Joshua Ashley Sampo (born July 24, 1984) 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 most recently competed in

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 ...

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 bo ...

division.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Sampo started his professional career in 2009. He fought mainly for Missouri-based promotions as ''Fight Me MMA'', ''Wright Fights'' and ''Rumble Time Promotions''. He is now a seventh grade teacher at Hardin Middle School in St. Charles.

Legacy Fighting Championship

Sampo was expected to face Rafael de Freitas on September 14, 2012 at Legacy FC 14. However, instead he faced

Antonio Banuelos Juan Antonio Banuelos (born September 23, 1979) is an American former mixed martial artist who competed in the Bantamweight division. Mixed martial arts career Banuelos made his professional mixed martial arts debut in June 2001, knocking out Da ...

. He won via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) .

Championship Fighting Alliance

Sampo faced Olympic medallist and

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 ...

veteran Alexis Vila on January 19, 2013 at ''CFA 9: Night of Champions'' for the inaugural flyweight title. Sampo defeated Vila via submission due to a guillotine choke in the fifth round and became the CFA flyweight champion. Sampo defended his title once against Sam Thao on October 12, 2013 at ''CFA 12: Sampo vs. Thao''. He won via unanimous decision (49–46, 49–46, 49–46) after five rounds. In November 2013, it was announced that Sampo had 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 ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Sampo made his promotional debut against fellow newcomer

Ryan Benoit Ryan Michale Benoit (born August 25, 1989) 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 fu ...

on November 30, 2013 at

The Ultimate Fighter 18 Finale ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rousey vs. Team Tate'' (also known as ''The Ultimate Fighter 18'') is the eighteenth U.S.-based installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. Th ...

. Sampo won via submission due to a rear-naked choke and the performance earned both participants ''Fight of the Night'' honors, but Sampo was not eligible for the bonus due to missing weight. Sampo faced

Zach Makovsky Zachary Paul "Zach" Makovsky (born April 19, 1982) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the flyweight division of the Brave Combat Federation. He has competed in EliteXC, ShoXC, Bellator, and Ultimate Fighting Championship ...

on February 22, 2014 at

UFC 170 ''UFC 170: Rousey vs. McMann'' was a mixed martial arts held on February 22, 2014, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event was released on DVD on May 27, 2014. The DVD was distributed by ''Anchor Bay Entertainment''. Ba ...

. Sampo had his first octagon defeat via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 29–28). Sampo faced promotional newcomer

Paddy Holohan Patrick Holohan (born 3 May 1988) is an Irish politician and retired mixed martial artist who notably competed in the flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional MMA competitor from 2007 until his retirement in 2016, ...

on July 19, 2014 at UFC Fight Night: McGregor vs. Brandao. He lost via submission due to a rear-naked choke in the first round. Sampo faced

Justin Scoggins Justin Craig Scoggins (born May 2, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist and former full-contact kickboxer currently competing in the Rizin Fighting Federation. A professional mixed martial artist since 2010, Scoggins has previously competed ...

on May 23, 2015 at

UFC 187 ''UFC 187: Johnson vs. Cormier'' was a mixed martial arts event held on May 23, 2015, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was expected to be headlined by a UFC Light Heavyweight Championship bout between then ...

. Sampo lost the fight via unanimous decision. Subsequently, he was released from the promotion.

Bellator MMA

Sampo faced Dominic Mazzotta at Bellator 197 on April 13, 2018. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

** Fight of the Night (one time) vs. Ryan Benoit * Championship Fighting Alliance ** CFA flyweight title (one time) ** One successful title defense * Cage Championships ** CC amateur bantamweight title (one time)

Amateur wrestling

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

** NAIA Wrestling National Championship All-American out of

Lindenwood University Lindenwood University is a private university in St. Charles, Missouri. Founded in 1827 by George Champlin Sibley and Mary Easton Sibley as The Lindenwood School for Girls, it is the second-oldest higher-education institution west of the Missis ...

(2005, 2006, 2007) ** NAIA Wrestling National Championship 125 lb: Fourth place out of

(2006) ** NAIA Wrestling National Championship 125 lb: Fifth place out of

(2005, 2007) *

Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association The Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association (NIAA) is the governing body of athletic programs for high schools in the state of Nevada. In addition, five schools in the state of California (Coleville, Needles, North Tahoe, South Tahoe, and Tru ...

** Nevada State High School Wrestling 112 lb: Champion out of Pahranagat Valley High School (2002) ** Nevada State High School Wrestling 103 lb: Champion out of Pahranagat Valley High School (2001)

Mixed martial arts record

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St. Charles, Missouri Saint Charles (commonly abbreviated St. Charles) is a city in, and the county seat of, St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. The population was 65,794 at the 2010 census, making St. Charles the ninth-largest city in Missouri. Situated on t ...

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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 ...

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Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables, officially City of Coral Gables, is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248. Coral Gables is known globally as home to the ...

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Will Campuzano William Campuzano (born May 27, 1986) is a Mexican-American professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist currently competing in the Bantamweight (MMA), Bantamweight division. A professional competitor since 2008, Campuzano has also former ...

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Salina, Kansas Salina is a city in, and the county seat of, Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,889. In the early 1800s, the Kanza tribal land reached eastward from the middle of the Kansas Territory. In 1 ...

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Mixed martial arts amateur record

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Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the five-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth ...

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