Tafon Nchukwi

Tafon Nchukwi (born 14 October 1994) is a Cameroonian mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division and competed in the UFC.

Tafon Nchukwi
Born (1994-10-14) 14 October 1994
Bamenda, Cameroon
Other namesCameroon Express
ResidenceTemple Hills, Maryland, United States
NationalityCameroonian
American[1]
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
DivisionLight Heavyweight (2020; 2021–present)
Middleweight (2020–2021)
Heavyweight (2019–2020)
Reach77 in (196 cm)
TeamCrazy 88 MMA (previously)[2]
Team Lloyd Irvin[2]
RankBlue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu[3]
Years active2019–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total10
Wins6
By knockout4
By decision2
Losses4
By knockout2
By decision2
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Background

Born in Bamenda, Cameroon, Nchukwi's family moved to the United States in 2005.[4] He played soccer in his youth, changing to football, baseball and wrestling during his high school years.[5] He attended college, but dropped out after discovering mixed martial arts.[6]

Nchukwi is a WKA ×2 2016 National champion, WKA ×2 2017 national champion, WKA ×2 2016 World champion. He is also a Jiu-jitsu blue belt and a 2017 IBJJF PAN Silver medalist.[7]

Nchukwi flies the flag of the separatist banner of the Republic of Ambazonia.[8]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Making his MMA debut at CFFC 73, Nchukwi faced Alex Meyers and went on to defeat him via TKO in the second round. In his sophomore performance, Tafon defeated A.T. McCowin via TKO in round one at Shogun Fights 23. Returning to Cage Fury Fighting Championships at CFFC 80, he defeated William Knight via TKO in the first round.[9] The win was controversial as the ref thought Knight was knocked out when covering up, for which the ref apologized afterwards.[10]

In the main event of Dana White's Contender Series 32, Nchukwi knocked out Al Matavao in the second round. The victory earned Nchukwi a contract from the UFC in the process.[11]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In his promotional debut, Nchukwi faced Jamie Pickett at UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Neal on December 19, 2020.[12] After knocking down Pickett in the third round, Nchukwi won the fight via unanimous decision.[13]

In his sophomore appearance, Nchukwi faced Jun Yong Park on May 8, 2021 at UFC on ESPN: Rodriguez vs. Waterson.[14] He lost the fight via majority decision after being deducted a point due to repeated groin strikes.[15]

Nchukwi faced Mike Rodríguez at UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Spann on September 18, 2021.[16] He won the fight via unanimous decision.[17]

Nchukwi faced Azamat Murzakanov on March 12, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 203[18] Despite winning most of the bout, Nchukwi lost the bout after getting knocked out by a flying knee in round three.[19]

Nchukwi faced Carlos Ulberg on June 25, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 38[20] He lost the fight via TKO in the first round.[21]

Nchukwi was scheduled to face Jamal Pogues on December 17, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 216.[22] However, Pogues pull out from the bout due to undisclosed reason and was replaced by Vitor Petrino.[23] Nchukwi eventually pulled out of the bout himself due to undisclosed reasons and the bout was scrapped.[24]

Nchukwi faced A.J. Dobson at UFC on ESPN: Luque vs. dos Anjos on August 12, 2023.[25] At the weigh-ins, Nchukwi came in at 189.5 pounds, three and a half pounds over the middleweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at catchweight and Nchukwi was fined an undisclosed percentage of his purse, which went to Dobson.[26] Nchukwi lost the fight via unanimous decision.[27]

After the loss, it was announced that Nchukwi was no longer on the UFC roster.[28]

Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
10 matches 6 wins 4 losses
By knockout 4 2
By decision 2 2
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 6–4 A.J. Dobson Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Luque vs. dos Anjos August 12, 2023 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Return to Middleweight; Nchukwi missed weight (189 lb).
Loss 6–3 Carlos Ulberg TKO (punches) UFC on ESPN: Tsarukyan vs. Gamrot June 25, 2022 1 1:15 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 6–2 Azamat Murzakanov KO (flying knee) UFC Fight Night: Santos vs. Ankalaev March 12, 2022 3 0:44 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 6–1 Mike Rodríguez Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Spann September 18, 2021 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Return to Light Heavyweight.
Loss 5–1 Park Jun-yong Decision (majority) UFC on ESPN: Rodriguez vs. Waterson May 8, 2021 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Nchukwi was deducted one point in round 2 due to repeated groin strikes.
Win 5–0 Jamie Pickett Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Neal December 19, 2020 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Middleweight debut.
Win 4–0 Al Matavao KO (head kick) Dana White's Contender Series 32 September 8, 2020 2 2:01 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Light Heavyweight debut.
Win 3–0 William Knight TKO (punches) CFFC 80 November 22, 2019 1 2:30 Hampton, Virginia, United States Catchweight (225 lb) bout.
Win 2–0 A.T. McCowin TKO (strikes) Shogun Fights 23 November 2, 2019 1 2:27 Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Win 1–0 Alex Meyers TKO CFFC 73 March 2, 2019 2 2:15 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States Heavyweight debut.

[29]

See also

References
  1. Lucas Grandsire (June 30, 2020). Tafon Nchukwi on fight at DWCS, growing up African in the USA, move to 205, and more | The Scrap – via YouTube.
  2. Kumite TV (May 11, 2020). Tafon Nchukwi on switching to Lloyd Irvin, July return at 205 & Uber – via YouTube.
  3. "Tafon Nchukwi | UFC". UFC.com. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  4. Julian Kiewietz (May 8, 2021). "WATCH: Tafon Nchukwi wants to be part of UFC Africa, one way or another". IOL.
  5. Shawn Bitter (November 20, 2019). "Get to Know Light Heavyweight Prospect Tafon Nchukwi Ahead of CFFC 80". cagesidepress.com.
  6. Nolan King (September 9, 2020). "Francis Ngannou was first, but Tafon Nchukwi hopes to be Cameroon's next UFC star". MMAjunkie.com.
  7. Bitter, Shawn (2019-11-20). "Get to Know LHW Prospect Tafon Nchukwi Ahead of CFFC 80". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
  8. "MMA: Tafon Nchukwi, ambassadeur du Nord-Ouest Cameroun à l'UFC". RFI (in French). 2020-12-18. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
  9. "Across The Pond Profile: UFC fighter Tafon Nchukwi | MMA UK". 2020-10-27. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
  10. Maher, Kyle. "Knight has gone from Manchester to the upper echelon of MMA". Journal Inquirer. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
  11. Staff (2020-09-08). "Dana White's Contender Series Season 4, Week 6 Results". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  12. Shawn Bitter (October 18, 2020). "UFC: Tafon Nchukwi vs. Jamie Pickett Set for December 19". cagesidepress.com.
  13. Dan Doherty (December 19, 2020). "UFC Vegas 17 Results: Tafon Nchukwi Overwhelms Jamie Pickett". cagesidepress.com.
  14. "BREAKING: Tafon Nchukwi vs. Jun Yong Park toegevoegd aan UFC evenement op 8 mei". MMA DNA (in Dutch). 2021-03-02. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  15. Behunin, Alex (2021-05-08). "UFC Vegas 26 Results: Jun Yong Park Takes Tafon Nchukwi's Undefeated Record". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
  16. Nolan King (June 9, 2021). "Tafon Nchukwi vs. Mike Rodriguez targeted for UFC Fight Night event Sept. 18". MMAjunkie.com.
  17. Behunin, Alex (2021-09-18). "UFC Vegas 37 Results: Tafon Nchukwi Dominates Mike Rodriguez". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-09-18.
  18. Behunin, Alex. "Tafon Nchukwi vs. Azamat Murzakanov Set For March 12 UFC Event". Cageside Press. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  19. Bitter, Shawn (2022-03-12). "UFC Vegas 50: Azamat Murzakanov Drops Tafon Nchukwi with Flying Knee in Third". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  20. "UFC adds Tafon Nchukwi vs. Carlos Ulberg to June 25 event". MMA Junkie. 2022-05-18. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  21. Anderson, Jay (2022-06-25). "UFC Vegas 57: Carlos Ulberg Rocks, Drops, Stops Tafon Nchukwi". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2022-06-26.
  22. Sherdog.com. "Tafon Nchukwi vs. Jamal Pogues Booked for UFC Fight Night on Dec. 17". Sherdog. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  23. Raphael Marinho (2022-11-03). "UFC: Vitor Petrino tem estreia marcada contra Tafon Nchukwi". ge.globo. Retrieved 2022-11-08. (in Brazilian Portuguese)
  24. Sarmah, Manjit. "Breaking: UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland fighter Tafon Nchukwi pulls out due to injury". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  25. Damon Martin (June 6, 2023). "A.J. Dobson vs. Tafon Nchukwi booked for Aug. 12 UFC event". mmafighting.com.
  26. Alexander K. Lee (2023-08-11). "UFC Vegas 78 weigh-in results: Rafael dos Anjos and Vicente Luque on point, two fighters miss badly". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
  27. Law, Eddie (2023-08-12). "UFC Vegas 78: AJ Dobson Scores First UFC Victory, Earns Decision Win Over Nchukwi". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  28. MyMMANews (2023-08-29). "Ashlee Evans-Smith, Korean Zombie, others removed from UFC roster". mymmanews.com. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
  29. "Tafon "Cameroon Express" Nchukwi". Sherdog. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
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