Andrew William Sanchez (born April 8, 1988) is an American professional

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 ...

currently competing in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor since 2012, he has formerly competed for 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

Resurrection Fighting Alliance 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, ...

Background

Sanchez started training in various forms of martial arts as a teenager. He was a two-time national championship wrestler at

McKendree University McKendree University (McK) is a private university in Lebanon, Illinois. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college or university in Illinois. McKendree enrolls approximately 2,300 undergraduates and nearly 700 graduate ...

and was named the 2011 NAIA Wrestler of the Year. He graduated in 2011 with a degree in Sociology.

Mixed martial arts career

Sanchez began fighting professionally in 2012 where he compiled a record of 7–2 on the regional circuit.

The Ultimate Fighter

He was added as one of the 16 Light Heavyweight fighters invited to the cast The Ultimate Fighter 23. He won his entry fight against

Phil Hawes Phillip Nicholas Fitzgerald Hawes (born January 8, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Hawes started out as a standout wrestler, winning a national ...

via unanimous decision. Next up, he defeated Myron Dennis via unanimous decision. In the semifinals, he defeated

Eric Spicely Eric Benjamin Spicely (born September 29, 1986) is an American mixed martial artist and professional wrestler competing in the middleweight division. A professional competitor since 2012, he formerly competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championsh ...

by knockout in the first round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Sanchez made his promotional debut on July 8, 2016 at UFC The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale in the Light Heavyweight finals against

Khalil Rountree Khalil Ibn Rountree Jr. (born February 26, 1990) is an American mixed martial artist who currently competes in the light heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Rountree was born in Los Angeles, California. ...

. He won the one-sided fight via unanimous decision with the score card of (30-25, 30–25, 30–26). Sanchez next faced Trevor Smith in a middleweight bout on December 9, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 102 ''UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Abdurakhimov'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 102'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 9, 2016, at Times Union Center in Albany, New York Background This event w ...

. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Sanchez faced Anthony Smith on April 15, 2017 at

UFC on Fox 24 ''UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Reis'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 24'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on April 15, 2017, at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Background The event was the f ...

. He lost the fight via knockout due to a combination of knee and punches in the third round. Sanchez faced

Ryan Janes Ryan Janes (born August 22, 1981) is a retired Canadian mixed martial artist. He most recently competed in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional MMA competitor since 2008, he formerly competed for King o ...

on December 1, 2017 at The Ultimate Fighter 26 Finale. He lost the fight via TKO in the third round. Sanchez was expected to face

Antonio Braga Neto Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular mal ...

on August 25, 2018 at

UFC Fight Night 135 ''UFC Fight Night: Gaethje vs. Vick'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 135'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on August 25, 2018 at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska, United Stat ...

. However, Neto was removed from the bout on August 2 for undisclosed personal issues and replaced by

Markus Perez Markus Perez Echeimberg (born June 22, 1990) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division. A professional since 2013, he has also fought for Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Jungle Fight and the Lega ...

. Sanchez won the fight via unanimous decision. Sanchez faced promotional newcomer

Marc-André Barriault Marc-André Barriault (born February 18, 1990) is a Canadian mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter who is currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship's (UFC) Middleweight division. He previously competed with TKO Major League MMA where he w ...

on May 4, 2019 at

UFC Fight Night 151 ''UFC Fight Night: Iaquinta vs. Cowboy'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 151'' or ''UFC on ESPN+ 9'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on May 4, 2019 at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontari ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Sanchez was scheduled to face David Branch on September 14, 2019 at

UFC on ESPN+ 16 ''UFC on ESPN: Holm vs. Aldana'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 16'' and ''UFC Fight Island 4'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 4, 2020 at the du Forum on Yas Island, Abu ...

. However, it was reported that Branch was forced to pull from the event due to injury and he was replaced by

Marvin Vettori Marvin Vettori (born September 20, 1993) is an Italian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Middleweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2012, Vettori is a former Venator FC Wel ...

. However, it was reported that Sanchez was forced to pull from the event due to an eye infection, resulting in the cancellation of the bout. In turn, the pairing was left intact and eventually took place a month later at UFC on ESPN+ 19. Sanchez lost the fight via unanimous decision. Sanchez was scheduled to face

Zak Cummings Zacharry "Zak" Michael Cummings (born August 2, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist, who currently competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2007, he has also formerly comp ...

on April 25, 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 identi ...

, UFC president

Dana White Dana Frederick White Jr. (born July 28, 1969) is an American businessman who serves as president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a global mixed martial arts organization. In August 2019, White's net worth was estimated at $500 milli ...

announced on April 9 that the event was indefinitely postponed. Sanchez faced

Wellington Turman Wellington Turman (born July 22, 1996) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist, currently competing in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Turman was born and grew up in Curitiba, Brazil. He ...

on August 8, 2020 at

UFC Fight Night 174 ''UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Oleinik'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 174'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 32'' and ''UFC Vegas 6'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 8, 2020 at the UFC Apex facility in ...

. He won the fight via knockout in the first round. This win earned him the ''

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 ...

'' award. Sanchez was scheduled to face

André Muniz André Muniz de Aguiar (born February 17, 1990) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of December 6, 2022, he is #11 in the UFC middleweight rankings. Backgroun ...

on January 24, 2021 at

UFC 257 ''UFC 257: Poirier vs. McGregor 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 24, 2021 at the Etihad Arena on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Background Starting with ...

. In late December, Muniz withdrew due to an injury and he was replaced by

Makhmud Muradov Makhmud Muradov (born 8 February 1990) is a Tajik-born Uzbek

. He lost the fight via technical knockout in round three. Sanchez faced Bruno Silva on October 16, 2021 at

UFC Fight Night 195 ''UFC Fight Night: Ladd vs. Dumont'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 195'', ''UFC Vegas 40'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 53'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 16, 2021, at the UFC A ...

. He lost the fight via technical knockout in round three. On October 28, 2021 it was announced that Sanchez was no longer on the UFC roster.

Post UFC

Sanchez faced Gabriel Checco on May 20, 2022 at Eagle FC 47. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Professional titles

*Ultimate Fighting Championship **

(One time)

Mixed martial arts record

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Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

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

Makhmud Muradov Makhmud Muradov (born 8 February 1990) is a Tajik-born Uzbek

, TKO (flying knee and punches) ,

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Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

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Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...

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Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , John Poppie , TKO (spinning back fist and punches) , RFA 28 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:53 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Clinton Williams , TKO (punches) , RFA 26 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:17 ,

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Dustin Jacoby Dustin Jacoby (born April 4, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist and kickboxer who currently competes in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. In kickboxing, he has competed for GLORY, and in MMA, he has competed also for Bellator, World S ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez, Andrew 1988 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling Mixed martial artists from Illinois McKendree University alumni Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American male sport wrestlers Amateur wrestlers