Nicco Montaño (born December 16, 1988) 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 ...

who last competed in the bantamweight division of 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 ...

. She was the inaugural UFC Women's Flyweight Champion.

Background

Navajo The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Their traditional territory was in the Southeastern United States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee as well in southwestern Kentucky. Their language is classified as ...

, and

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

descent, Montaño was born in

Lukachukai, Arizona Lukachukai ( nv, ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Apache County, Arizona, United States. The population was 1,701 at the 2010 census. It is within the Navajo Nation. Etymology Lukachukai comes from a Navajo word translated as "a fi ...

. She graduated from

Chinle High School Chinle High School is a public high school (grades 9 to 12) in Chinle, an unincorporated area of Apache County, Arizona, United States. The school is the only high school in the Chinle Unified School District, and all of the district's elementar ...

in 2006 then she attended

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

, in Tempe, AZ before transferring to

Diné College Diné College is a public tribal land-grant college in Tsaile, Arizona, serving the Navajo Nation. It offers associate degrees, bachelor's degrees, and academic certificates. Campus The main campus of Diné College is in Tsaile, a census-desi ...

in Tsaile, AZ, and finally ending up at

Fort Lewis College Fort Lewis College is a public liberal arts college in Durango, Colorado. Because of its unique origins as a military fort turned Indian boarding school turned state public school, FLC follows a 1911 mandate to give qualified Native Americans a ...

in Durango, Colorado. It was there, in Durango she signed up at Durango Martial Arts Academy and ignited her passion for martial arts. Montaño began training in boxing at an early age. She eventually took up

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 ...

before becoming an MMA fighter in 2013.

Mixed martial arts career

After an amateur career that saw her produce a record of 5–0, Montaño made her professional mixed martial arts debut in November 2015. Competing primarily for

King of the Cage King of the Cage (KOTC) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Southern California, United States. History KOTC was founded in 1998 by Terry Trebilcock. KOTC features mostly amateur as well as up and coming MMA stars and former mainstr ...

, where she won the KOTC Women's Flyweight Championship, Montaño compiled a record of 3–2 before joining the cast of

The Ultimate Fighter 26 ''The Ultimate Fighter 26'' (also known as '' The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion'') is an installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. Tryouts were announced on May ...

in mid 2017.

''The Ultimate Fighter''

In August 2017, it was announced that Montaño was one of the fighters selected to be on '' The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion''. In her first fight on the show, Montaño faced UFC veteran

Lauren Murphy Lauren Marie Murphy (born July 27, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist. She currently competes in the Women's Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Murphy formerly competed for Invicta FC where she is ...

. She won the fight via unanimous decision after two rounds. In the quarterfinals, Montaño faced off against Montana Stewart. She won the fight via unanimous decision after two rounds. In the semifinals, Montaño faced former Invicta FC Flyweight Champion

Barb Honchak Barbara Marie Honchak (born August 30, 1979) is a retired American professional female mixed martial artist. She is the first Invicta FC Flyweight Champion. She has four wins in the Invicta FC promotion and holds notable victories over Vanessa ...

. She won the fight via unanimous decision after three rounds.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Montaño was expected to fight

Sijara Eubanks Sijara Jihan Eubanks (born April 27, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist who currently fights in the women's bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Eubanks was born and raised in Springfi ...

for the inaugural

UFC Women's Flyweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC Championship#Title match system, championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, a ...

at The Ultimate Fighter 26 Finale on December 1, 2017. However, Eubanks was pulled from the fight for kidney failure while trying to make weight, and was replaced by

Roxanne Modafferi Roxanne Vincenta Modafferi (born September 24, 1982) is an American retired mixed martial artist, who most recently fought for the UFC. Though she last fought in the flyweight division, she has fought in multiple weight classes in her career. A p ...

. Montaño won the fight via unanimous decision and claimed the inaugural UFC Women's Flyweight Championship title. This win also earned her the Fight of the Night bonus. At the post fight interview, Montaño revealed her financial struggles prior to her win and her appreciation for the prize money she was about to receive:

“We were dirt poor just before tonight in all reality. I’m going to go move to an apartment with some water pressure, and buy some good food and treats for my cats.”

Montaño was scheduled to face

Valentina Shevchenko Valentina Anatolievna Shevchenko (russian: Валентина Анатольевна Шевченко; born ) is a Kyrgyz and Peruvian professional Mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and former Muay Thai, Muay Thai fighter. She currentl ...

on September 8, 2018, at

UFC 228 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 ...

. However, prior to the weigh-ins for the event, Montaño was transported to a hospital due to the effects of weight cutting and the bout was cancelled. Montaño was subsequently stripped of the UFC Women's Flyweight title. It was reported that on April 23, 2019, Montaño was suspended by

USADA The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, ) is a non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization and the national anti- doping organization (NADO) for the United States. To protect clean competition and the integrity of sport and prevent ...

for 6 months for testing positive for

ostarine Enobosarm, also known as ostarine or MK-2866, is an investigational selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) developed by GTx, Inc. for the treatment of conditions such as muscle wasting and osteoporosis, formerly under development by Merc ...

from an out-of-competition test conducted on October 25, 2018. Suspension retroactive from November 15, 2018. She was eligible to fight again on May 15, 2019. Montaño was expected to face

Sara McMann Sara McMann (born September 24, 1980) is an American female mixed martial artist who competed in the bantamweight division. McMann is a former Olympic wrestler and received a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece and was a ...

in a bantamweight bout on July 13, 2019, at

UFC Fight Night 155 ''UFC Fight Night: de Randamie vs. Ladd'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 155'' or ''UFC on ESPN+ 13'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on July 13, 2019 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento ...

. However, McMann pulled out of the bout citing an injury and was replaced by

Julianna Peña Julianna Nicole Peña (born August 19, 1989) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where she is the former UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion. Peña is th ...

. She lost the fight via unanimous decision. Montaño was scheduled to face

Macy Chiasson Macy Chiasson (born July 27, 1991) is an American mixed martial artist (MMA). She was the Women's Featherweight winner of '' The Ultimate Fighter 28'' and currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ...

on February 15, 2020, at

UFC Fight Night 167 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 ...

. However, Montaño was forced to pull from the event due to injury and she was replaced by

Shanna Young Shanna Marie Leonard Young (born February 20, 1991) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight division. She has previously competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Young, following her younger brother, ...

. Montaño was scheduled to face

Julia Avila Julia Aide Shumate Avila (born May 11, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Previously she has competed in Invicta FC, HD MMA, XKO MMA, Total Warrior Combat and King of the Cage ( ...

on August 8, 2020, at

UFC Fight Night 174 ''UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Oleinik'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 174'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 32'' and ''UFC Vegas 6'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 8, 2020 at the UFC Apex facility in ...

. However, due to Montano's coach John Wood testing positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the bout was rescheduled to

UFC Fight Night 176 ''UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Sakai'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 176'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 34'' and ''UFC Vegas 9'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 5, 2020 at the UFC ...

. However, Montaño tested positive for

and the bout was moved to UFC Fight Night: Holm vs. Aldana. Subsequently, on September 3, it was announced that Montaño withdrew from the bout due to travel restrictions. In turn Avila was rescheduled to face

at UFC Fight Night 177 on September 12. Montaño was scheduled to face

Karol Rosa Karolline Rosa Cavedo (born December 30, 1994) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. A professional since 2012, she currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of October 3, 2022, she is #9 in t ...

on February 6, 2021, at

UFC Fight Night 184 ''UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 184'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 42'' and ''UFC Vegas 18'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 6, 2021 at the UF ...

. However, for undisclosed reason, she was pulled from the bout and was replaced by

Joselyne Edwards Joselyne Edwards Laboriel (born September 29, 1995) is a Panamanian mixed martial artist who competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Edwards started boxing when she was 13 years old, and after four ...

. Montaño was scheduled to face Wu Yanan on July 31, 2021, at

UFC on ESPN 28 ''UFC on ESPN: Hall vs. Strickland'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 28'' and ''UFC Vegas 33'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 31, 2021 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, N ...

. However, due to Montaño missing weight by seven pounds at the weigh-ins, her fight against Yanan was canceled. On August 3, 2021, Montaño was released by the UFC.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

** UFC Women's Flyweight Champion (One time, inaugural) ** Fight of the Night (One time) vs.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 4–3 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: de Randamie vs. Ladd , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

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, Decision (unanimous) , The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion Finale , , align=center, 5 , 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 , , - , Loss , align=center , 3–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , HD MMA 7: Avila vs. Montaño , , align=center , 5 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 3–1 , Jamie Milanowski , TKO (punches) , KOTC: Social Disorder , , align=center , 4 , align=center , 4:34 ,

Sloan, Iowa Sloan is a city in Woodbury County, Iowa, United States. It is part of the Sioux City, IA– NE– SD Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,042 at the time of the 2020 census. History Sloan was platted in 1870 by the presi ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 ,

Shana Dobson Shana or Shanna may refer to: People Shana * Shana Alexander (1925–2005), journalist * Shana Cox (born 1985), athlete * Shana Dale (born 1964), NASA deputy administrator * Shana Hiatt (born 1975), model * Shana Madoff (born 1967), compliance offi ...

, Decision (unanimous) , KOTC: Will Power , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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 , 1–1 ,

Pam Sorenson Pam Sorenson (born March 3, 1986) is a female American mixed martial artist who competes in Featherweight division of Bellator MMA. She has previously competed in Invicta Fighting Championships, where she is the former Invicta FC Featherweight C ...

, Decision (split) , KOTC: Frozen War , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 ,

Walker, Minnesota Walker is a city in Cass County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 941 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Cass County. Walker is part of the Brainerd Micropolitan Statistical Area. Minnesota State Highways 34, 200, an ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 1–0 , Stacey Sigala , TKO (punches) , KOTC: Evolution , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:15 ,

, United States , , -

Mixed martial arts exhibition record

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, Decision (unanimous) , rowspan=3, The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion , (air date) , align=Center , 3 , align=center , 5:00 , rowspan=3,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center , 2–0 ,

Montana De La Rosa Montana De La Rosa (née Stewart) (born February 14, 1995) is an American mixed martial artist (MMA). She currently competes in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background De La Rosa was born in Helena, Montana ...

, Decision (unanimous) , (air date) , align=Center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 , , - , Win , align=center , 1–0 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , (air date) , align=center , 2 , align=center , 5:00 ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Montaño, Nicco 1988 births Living people Native American sportspeople People from Apache County, Arizona Arizona State University alumni Fort Lewis College alumni Ultimate Fighting Championship champions American female mixed martial artists American people of Navajo descent American people of Chickasaw descent Flyweight mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Mixed martial artists from Arizona Doping cases in mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Female Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners 21st-century American women 21st-century Native American women 21st-century Native Americans