Jonathan Cruz Tuck (born August 28, 1984) is a

Chamorro Chamorro may refer to: * Chamorro people, the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific * Chamorro language, an Austronesian language indigenous to The Marianas * Chamorro Time Zone, the time zone of Guam and the Northern Mari ...

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 ...

. Tuck is the first

native from

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

to be signed by 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 ...

, and competes at the

Lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight boxe ...

division. His official nickname is the "Super Saiyan", taken from the Japanese

manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is ...

series ''

Dragon Ball is a Japanese media franchise created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. The Dragon Ball (manga), initial manga, written and illustrated by Toriyama, was serialized in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1984 to 1995, with the 519 individual chapters colle ...

''.

Background

Tuck grew up with a love of

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preser ...

, which he attributes to being from the culture of warriors, the Chamorros. Tuck began training in

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

and MMA with his cousin, about six years before coming to the UFC. Tuck attended college at the

University of Guam University of Guam ( ch, Unibetsedåt Guåhan) (U.O.G.) is a public land-grant university in Mangilao, Guam. It is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and offers thirty-four degree programs at the undergraduate level a ...

and was studying physical education before putting his education on hold because of his career in fighting. However, he does plan on finishing his college education in the near future. Before becoming a professional MMA fighter, Tuck also worked as a power plant operator.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Tuck made his professional debut in 2007, earning his first win over Joe Nauta via

rear-naked choke The rear naked choke (RNC) is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word "naked" in this context suggests that, unlike other strangulation techniques found in jujutsu/judo, this hold does not require the use of a keikog ...

early in the first round. His second fight was against John Salas, winning via TKO (doctor stoppage). On November 17, 2007 Tuck made his debut in Pacific Xtreme Combat against Giovanni Sablan. He shows his

grappling Grappling, in hand-to-hand combat, describes sports that consist of gripping or seizing the opponent. Grappling is used at close range to gain a physical advantage over an opponent, either by imposing a position or causing injury. Grappling ...

skills by defeating Sablan via

. After a year layoff he returned to fighting. He defeated Thomas Calvo via Rear-Naked-Choke in the first round. On November 21, 2009 he made his debut in Gorilla Warfare, in a Superfight against his toughest opponent yet,

URCC Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC) is the first and only professional mixed martial arts promotion based in the Philippines. Its inaugural event was held at the Casino Filipino Amphitheater in Parañaque, Philippines on November 23, 20 ...

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 th ...

Champion, Martial Combat Champion,

ONE FC ONE Championship (formerly ONE Fighting Championship) is a Singaporean combat sports promotion. Founded on 14 July 2011 by entrepreneur Chatri Sityodtong and former ESPN Star Sports senior executive Victor Cui, its events have featured mixed ...

Lightweight Champion

Eduard Folayang Eduard Folayang (born November 22, 1983) is a Filipino mixed martial artist and wushu practitioner who fights in ONE Championship, where he is a two-time ONE Lightweight World Champion. He also competed for Universal Reality Co ...

. He defeated Folayang via KO in just eight seconds.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu career

Tuck competed in the

World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Cup The Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship (ADWPJJC), often simply called the Abu Dhabi World Pro, and from 2009 to 2014 known as the World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Cup (WPJJC), is an international Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competition that ...

. He won the gold medal in the finals against Mohammed Naser in the Open Light division. Despite having a knee injury, Tuck competed in the -78 kg division placing second, which secured him the silver medal.

Comeback in MMA

After competing in Brazilian jiu-jitsu tournaments all over the world, Tuck finally returned to MMA, defeating former Strikeforce fighter Tristan Arenal. Tuck got hit with some solid punches, stayed calm and composed. Tuck got a takedown, then knocked Arenal unconscious with

ground and pound 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 ...

punches.

The Ultimate Fighter

In February 2012, Tuck was announced as a cast member of The Ultimate Fighter 15. In his first fight, Tuck lost via unanimous decision to eventual finalist

Al Iaquinta Al Iaquinta (born April 30, 1987) is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, having once challenged for the Lightweight championship belt. A professional ...

in the elimination round to get into the house. Tuck dislocated a toe during the fight.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Tuck made his official promotional when he faced Zhang Tiequan on November 10, 2012 at UFC on Fuel TV 6. Tuck won the fight via unanimous decision. Tuck was expected to face Norman Parke on April 20, 2013 at UFC on Fox 7. However, the bout was scrapped during the week leading up to the event as Tuck was forced out of the bout with an injury. The rescheduled bout with Parke eventually took place on October 26, 2013 at UFC Fight Night 30. Tuck lost the fight via unanimous decision. Tuck was expected to face Yosdenis Cedeno on June 7, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 42. However, Cedeno pulled out of the bout in early May citing an injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Jake Lindsey. He won the fight via submission in the third round due to heel strikes to the body. Tuck faced

Kevin Lee Kevin Jesse Lee Jr. (born September 4, 1992) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight and Super Lightweight divisions of Eagle Fighting Championship (EFC). He formerly competed for the Ultimate Fighting Ch ...

on September 27, 2014 at

UFC 178 ''UFC 178: Johnson vs. Cariaso'' was a mixed martial arts event held on September 27, 2014, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was supposed to be headlined by a UFC Light Heavyweight Championship rematch be ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Tuck faced Tae Hyun Bang on May 16, 2015 at UFC Fight Night 66. Tuck won the fight via submission in the first round, which also produced a ''Performance of the Night'' bonus. Tuck was expected to face

Nick Hein Nick Hein (born April 24, 1984) is a German retired mixed martial artist and actor, who is best known for appearing in the German television show Diese Kaminskis. Before Hein became an actor, he was also a national judo champion and police offic ...

on May 8, 2016 at UFC Fight Night 87. However, just days before the event, Hein pulled out citing injury. He was replaced by promotional newcomer

Josh Emmett Joshua James Emmett (born March 4, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist. Emmett currently competes in the featherweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2011, Emmett has al ...

. Tuck lost the back and forth fight via split decision. Tuck was scheduled to face Mehdi Baghdad on October 15, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 97 ''UFC Fight Night: Lamas vs. Penn'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 97'') was a planned mixed martial arts event that was set to be held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 15, 2016, at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay, Philippines. ...

. However, Baghdad pulled out of the fight in mid-September citing injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer

Alex Volkanovski Alexander Volkanovski (born 29 September 1988) is an Australian Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight (MMA), Featherweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the curr ...

. In turn, the promotion announced on October 6 that they had cancelled the event entirely. Tuck was quickly rescheduled to face Damien Brown on November 27, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 101 ''UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. Brunson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 101'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on November 27, 2016, at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Bac ...

. He lost the fight by controversial split decision. Tuck faced

Takanori Gomi is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist who gained international fame in Pride Fighting Championships. Later in his career, Gomi also competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Gomi is the only Pride FC Lightweight Champion in th ...

on June 17, 2017 at UFC Fight Night: Holm vs. Correia. He won the fight by submission (rear-naked choke) in the first round. Tuck faced

Drew Dober Andrew Martin Dober (born October 19, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2009, he has also formerly competed for Bella ...

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 ...

. He lost the fight by unanimous decision and was subsequently released from the promotion.

Bellator

On September 4, 2019, news surfaced that Tuck will be replacing injured Paul Redmond on short notice against

Brandon Girtz Brandon Girtz (born March 6, 1985) is an People of the United States, American Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 2008, Girtz has fought in Bellator MMA, Bellator and King of the Cage. Background Girtz was ...

at Bellator Dublin on September 27, 2019. Eventually only a week before the fight, Girtz withdrew from the bout due to an injury leading to Tuck being removed from the card as well.

Championships and accomplishments

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 ...

(One time)

Criminal sexual arrest

Tuck was arrested on March 4, 2020 following an alleged sexual complaint filed by a female victim.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 11–5 , Ryuichiro Sumimura , KO (punch) , Bellator & Rizin: Japan , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:45 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Gaethje vs. Vick , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–4 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Holm vs. Correia , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:12 ,

Kallang Kallang is a planning area and residential town located in the Central Region of Singapore. Development of the town is centered around the Kallang River, the longest river in Singapore. Kallang Planning Area is bounded by Toa Payoh in the no ...

, Singapore , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–4 , Damien Brown , Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. Brunson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–3 ,

, Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Arlovski , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, Netherlands , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 , Tae Hyun Bang , Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs. Faber , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:56 ,

Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasay; ), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, i ...

, Philippines , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Jake Lindsey , TKO (submission to heel strikes) , UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Khabilov , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:47 ,

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–1 , Norman Parke , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Munoz , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Zhang Tiequan , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fuel TV: Franklin vs. Le , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

SAR SAR or Sar may refer to: Places * Sar (river), Galicia, Spain * Sar, Bahrain, a residential district * Sar, Iran (disambiguation), several places in Iran * Sar, Tibet, Tibet Autonomous Region of China * Šar Mountains, in southeastern Europe ...

, China , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Tristan Arenal , KO (punches) , Pacific Xtreme Combat 28 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:47 ,

Pasig Pasig, officially the City of Pasig ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasig), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 803,159 people. It is located along the ...

, Philippines , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 ,

, KO (punch) , GW 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:08 ,

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

, Northern Mariana Islands , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Thomas Calvo , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Pacific Xtreme Combat 17 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:58 ,

Mangilao Mangilao is a village on the eastern shore of the United States territory of Guam. The village's population has decreased slightly since the island's 2010 census. Cliffs lie along much of the village's shoreline provide dramatic views, including ...

, Guam , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Giovanni Sablan , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Pacific Xtreme Combat 13 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:41 ,

, Guam , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , John Salas , TKO (doctor stoppage) , GHBW 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 , Hagåtña, Guam , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Joe Neuta , Submission (rear-naked choke) , GHBW 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:13 , Agana, Guam ,

Mixed martial arts exhibition record

, - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , The Ultimate Fighter: Live , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Las Vegas 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 ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

, United States , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tuck, Jon 1984 births Living people Lightweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Guamanian male mixed martial artists American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Chamorro people Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters