 30, 2021. He lost the bout via rear-naked choke in the second round.

Up Next Fighting

Morales faced Ryan Lilly at UNF 1 on May 21, 2022. He won via unanimous decision in the three round main event. Morales faced Terrion Ware for the UNF Featherweight Championship on August 20, 2022 at UNF 2. He won the bout via arm-triangle choke in the third round.

Championships and accomplishments

*Lights Out Xtreme Fighting **Lights Out Xtreme Fighting Bantamweight Champion (One time; augural) *Up Next Fighting **UNF Featherweight Championship (One time; augural)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 12–8–1 , Terrion Ware , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , UNF 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:28 ,

Commerce, California Commerce is a city located in southeast Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 12,823 at the 2010 census, up from 12,568 at the 2000 census. It is usually referred to as the City of Commerce to distinguish it from the ...

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, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–6–1 , Alfred Khashakyan , TKO (punches) , LXF 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:58 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–5–1 , Carlos Puente Jr. , Submission (rear-naked choke) , CXF 17 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:30 ,

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

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Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–4–1 ,

, Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC on Fox: Emmett vs. Stephens , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:33 ,

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–3–1 ,

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Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...

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Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

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, TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Bader vs. Nogueira 2 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:37 ,

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

, Brazil , , - , Draw , align=center, 6–0–1 , Alejandro Pérez , Draw (majority) , UFC Fight Night: Poirier vs. Johnson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Hidalgo, Texas, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Mario Israel , KO (punch) , RFA 38 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:20 ,

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WSOF 28 World Series of Fighting 28: Moraes vs. Barajas was a mixed martial arts event held on at the Next Level Sports Complex in Garden Grove, California. Background The event was headlined by a WSOF Bantamweight Championship fight between champion M ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morales, Albert 1991 births American male mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Living people Mixed martial artists from California American people of Belizean descent American mixed martial artists of Mexican descent People from Granada Hills, Los Angeles People from Reseda, Los Angeles People from Los Angeles County, California Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu