Walel Watson (born July 17, 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 ...

. A professional since 2008, he has fought in 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 ...

Titan FC Titan Fighting Championship (Titan FC) is an American mixed martial arts promotion based out of Pompano Beach, Florida. Their shows were originally run in and near Kansas City and have since expanded to include venues all over North America and e ...

, and

Tachi Palace Fights Tachi Palace Fights (TPF) was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion which hosted events at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, California. Matchmaker for TPF was former fighter Richard Goodman. Regarded as a regional promotion, ...

MMA career

Watson made his professional debut in 2008 for MMA Xtreme in Mexico at the age of 24. He lost his debut via submission, but went undefeated in his next 7 bouts and never going to the third round. Prior to joining the UFC, he amassed a record of 8 wins and 2 losses.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In August 2011, it was announced that Watson signed with the UFC. Watson's UFC debut took place against Joseph Sandoval on October 1, 2011 at

UFC on Versus 6 ''UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson'' (also known as ''UFC on Versus 6'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 1, 2011 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. Background This event featured a UFC Banta ...

. He was successful in his debut, winning the fight early via TKO in the first round. In his second fight, Watson faced

Yves Jabouin Fernand Yves Jabouin (born May 30, 1979) is a retired Haitian-Canadian mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2001, Jabouin also formerly comp ...

on December 10, 2011 at

UFC 140 ''UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 10, 2011 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was the penultimate event for the UFC in 2011. The event feat ...

. After three close rounds Watson lost a controversial split decision. Watson returned quickly to face

T.J. Dillashaw Tyler Jeffrey Dillashaw (born February 7, 1986) is an American retired professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former two-time UFC Bantamweight Champion. Dillashaw competed on ...

on February 15, 2012 at

UFC on Fuel TV 1 The year 2012 was the 20th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. 2012 started with UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes and ended with UFC 155: dos Santos vs. Velasquez 2 ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Watson was defeated by

Mitch Gagnon Mitch Gagnon (born October 10, 1984) is a Canadian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Early career Gagnon began training in 2006 and made his p ...

on September 22, 2012 at

UFC 152 ''UFC 152: Jones vs. Belfort '' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 22, 2012, at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Background Rory MacDonald was expected to face fo ...

via first round rear naked choke. After posting a 1-3 record inside the promotion, Watson was released from the UFC.

Post-UFC career

A short two months after his UFC release, Watson signed on to face Anthony Moore at Xplode Fight Series: Damage on November 17, 2012. He won the fight via first round TKO. Watson then made a quick turnaround and faced Joey Apodaca at XFS: Vengeance on January 19, 2013. He won the fight via guillotine choke submission, just under twenty-seconds into the first round. Watson faced

Tom Niinimäki Tom Niinimäki (born July 25, 1982) is a Finnish professional mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Early career Niinimäki began training in ki ...

at Cage 23 on September 21, 2013. He lost the fight via kimura submission. He then faced Rodrigo Almeida at CZ 46: Throwdown at The Rock on November 22, 2013. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. In his latest fight, Watson submitted William Joplin at Titan FC 28: Brilz vs. Davis on May 16, 2014. Watson is expected to face Anthony Gutierrez at Titan FC 30 on September 26, 2014. Watson defeated Gutierrez by Submission in the first round. On March 20, 2015, he faced Brett Johns for the inaugural Titan FC Bantamweight Championship at Titan FC 33. He lost the fight via submission in the second round. Watson faced Ricardo Palacios at

Golden Boy Promotions Golden Boy Promotions, Inc. is an American boxing promotional firm based in Los Angeles, California. The company was established in 2002 by eight-time world champion (in six divisions) Oscar De La Hoya, borrowing his nickname "Golden Boy." Histo ...

' inaugural MMA event on November 24, 2018. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round.

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 ...

, United States ,

Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, this ...

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Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

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Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

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El Cajon, California El Cajon ( , ; Spanish: El Cajón, meaning "the box") is a city in San Diego County, California, United States, east of downtown San Diego. The city takes its name from Rancho El Cajón, which was in turn named for the box-like shape of the va ...

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São José dos Pinhais São José dos Pinhais () is a municipality in the state of Paraná in Brazil. It is a part of the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba. Etymology With geographical and religious origins the city's name is a homage to São José (Saint Joseph) and ...

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Isa Town Isa Town ( ar, مدينة عيسى, ''Madīnat ʿĪsā'') is a middle class town located in Bahrain, in the north central part of the country. Etymology The name ''Isa'' refers to Isa ibn Salman Al Khalifah, the ruler of Bahrain from 1961 to 1999 ...

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

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Brett Johns Thomas Brett Johns (born 21 February 1992) is a Welsh professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the bantamweight division of Bellator MMA. Prior to signing with Bellator, Johns competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship ( ...

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , Titan FC 33 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:06 ,

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population within the city limits was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 195,111 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 cens ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–7 , Anthony Gutierrez , Submission (triangle choke) , Titan FC 30: Brilz vs. Magalhaes , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:02 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–7 , William Joplin , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Titan FC 28: Brilz vs. Davis , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:29 ,

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, United States , Return to

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class is derived from Ba ...

. , - , Loss , align=center, 11–7 , Rodrigo Almeida , Decision (unanimous) , CZ 46 - Throwdown at The Rock , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Salem, New Hampshire Salem is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 30,089 at the 2020 census. Being located on Interstate 93 as the first town in New Hampshire, which lacks any state sales tax, Salem has grown into a commer ...

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Vantaa Vantaa (; sv, Vanda, ) is a city and Municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. It is part of the inner core of the Greater Helsinki, Finnish Capital Region along with Helsinki, Espoo, and Kauniainen. With a population of (), Vantaa i ...

, Finland , , - , Win , align=center, 11–5 , Joey Apodaca , Submission (guillotine choke) , Xplode Fight Series - Vengeance , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:17 ,

Valley Center, California Valley Center is a census-designated place (CDP) in northern San Diego County, California. The population was 9,277 at the 2010 census. History Valley Center was the site of the capture of the largest California Grizzly Bear in history. In 1866, ...

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Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

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Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

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