Joey Simon Villaseñor (born October 17, 1975) is an American former professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

. A professional competitor from 1999 until 2012, Villasenor competed for the

PRIDE Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

Strikeforce Strike Force may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games *Strike Force (video game), ''Strike Force'' (video game), a 1991 arcade game *''Commandos: Strike Force'', a 2006 video game *''Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce'', a 2009 video game *' ...

EliteXC Elite Xtreme Combat, also known as EliteXC, was a United States–based mixed martial arts (MMA) organization owned and operated by ProElite. It was founded as a partnership between Showtime Networks and ProElite and officially announced on Decem ...

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

DEEP Deep or The Deep may refer to: Places United States * Deep Creek (Appomattox River tributary), Virginia * Deep Creek (Great Salt Lake), Idaho and Utah * Deep Creek (Mahantango Creek tributary), Pennsylvania * Deep Creek (Mojave River tributary ...

Shark Fights Shark Fights was a mixed martial arts promotion based in Amarillo, Texas. It made its debut on October 24, 2008. On September 11, 2010 Shark Fights had its biggest card in Shark Fights history by having past and present UFC fighters Jorge Masv ...

BAMMA BAMMA (British Association of Mixed Martial Arts) was a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United Kingdom. It premiered on June 27, 2009, and was shown on the television channel Bravo. BAMMA events were shown live on ITV4 in the UK and I ...

, and the

World Fighting Alliance The World Fighting Alliance (WFA) was a mixed martial arts organization based in the United States. History Owned and organized by mixed martial arts, MMA legend and trainer John Lewis (Promoter/Match Maker) and nightclub operator and "Club Rub ...

. Villasenor is the former King of the Cage Middleweight Champion, and defended this title seven times before vacating it to sign with

PRIDE Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

Background

Villasenor was born in East Los Angeles and lived there for the first nine years of his life before moving to New Mexico in 1984. He graduated from Farmington High School but also attended West Mesa High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Villasenor was athletic and in high school he played baseball, football, and participated in track and field. Villasenor first began watching

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 TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...

events when he was 17 or 18 years old, but thought that the fighting was brutal, although he wanted to learn self-defense. He began competing in

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

when he was 19 years old, training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

. He was a four-time Amateur Regional Boxing Champion with a 16–0 record, and 15 wins by KO.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Villaseñor made his professional debut in April 1999 and after 15 consecutive wins, he was signed by the

PRIDE

Villasenor made his PRIDE debut on June 4, 2006, against Japanese veteran,

Ryo Chonan is a Japanese retired professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2001 to 2013, Chonan competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, PRIDE, Deep (mixed martial arts), DEEP, Dream (mixed ...

. Despite losing a decision, Villaseñor was brought back by the organization to fight UFC veteran

Robbie Lawler Robert Glenn Lawler (born March 20, 1982) is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed between 2001 and 2023. He is a former UFC Welterweight Champion, former EliteXC Middleweight Champion, and has formerly competed in ...

PRIDE 32 ''Pride 32: The Real Deal'' was a mixed martial arts event and was held by the Pride Fighting Championships. The event took place on October 21, 2006, at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background This was the first Pride event to ...

. He lost via knockout only 22 seconds into the first round due to a

flying knee A knee strike (commonly referred to simply as a knee) is a strike (attack), strike with the knee, either with the kneecap or the surrounding area. Kneeing is a disallowed practice in many combat sports, especially to the head of a downed opponent. ...

EliteXC

Villasenor then signed with

. He defeated former UFC veteran

David Loiseau David Loiseau (; born December 17, 1979) is a Canadian former mixed martial artist from Montreal, Quebec. He has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, EliteXC, and TKO Major League MMA veteran. He is the former TKO World Middleweight Ch ...

in EliteXC's inaugural event, and lost to

Murilo Rua Murilo Milani Rua (; born May 22, 1980), also known as Ninja, is a Brazilian retired mixed martial artist. He is the older brother of former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Mauricio Rua. He was the inaugural EliteXC Middleweight Champion and a ...

at the EliteXC co-promotion Strikeforce Shamrock vs. Baroni, and rebounded with a win over

Riki Fukuda , is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor since 2004, he has formerly competed for the UFC, EliteXC, DEEP, DREAM, K-1 (MMA), Shooto, and Pancrase. Currently, he runs an izakay ...

at EliteXC: Uprising. Villasenor scored an impressive

knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, ...

over Ryan Jensen at Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Le. On May, 31st, at EliteXC's Saturday Night Fights, Villaseñor won his bout against

Phil Baroni Philip George Baroni (April 16, 1976) is an American former mixed martial artist, kickboxer, boxer, and professional wrestler. Baroni competed in the UFC, PRIDE, Strikeforce, Cage Rage, DREAM, EliteXC, Bellator MMA, Titan FC, Palace Fi ...

. This bout can potentially be the elimination match for the EliteXC Middleweight Championship. It was recently announced that Villaseñor would receive a title shot in a rematch against

on the scheduled November 8, 2008, EliteXC show. However

ProElite ProElite, Inc. is an American entertainment and media company involved in the promotion of mixed martial arts (MMA). First incarnation Founded by boxing promoter Gary Shaw and his son Jared in 2006 in partnership with Showtime Networks Inc. (a ...

canceled the show shortly after due to large amounts of debt.

Strikeforce

After the demise of EliteXC, Villasenor was signed by

and defeated

Evangelista Santos Evangelista Santos ( born December 12, 1977) is a Brazilian retired mixed martial artist. A professional from 1997 until 2016, Santos competed for Strikeforce, Bellator MMA, the PRIDE Fighting Championships, Cage Rage, International Vale Tudo Ch ...

at Strikeforce Challengers: Villasenor vs. Cyborg via split decision. Villaseñor faced

Ronaldo Souza Ronaldo Souza dos Santos (born 7 December 1979), nicknamed " Jacaré" (), is a Brazilian former professional mixed martial artist, submission grappler and 4th degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. Souza was a multiple time BJJ World ch ...

on May 15, 2010, at Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery. He lost the fight via decision. On December 9, 2010, Villaseñor was released from Strikeforce, along with

Joe Riggs Joseph Jonathan Riggs (born September 23, 1982) is an American professional bare-knuckle boxer and former mixed martial artist who was most recently signed to Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship where he lost via KO to Lorenzo Hunt. He former ...

Shark Fights

Villaseñor was expected to face

Drew McFedries Michael Andrew "Drewbie" McFedries (born July 27, 1978) is an American retired mixed martial artist. McFedries formerly competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC, Titan Fighting Championship, Titan FC and Shooto. Background McFedries ...

on September 11, 2010, at Shark Fights 13 but McFedries was forced off the card with an injury. He instead faced Danillo Villefort and lost the fight via unanimous decision. Villaseñor next faced

Chris Camozzi Christopher Allen Camozzi (born November 20, 1986) is an American professional Glory (kickboxing), Glory kickboxer, mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxer. He currently competes for the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship ...

at Shark Fights 15. The fight was initially ruled a draw, but was subsequently overturned and counted as a win for Camozzi by the New Mexico Athletic Commission when it was revealed one of the judges scores was added incorrectly.

BAMMA

Villaseñor made his

debut against fighter

Jim Wallhead Jim Wallhead (born 14 March 1984) is an English former professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight (MMA), Welterweight division. He has competed for BAMMA, Bellator MMA, Bellator, and M-1 Challenge and ...

at BAMMA 8. He lost the fight via KO in the first round.

Championships and Accomplishments

** KOTC Middleweight Championship (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 29–10 , Donnie Liles , Decision (unanimous) , Jackson's MMA Series 8 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 28–10 ,

, KO (punches) , BAMMA 8: Manuwa vs. Rea , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:48 ,

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 28–9 , Chuck Parmelee , TKO (punches) , Jackson's MMA Series 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:47 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 27–9 ,

, Decision (split) , Shark Fights 15: Villaseñor vs Camozzi , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Rio Rancho, New Mexico Rio Rancho () is the largest and most populous city in Sandoval County, part of the expansive Albuquerque metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of New Mexico. A small portion of the city extends into northern Bernalillo County. It is the thi ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 27–8 , Danillo Villefort , Decision (unanimous) , Shark Fights 13: Jardine vs Prangley , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Amarillo, Texas Amarillo ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Potter County, Texas, Potter County, though most of the southern half of the city extends into Randall County, Texas, Randall County ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 27–7 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 27–6 ,

, Decision (split) , Strikeforce Challengers: Villasenor vs. Cyborg , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Kent, Washington Kent is a city in King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area, Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue metropolitan area and had a population of 136,588 as of the 2020 Unit ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 26–6 ,

, TKO (punches) , EliteXC: Primetime , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:11 ,

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 25–6 , Ryan Jensen , KO (punch) , Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Le , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:45 ,

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 24–6 ,

, Decision (split) , EliteXC: Uprising , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 23–6 ,

, TKO (punches) , Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Baroni , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:05 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 23–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , EliteXC: Destiny , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Southaven, Mississippi Southaven is a city in DeSoto County, Mississippi, United States. It is a principal city in Memphis metropolitan area, Greater Memphis. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census reported a population of 54,648, making it the List of municipal ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 22–5 ,

, KO (flying knee) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:22 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 22–4 , John Cronk , TKO , KOTC: Civil War , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:04 ,

Towaoc, Colorado Towaoc is a census-designated place (CDP), a post office, and the capital of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe located on the Ute Mountain Reservation in Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. The Towaoc post office has the ZIP Code 81334 ( post ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 21–4 ,

, Decision (split) , PRIDE: Bushido 11 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Saitama, Saitama is the capital and largest Cities of Japan, city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Saitama, Urawa, Ōmiya, Saitama, Ōmiya, Yono, Saitama, Yono and Iwatsuki, Saitama, Iwatsuki. It is a Cities desig ...

, Japan , PRIDE 2006 Welterweight Grand Prix Opening Round , - , Win , align=center, 21–3 ,

Yuya Shirai Yuya Shirai (born April 2, 1980) is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 2003, Shirai has fought for ONE FC, DEEP, BAMMA, Glory World Series, M-1 Global, ...

, Decision (unanimous) , DEEP: 24 Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, , - , Win , align=center, 20–3 ,

Kyacey Uscola ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz'' (also known as ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Franklin'' for the final episode of the season) is the eleventh installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced re ...

, TKO (doctor stoppage) , KOTC: Anarchy , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:14 ,

Prince George, British Columbia Prince George is a city in British Columbia, Canada, situated at the confluence of the Fraser River, Fraser and Nechako River, Nechako rivers. The city itself has a population of 76,708; the metro census agglomeration has a population of 89,490 ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 19–3 ,

Jorge Santiago Jorge Santiago Rodrigues (; born October 9, 1980) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist. He was the first Sengoku Middleweight Champion and is the former Strikeforce Middleweight Grand Prix Champion. He has also competed for the UFC, King ...

, Decision (unanimous) , KOTC 58: Prime Time , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

San Jacinto, California San Jacinto ( , ; ) is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. It is located at the north end of the San Jacinto Valley, with Hemet, California, Hemet to its south and Beaumont, California, Beaumont to its north. The mountains ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 18–3 , Damien Riccio , KO (punches) , KOTC: Warzone , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:55 ,

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 17–3 , Michael Gonzalez , Submission (choke) , KOTC 55: Grudge Match , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:05 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16–3 , Brendan Seguin , TKO (stoppage) , KOTC 48: Payback , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:10 ,

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 15–3 , Jorge Ortiz , TKO (submission to strikes) , KOTC: Hostile Takeover , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:19 ,

Acoma, New Mexico Acoma Pueblo ( , ) is a Native American pueblo approximately west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. Four communities make up the village of Acoma Pueblo: Sky City (Old Acoma), Acomita, Anzac, and McCartys. These communities a ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–3 , Brian Foster , Submission (rear-naked choke) , KOTC 41: Relentless , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:25 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–3 , Hank Weis , KO (punch) , KOTC: New Mexico , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:05 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–3 , Danny Higgins , TKO (submission to elbows) , XFC 4: Australia vs. The World , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:42 ,

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, Australia , , - , Win , align=center, 11–3 , Art Santore , TKO (cut) , KOTC 30: The Pinnacle , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:31 ,

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–3 , James Fanshier , Submission (rear-naked choke) , KOTC 28: More Punishment , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:26 ,

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–3 , Joe Merit , TKO , KOTC 24: Mayhem , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:06 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–3 , Tony Galindo , TKO (corner stoppage) , KOTC 21: Invasion , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–3 , Lorn Estes , TKO (submission to punches) , KOTC 20: Crossroads , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:43 ,

Bernalillo, New Mexico Bernalillo () is a town in and the county seat of Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 8,977 at the 2020 census. Bernalillo is part of the Albuquerque metropolitan area. History Wine Festival In the 1620s, the wine ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–3 , Jermaine Andre , TKO (foot injury) , WFA 2: Level 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:21 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Todd Carney , Submission (choke) , KOTC 14: 5150 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:47 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–2 ,

Tim Credeur Tim Credeur (born July 9, 1977) is an American retired mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. He was a cast member of Spike TV's ''The Ultimate Fighter 7'' and was defeated by fellow cast member Jesse Taylor in the semi-finals. He was then bro ...

, TKO (submission to punches) , KOTC 13: Revolution , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:24 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–2 , Eddy Rolon , TKO (cut) , Warriors Challenge 12 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 7:30 , Friant, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–2 , Allan Mollring , TKO (punches) , Warriors Challenge 11 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:27 ,

Fresno, California Fresno (; ) is a city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County, California, Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley (California), Central Valley region. It covers a ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–2 , David Terrell , Submission (armbar) , Warriors Challenge 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:24 , Friant, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Gabriel Duran , Submission (choke) , Warriors Challenge 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:31 , Friant, California, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Adam Ryan , KO (punch) , WVF: Casper , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Casper, Wyoming Casper is a city in and the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States. Casper is the List of municipalities in Wyoming, second-most populous city in the state after Cheyenne, Wyoming, Cheyenne, with the population at 59,038 as of th ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Shane Schartzer , TKO (submission to punches) , WVF: Durango , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:12 ,

Durango, Colorado Durango is the home rule city that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of La Plata County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 19,071 at the 2020 United States census. Durango is the home of Fort Lewis College ...

, United States ,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Villasenor, Joey 1975 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu American mixed martial artists of Mexican descent American male boxers American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Sportspeople from Albuquerque, New Mexico 20th-century American sportsmen