Jerome Jesus Rivera (born April 22, 1995) 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, incorpo ...

who competes in the

Flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb). Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of b ...

division. He most notably 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 ...

Background

Rivera started training in 2011, Rivera held an amateur kickboxing belt for SWKA, which is a promotion in

Las Cruces, New Mexico Las Cruces (; "the crosses") is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the seat of Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 census the population was 111,385. Las Cruces is the largest city in both Doña Ana County and southern Ne ...

. Since he was a kid, he loved watching UFC and wrestled at school.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Rivera made his MMA debut at Triple-A MMA 5 Redemption at the Rock, where he faced Levi Lucero and submitted him via rear-naked choke in the first round. Rivera would go on to defeat his next three foes, all by the way of submission stoppages. After defeating Jesus Urbina at KOTC Thunder via unanimous decision and Saul Elizondo in the second round via rear-naked choke at Jackson-Wink Fight Night 1, Riveria made his

Legacy 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, ...

debut at LFA 10, where he faced Zac Riley and went on to defeat him via unanimous decision. In June 2017, Rivera lost for the first time to Roberto Sanchez via third round armbar at LFA 14. After a 11 months layoff, he suffered a dislocated elbow in a loss by injury to

Brandon Royval Brandon Matthew Royval (born August 6, 1992) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2012, Royval has also forme ...

at LFA 39. Rivera had Tommy John surgery in May 2018 and returned just nine months later for what was then his ninth professional fight. During this time, he would dig wells with one arm a couple weeks after elbow surgery, desperate for any job to make sure he was providing for the arrival of Emilia, who was two years old. In his first bout after the injury, Rivera faced Gene Perez at Jackson’s MMA Series 27 and won the bout in the first round via armbar. Making his return to

, he took on Kendrick Latchman in the co-main event of LFA 80 and submitted him via triangle choke in the second round. He was given a chance for a UFC contract on

Dana White's Contender Series Dana White's Contender Series, formerly named Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series, is an American mixed martial arts promotion. In May 2017, the UFC announced White would hold the competition weekly on UFC Fight Pass (It has since been move ...

, fighting Luis Rodriguez at Dana White's Contender Series 27 on August 4, 2020. He won the fight via unanimous decision, but was not offered an UFC contract.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

After his win on DWCS and not being offered a contract, Rivera was offered to make his UFC debut as a replacement for

Matt Schnell Matthew Christopher Schnell (born January 15, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Schnell formerly competed for Legacy Fighting Alli ...

after he was forced to pull out of the bout against Nam the week before. Rivera made his UFC debut against

Tyson Nam Tyson Ka'eo Nam (born October 6, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight division for UFC. A professional MMA competitor since 2006, Nam has formerly competed for World Series of Fighting, Elite ...

on September 19, 2020, at UFC Fight Night: Covington vs. Woodley in a Bantamweight bout. He lost the fight via technical knockout early into the second round. Moving back down to Flyweight, Rivera faced

Francisco Figueiredo Francisco Figueiredo (born October 23, 1989) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competed in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is the younger brother of the two-time and former UFC Flyweight Champion Deiveson Fi ...

at UFC on ESPN: Chiesa vs. Magny on January 20, 2021. He lost the bout via unanimous decision. Rivera faced Ode' Osbourne on February 6, 2021, at UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov in a featherweight bout, as a replacement for Denys Bondar. Rivera lost the fight via knockout out in round one. Rivera faced

Zhalgas Zhumagulov Zhalgas Mukhambet (born August 29, 1988) better known as Zhalgas Zhumagulov, is a retired Kazakh mixed martial artist who competed in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Early career Zhumagulov ...

on July 10, 2021, at

UFC 264 ''UFC 264: Poirier vs. McGregor 3'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 10, 2021 at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area, United States. ...

in a flyweight bout. He lost the fight via a guillotine choke in round one. On August 21, 2021, it was announced Rivera was released by the UFC.

Mixed martial arts record

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, Submission (guillotine choke) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:02 ,

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 ...

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, Decision (unanimous) , UFC on ESPN: Chiesa vs. Magny , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–3 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Covington vs. Woodley , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:34 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 , Luis Rodríguez , Decision (unanimous) , Dana White's Contender Series 27 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 , Kendrick Latchman , Submission (triangle choke) , LFA 80 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:12 , Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Gene Perez , Submission (armbar) , Jackson's MMA Series 27 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:07 , Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–2 ,

, TKO (arm injury) , LFA 39 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:40 ,

Vail, Colorado Vail is a home rule municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,835 in 2020. Home to Vail Ski Resort, the largest ski mountain in Colorado, the town is known for its hotels, dining, and for the num ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–1 , Roberto Sanchez , Submission (armbar) , LFA 14 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:41 , Houston, Texas, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Zac Riley , Decision (unanimous) , LFA 10 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Pueblo, Colorado Pueblo () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 111,876 at the 2020 United States Census, making Pueblo the ninth most populo ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Saul Elizondo , Submission (rear-naked choke) , JacksonWink Fight Night 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:13 , Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Jesus Urbina , Decision (unanimous) , KOTC: Thunder , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Socorro, Texas Socorro is a city in El Paso County, Texas, United States. It is located on the north bank of the Rio Grande southeast of El Paso, and on the border of Mexico. El Paso adjoins it on the west and the smaller city of San Elizario on the southeast; s ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Alejandro Diaz , Submission (rear-naked choke) , KOTC: Warriors , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:35 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Roger Reyes , Submission (triangle choke) , Rocks Xtreme MMA 12 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:14 ,

Harker Heights, Texas Harker Heights is a city in Bell County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 census, 33,097 people resided in the city, up from a population of 17,308 in 2000. This makes Harker Heights the third-largest city in Bell County, after Killeen and T ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Rudy Kennedy , Submission (punches) , Triple A MMA 11 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:53 , Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Levi Lucero , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Triple A MMA 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:37 , Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rivera, Jerome Living people 1995 births American male mixed martial artists Flyweight mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing kickboxing Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Sportspeople from Santa Fe, New Mexico Mixed martial artists from New Mexico