Svetlana Nasibulina (born 13 April 1988), known professionally by her ring name Justine Kish, is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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 ...

that 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 bo ...

division of

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 ...

. A professional since 2010, she has also 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 ...

(UFC). As of December 13, 2022, she is #9 in the Bellator Women's Flyweight Rankings.

Early life

Justine Kish was born in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

in modern-day Russia and was adopted by an American couple. She discovered

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

as a teenager, while taking up fitness, which eventually led her to competitions.

Muay Thai career

Kish competed in Muay Thai for 10 years, winning 18 matches and a

World Muaythai Council The World Muaythai Council (WMC) is one of the oldest and the largest professional sanctioning organizations of Muaythai in the world for the sport. The organization was set up in 1995 by parliament resolution, and is incorporated by the Royal T ...

championship belt in the process.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Kish began her professional MMA career in 2010. She amassed an undefeated record of five wins and no losses, including a win over future ''The Ultimate Fighter'' housemate

Randa Markos Randa Cemil Markos-Thomas (born August 10, 1985) is an Iraqi-born Canadian professional mixed martial artist who competes in the strawweight division. She most notably fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Personal life Markos was ...

The Ultimate Fighter

In September 2013, it was announced that Kish was one of the fighters selected by the UFC to appear on The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned. Kish was the seventh pick by coach

Anthony Pettis Anthony Paul Pettis (born January 27, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He is currently signed to the Professional Fighters League. Pettis formerly fought in the Welterweight, Lightweight, and Featherweight divisions of the ...

. She was expected to face

Bec Rawlings Rebecca Anne Rawlings (born 11 February 1989) is an Australian mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxer, who currently competes in the flyweight division. She was ranked as a contender strawweight (106-115 lb) fighter according to the ...

in the preliminary round, but was forced out of the tournament due to a knee injury. This injury also prevented her from appearing on the finale of the show, but Kish made her debut with the promotion in 2015.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Kish made her official UFC debut against

Nina Ansaroff Nina Ann Nunes (; born December 3, 1985) is an American former mixed martial artist who most competed in the women's flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Nunes was born and raised in Weston, Florida. Her materna ...

on January 2, 2016, at

UFC 195 ''UFC 195: Lawler vs. Condit'' was a mixed martial arts event held on January 2, 2016, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was expected to feature a UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship bout between then-unde ...

. She won the fight by unanimous decision. Kish next faced

Ashley Yoder Ashley Elizabeth Yoder (born October 20, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist and competes in Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Biography Yoder was born on October 20, 1987 in Indianapolis, Indiana, United ...

on December 9, 2016, at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Abdurakhimov in a catchweight bout as Kish missed weight. She won the fight by unanimous decision. Kish faced

Felice Herrig Felice Nicole Herrig (born September 18, 1984) is an American retired kickboxing, kickboxer, Muay Thai, Muay Thai fighter, and Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in the strawweight div ...

on June 25, 2017 at UFC Fight Night: Chiesa vs. Lee. She lost the bout via unanimous decision. Kish received media attention after losing control of her bowels during the fight and issuing a humorous response later. Kish faced

Ji Yeon Kim Kim Ji-yeon ( ko, 김지연; born October 18, 1992), often anglicized Ji Yeon Kim, is a South Korean mixed martial artist (MMA). She was the Jewels and Gladiator women's bantamweight champion. She competes in the Women's Flyweight division of ...

on January 27, 2018, at UFC on Fox: Jacaré vs. Brunson 2. She lost the fight via split decision. 11 out of 14 media scores gave it to Kish. Kish returned after a two year hiatus and faced

Lucie Pudilová Lucie Pudilová (born June 13, 1994) is a Czech female mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). She was the Gladiator Championship Fighting Bantamweight female champion in Czech R ...

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, ...

. She won the fight via unanimous decision. Kish faced

Sabina Mazo Sabina Mazo Isaza (born March 25, 1997) is a Colombian mixed martial artist who competed in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). She is the former flyweight Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) champion. Background Mazo ...

on September 12, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 177. She lost the fight via a rear-naked choke submission in round three. Kish faced

Tracy Cortez Tracy Cortez (born December 10, 1993) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of March 7, 2023, she is #14 in the UFC women's flyweight rankings. Background Of Mexi ...

on April 17, 2021, at

UFC on ESPN 22 ''UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Gastelum'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 22'' and ''UFC Vegas 24'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 17, 2021 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterpr ...

. At the weigh-ins, Cortez weighed in at 126.5 pounds, a half pound over the flyweight non-title fight limit. Her bout proceeded at a catchweight and she was fined 20% of her individual purse, which went to Kish. Kish lost the close fight via a split decision. On April 30, it was revealed that Kish was no longer with the UFC.

Bellator MMA

On January 6, 2022, it was announced that Kish had signed a multi-bout contract with

. Kish faced

DeAnna Bennett DeAnna Danielle Bennett (born November 18, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the Strawweight division in Invicta FC since 2014. As of December 13, 2022, she is #4 in the Bellator Women's Flyweight Rankings. Backgroun ...

on February 19, 2022 at

Bellator 274 Bellator 274: Gracie vs. Storley was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on February 19, 2022 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Background No. 4-ranked Neiman Gracie took on No. 5-ranked Loga ...

. She lost the bout via unanimous decision. Kish faced

Ilima-Lei Macfarlane Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (born April 2, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the flyweight division of Bellator MMA. She is the inaugural and former Bellator Women's Flyweight World Champion. As of December ...

on April 23, 2022 at

Bellator 279 ''Bellator 279: Cyborg vs. Blencowe 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA held on April 23, 2022, at the Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Background The main event featured Bellator Women's Fea ...

. In an upset, she won the bout via unanimous decision. Kish rematched

on August 12, 2022 at

Bellator 284 ''Bellator 284: Gracie vs. Yamauchi'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on August 12, 2022, at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, United States. Background The main event will feature a battl ...

. At weigh ins, Kish came in at 128.4 lbs, 2.4 pounds over the weight limit, for the flyweight bout, resulting in her being a fined a percentage of her purse which went to Bennett and the bout proceeded at catchweight. Kish lost the bout again via unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Kickboxing

**WMC/EMF European Champion (one time)

Kickboxing record

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Mixed martial arts record

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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 Vegas ...

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Christine Stanley Christine Stanley is a Taiwanese American mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division in Invicta. Mixed martial arts career Stanley made her professional debut against Leah Barfield at NFC 12 on April 13, 2012. She won the figh ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kish, Justine 1988 births Living people Sportspeople from Saint Petersburg Russian adoptees Russian emigrants to the United States American female mixed martial artists Strawweight mixed martial artists American female kickboxers American Muay Thai practitioners Featherweight kickboxers Female Muay Thai practitioners American female karateka Mixed martial artists utilizing American Kenpo Mixed martial artists utilizing Krav Maga Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Flyweight mixed martial artists Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters 21st-century American women

Early life

Muay Thai career

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

The Ultimate Fighter

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Bellator MMA

Championships and accomplishments

Kickboxing

Kickboxing record

Mixed martial arts record

See also

References

External links