Celebrating Black History Month
CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH
UFC is proud to celebrate Black History Month by acknowledging the achievements of African American and Black UFC athletes throughout our history.
During February, UFC will highlight the personal stories of these athletes, past and present, while celebrating their significance in promoting and growing UFC and the sport of mixed martial arts.
Celebrating Black Excellence
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UFC 1: The Beginning
Zane Frazier, Art Jimmerson, Patrick Smith and Trent Jenkins were the first African American athletes to compete in the UFC at UFC 1: The Beginning. -
UFC 1: The Beginning
NFL great Jim Brown served as the first African American color commentator (pre-Zuffa era) at UFC 1: The Beginning. -
UFC 4: Revenge of the Warriors
Ron Van Clief fought at UFC 4 to become the oldest competitor to fight in the UFC, aged 51. -
UFC 14
Maurice Smith defeated Mark Coleman at UFC 14 to become the UFC heavyweight champion, and the first African American to headline a non-tournament event. -
UFC 14: Showdown
Kevin Jackson defeated Todd Butler by first-round knockout to become the first African American to win a UFC tournament at UFC 14. -
UFC 23: Ultimate Japan 2
UFC Hall-of-Famer Kevin Randleman defeated Pete Williams by decision to win the UFC heavyweight title at UFC 23. -
UFC 31: Locked and Loaded
Carlos Newton, born in Anguilla and representing Canada, defeated Pat Miletich with a third-round submission to win the welterweight title at UFC 31. -
UFC 38: Brawl at the Hall
Mark Weir, born in Gloucester, England, made his UFC debut at UFC 38 with a 10-second knockout victory over Eugene Jackson. -
UFC 42: Sudden Impact
David Loiseau, born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, made his UFC debut at UFC 42 with a first-round knockout victory over Mark Weir. -
The Ultimate Fighter 1
Josh Koscheck and Bobby Southworth competed in the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter. -
The Ultimate Fighter Season 2
Rashad Evans defeated Brad Imes in the heavyweight division finale of the second season of The Ultimate Fighter. -
The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs Team Forrest
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson made his coaching debut on season 7 of The Ultimate Fighter. His team included C.B. Dollaway, Matthew Riddle, Paul Bradley, Dan Cramer, Gerald Harris, Mike Dolce, Jeremy May and Brandon Sene. -
UFC 64: Unstoppable
Anderson Silva defeated Rich Franklin by first-round knockout at UFC 64 to win the UFC middleweight title on October 14, 2006. -
UFC 71: Liddell vs Jackson
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson defeated Chuck Liddell by first-round knockout, winning UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 71. -
UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008
Rashad Evans defeated Forrest Griffin with a third-round knockout at UFC 92 to win the UFC light heavyweight title. -
UFC 128
Jon Jones defeated Mauricio "Shogun" Rua by third-round knockout at UFC 128 to become the youngest champion in UFC history at 23 years old. -
UFC 144: Edgar vs Henderson
Benson Henderson defeated Frankie Edgar by decision at UFC 144 to win the UFC lightweight title. -
UFC 152
Demetrious Johnson defeated Joseph Benavidez at UFC 152 to become the UFC flyweight champion, the start of a six-year reign. -
UFC 153: Silva vs Bonnar
Anderson "Spider" Silva defeated Stephan Bonnar at UFC 153 to set the UFC record for most consecutive UFC victories (16). -
October 14, 2006 - July 6, 2013
Anderson "The Spider" Silva's middleweight title reign set the UFC record for longest title reign at 2,457 days. -
UFC Fight Night
Germaine de Randamie made her debut at UFC Fight Night: Johnson vs Moraga. She secured a victory against Julie Kedzie. -
UFC 187
Daniel Cormier defeated Anthony Johnson for the vacant UFC light heavyweight championship at UFC 187. -
UFC 201: Lawler vs Woodley
Tyron Woodley defeated Robbie Lawler by first-round knockout to become the UFC welterweight champion at UFC 201. -
UFC Fight Night: Lineker vs Dodson
At UFC Fight Night 96: Lineker vs Dodson, Daniel Cormier became the first color commentator for a UFC event (Zuffa era). -
UFC 208: Holm vs de Randamie
Germaine de Randamie became the first Black female to headline a UFC event at UFC 208, where she defeated Holly Holm for the UFC featherweight championship title. That night, she also became the first black women's champion. -
UFC 216
Demetrious Johnson defeated Ray Borg with a fifth-round submission to set the record for the most successful UFC title defenses (11) at UFC 216. -
UFC 226: Miocic vs Cormier
Daniel Cormier defeated Stipe Miocic at UFC 226 to become the UFC heavyweight champion, while also the UFC light heavyweight champion. -
UFC 235
Kamaru Usman, born in Nigeria, defeated Tyron Woodley to become the UFC welterweight champion at UFC 235. -
UFC Hall of Fame: Modern Wing
Rashad Evans was inducted into the Pioneer Wing ('19) of the UFC Hall of Fame. -
UFC 243: Whittaker vs Adesanya
Israel Adesanya defeated Robert Whittaker with a second-round knockout to be crowned the undisputed UFC middleweight champion at UFC 243. -
UFC 259
Aljamain Sterling defeated Petr Yan at UFC 259 to claim the UFC bantamweight title. -
UFC Hall of Fame: Fight Wing
Jon Jones was inducted into the Fight Wing ('20) of the UFC Hall of Fame for his UFC 165 battle against Alexander Gustafsson. -
UFC Hall of Fame: Pioneer Wing
Kevin Randleman was inducted into the Pioneer Wing ('20) of the UFC Hall of Fame. -
UFC 260: Miocic vs Ngannou
Francis Ngannou defeated Stipe Miocic by second-round knockout in their championship rematch at UFC 260 to claim the UFC heavyweight title. -
UFC 278: Usman vs Edwards
On August 20, 2022, at UFC 278, Leon Edwards won the UFC welterweight title when he knocked out Kamaru Usman at 4:04 of the fifth round. With the knockout, Edwards became the first Jamaican-born UFC champion.
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