Jamahal Hill (born May 19, 1991) 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, incorp ...

. He currently competes in the

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruise ...

division 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). As of December 6, 2022, he is #7 in the UFC light heavyweight rankings.

Background

Hill moved to Grand Rapids when he was 12. He graduated from Rogers High School in

Wyoming, Michigan Wyoming is a city in Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 76,501 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Wyoming is the second most-populated community in the Grand Rapids metropolitan area ...

. After passing on a basketball career at

Davenport University Davenport University is a private university with campuses throughout Michigan and online. It was founded in 1866 by Conrad Swensburg and currently offers associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees; diplomas; and post-grad certification progra ...

, Hill started competing in professional mixed martial arts in 2017.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Starting his career in 2017, Hill started his professional career 5–0, four of the five fights coming under the KnockOut Promotions banner. In just his fourth professional fight Hill defeated future UFC fighter

Dequan Townsend Dequan Townsend (born May 11, 1986) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Light Heavyweight division. He has previously fought for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Townsend originally began training ...

despite Townsend having twenty-six pro appearances prior to that bout. Hill then received the call to appear on Dana White's Contender Series 21 back in 2019, where Hill defeated opponent Alexander Poppeck via second-round ground and pound, earning his UFC contract.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Hill made his UFC debut against

Darko Stošić Darko Stošić ( sr, Дарко Стошић; born February 9, 1992) is a Serbian mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist currently fighting for Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki (KSW) in the Heavyweight (MMA), Heavyweight division. He is the former Fin ...

on January 25, 2020 at

UFC Fight Night 166 ''UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. dos Santos'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 166'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 24'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 25, 2020 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Hill faced

Klidson Abreu Klidson Abreu (born 24 December 1992) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist competing in the Heavyweight division of Professional Fighters League. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Mixed martial arts career Early ...

on May 30, 2020 at UFC on ESPN: Woodley vs. Burns. He initially won the fight via technical knockout in the first round, but the fight was later overturned on September 3 because Hill tested positive for

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

. He was suspended six months and fined 15% of his fight purse. Hill faced

Ovince Saint Preux Ovince Saint Preux (born April 8, 1983) is a Haitian-American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division of the UFC. A professional competitor since 2008, Saint Preux has also formerly competed for Strikef ...

on December 5, 2020 at

UFC on ESPN 19 ''UFC on ESPN: Hermansson vs. Vettori'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 19'' and ''UFC Vegas 16'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on December 5, 2020 at the UFC Apex facility in Enter ...

. At the weigh-ins, former interim

UFC Light Heavyweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

challenger

weighed in at 207.5 pounds, one and a half pounds over the light heavyweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at a catchweight and Saint Preux was fined 20% of his individual purse, which went to Hill. Hill won the fight via technical knockout in the second round. Hill was scheduled to face

Paul Craig Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

on March 20, 2021

UFC on ESPN 21 ''UFC on ESPN: Brunson vs. Holland'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 21'' and ''UFC Vegas 22'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on March 20, 2021 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, N ...

. However on March 10, Hill withdrew from the bout after testing positive for COVID-19. The pairing with Craig remained intact and took place on June 12, 2021 at

UFC 263 ''UFC 263: Adesanya vs. Vettori 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on June 12, 2021, at the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona, United States. Background The event was the second ...

. Early in the first round Craig locked in an armbar and dislocated Hill's elbow, however Hill did not tap and was hit with numerous elbow strikes losing via technical knockout in round one. Hill was scheduled to face

Jimmy Crute Jimmy Crute (born 4 March 1996) is an Australian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Crute was the former Australian Hex Fight Series Light Heav ...

on October 2, 2021

UFC Fight Night 193 ''UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Walker'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 193'', ''UFC Vegas 38'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 51'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 2, 2021 at the UFC ...

. However in early September, the bout was rescheduled two months later at UFC on ESPN: Font vs. Aldo. 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. In his first UFC main event, Hill faced Johnny Walker on February 19, 2022 at UFC Fight Night: Walker vs. Hill. He won the fight via knockout in the first round. The win earned Hill his second ''

'' bonus award. Hill faced

Thiago Santos Thiago Santos de Lima (born January 7, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently signed to the Professional Fighters League (PFL), competing in the light heavyweight division. Prior to signing with the PFL, Santos competed for the Ult ...

on August 6, 2022 at UFC on ESPN 40. He won the fight via technical knockout. This fight earned him the '' Fight of the Night'' award. Hill was scheduled to face Anthony Smith on March 11, 2023, at

UFC Fight Night 221 ''UFC Fight Night: Yan vs. Dvalishvili'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 221'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 79'' and ''UFC Vegas 71'') is an upcoming mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that will take place on March 11, 20 ...

. However, Hill was pulled from the bout after being rebooked to headline

UFC 283 ''UFC 283: Teixeira vs. Hill'' is an upcoming mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that will take place on January 21, 2023, at the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Background The event will mark the p ...

for the vacant

against

Glover Teixeira Glover Lucas Teixeira (; born 28 October 1979) is a Brazilian-American mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champi ...

on January 21, 2023.

Personal life

Hill has six children, who range in age from 2 to 14 years old, as of June 2021.

Championships and accomplishments

(Two times) ** Fight of the Night (One time) *KnockOut Promotions **KOP Light 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 is owned by Gannett Company since 2011. The site and its content have been featured in ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine'', ''ESPN The Ma ...

**2022 February Knockout of the Month vs. Johnny Walker

Mixed martial arts record

, - , , align=center, 11–1 (1) ,

, TKO (punches and elbows) , UFC on ESPN: Santos vs. Hill , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 2:31 ,

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 Vegas ...

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, , style="text-align:center" , 1 , style="text-align:center" , 1:59 ,

Glendale, Arizona Glendale () is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, located approximately northwest of Downtown Phoenix. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 248,325. History In the la ...

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, TKO (punches) , UFC on ESPN: Hermansson vs. Vettori , , style="text-align:center" , 2 , style="text-align:center" , 3:37 ,

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Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the List of North Carolina county seats, seat of Wake County, North Carolina, Wake County in the United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most ...

, United States , , - , Win , style="text-align:center" , 6–0 , Alexander Poppeck , TKO (punches and elbows) , Dana White's Contender Series 21 , , style="text-align:center" , 3 , style="text-align:center" , 0:22 ,

, United States , , - , Win , style="text-align:center" , 5–0 , William Vincent , TKO (retirement) , Lights Out Championship 2 , , style="text-align:center" , 1 , style="text-align:center" , 5:00 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Win , style="text-align:center" , 4–0 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , KnockOut Promotions 62 , , style="text-align:center" , 5 , style="text-align:center" , 5:00 ,

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

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, United States ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Jamahal 1991 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu