Joseph Benavidez
Joseph Benavidez was born in San Antonio, Texas, United States on July 31st, 1984 and is the MMA Fighter. At the age of 39, Joseph Benavidez biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 39 years old, Joseph Benavidez has this physical status:
Joseph Rolando Benavidez (born July 31, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist who competes as a flyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
As of July 1, 2019, he is the highest ranking in the UFC flyweight rankings after competing in smaller shows while being a screen printer in Las Cruces, New Mexico, before joining Team Alpha Male in 2007.
He has competed in Dream, WEC, and now the UFC.
His fighting style has earned comparisons to former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber.
The Mayor and City Council of Las Cruces proclaimed April 27 as Joseph Benavidez Day in Las Cruces on April 27, 2010.
Personal life
Benavidez is married to UFC reporter Megan Olivi.
Mixed martial arts career
Benavidez performed in smaller shows and trained while working as a screen printer in New Mexico before joining Urijah Faber. On a trip to California in January 2007, he hoped to make it a living by fighting MMA. Faber's gym was nowhere to be found, so he headed to one in Roseville in the hopes of finding him. His fighting skills impressed the students and instructors enough (or, in Faber's words: "[he] practically beat the crap out of everyone") to dismiss him to Faber. This was only hours before Benavidez' flight home was scheduled and he had to leave for the airport, but he was unable to meet up with him.
His flight was then cancelled, giving him the opportunity to speak with Faber as he had hoped. Benavidez was impressed enough by Faber to work at his gym's front desk, allowing him to leave New Mexico to come train with him and his team. Benavidez went back to New Mexico, "jammed everything into his car," and then moved to California. Benavidez was given a fight against Norifumi Yamamoto by Japanese MMA-promoter Dream in July 2008 at Dream 5. The match was postponed only days before the match, and Benavidez was matched against Junya Kodo, who was defeated by guillotine choke submission.
World Extreme Cagefighting, based in the United States, later tagged Benavidez. Danny Martinez fought Danny Martinez at WEC 37 on December 3, 2008, a unanimous decision was taken.
At WEC 40, Benavidez met Jeff Curran on April 5, 2009. Curran was defeated by superior grappling and striking, knocking the opponent down in the first round. In the second round and a triangle choke in the third round, Curran unsuccessfully attempted an armbar.
Benavidez next appeared on WEC 42 against Dominick Cruz on August 9, 2009. He lost by a unanimous decision.
On December 19, 2009 at WEC 45, Benavidez defeated Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Rani Yahya. Benavidez was crowned in the first round of TKO for the first time.
At WEC 47, Benavidez defeated former WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Torres on March 6, 2010. Before a huge cut across Torres' forehead and submitting the bloodied Torres via guillotine choke, he dominated the Bantamweight Champion.
On August 18, 2010, Benavidez defeated Dominick Cruz in a rematch for the WEC Bantamweight Championship. Benavidez lost in a split decision to Cruz for the second time.
On November 11, 2010, Benavidez defeated Wagnney Fabiano, who had just suffered an injured Brian Bowles. Benavidez beat Fabiano in the second round of the second round of the tournament. Benavidez stung Fabiano with a left and pounced, delivering the 3rd degree black belt with a guillotine choke at 2:45 of the second round after an uneventful first round of striking between the two teams.
World Extreme Cagefighting and the Ultimate Fighting Championship joined World Extreme Cagefighting on October 28, 2010. All WEC fighters were moved to the UFC as part of the merger.
Benavidez debuted at UFC 128 on March 19, 2011. He won the fight by unanimous decision.
On Versus 5, Benavidez defeated Eddie Wineland for the second time on August 14, 2011. Benavidez won by a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
Dana White revealed that Benavidez will compete in a four-man tournament to crown the newly formed UFC Flyweight Championship. Benavidez faced Yasuhiro Urushitani in the second round of the UFC on FX 2 on FX 2 on FX2 and gained through TKO, bringing Knockout of the Night Award for his effort.
In the inaugural UFC Flyweight Championship, Benavidez faced Demetrious Johnson on September 22, 2012 at UFC 152. He lost the battle by a split decision, 48-47, 49-46).
On February 2, 2013, Benavidez took on Ian McCall at UFC 156. He was able to win the fight by unanimous vote.
On April 20, 2013, Benavidez then confronted Darren Uyenoyama at UFC on Fox 7. In the second round, he secured the fight by TKO.
On September 4, 2013, Benavidez met Jussier Formiga at UFC Fight Night 28. After dropping Formiga with a knee to the body and following up with punches, he won the fight by TKO in round 1.
For The Ultimate Fighter 18 Finale on November 30, 2013, a rematch with Demetrious Johnson was scheduled. However, the bout was postponed to December 14, 2013 at UFC on Fox 9, following the fact that the headliner was postponed due to sickness. Benavidez was disqualified in the first round by a knockout, the first time he had been barred from participating in his MMA career.
At UFC 172 on April 26, 2014, Benavidez met Tim Elliott. Benavidez won the fight in the first round thanks to a modified guillotine choke. Elliot was compelled to tap with his feet because his arms were tied by Benavidez's legs. This submission was dubbed "Joa Constrictor" by Benavidez. Benavidez's first Performance of the Night bonus award was also given in exchange for his win.
On November 22, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 57, Benavidez met Dustin Ortiz. Benavidez was the victor of a back-and-forth battle by a unanimous vote.
On May 23, 2015, Benavidez defeated John Moraga at UFC 187. Benavidez was the victor of the contest by unanimous vote.
On September 5, 2015, Benavidez was briefly linked to a match against former Olympic Gold medalist Henry Cejudo at UFC 191. However, the war never came to an end. In turn, Benavidez met Ali Bagautinov at UFC 192 on October 3, 2015. Benavidez was voted unanimously in the match.
On February 6, 2016, Benavidez defeated Zach Makovsky at UFC Fight Night 82. He was able to win the fight by unanimous vote.
Benavidez would be one of the coaches, opposite Henry Cejudo on The Ultimate Fighter 24 in May 2016. The two teams met at The Ultimate Fighter 24 Finale in December 3, 2016. Benavidez was ruled out of the match by a split vote.
On June 11, 2017, Benevidez was supposed to meet Ben Nn at UFC Fight Night 110. However, Benavidez was forced to leave the fight on May 10 due to a knee injury and was replaced by Tim Elliott.
On June 9, 2018, Benavidez clashed with Sergio Pettis at UFC 225. He lost the back-and-forth battle by a split decision.
On Nov. 10, 2018, Benavidez was supposed to face Ray Borg at UFC Fight Night 139. The bout was canceled on November 7, 2018, but it was announced on November 7, 2018 that it was due to an undisclosed medical problem for Borg.
Benavidez met Alex Perez in the Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale on November 30, 2018. In round one, he won the fight by a technical knockout. He received the Performance of the Night award for his efforts during his win.
On January 19, 2019, Benavidez was only expected to face Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC Fight Night 143 for a brief period. However, the promotion has clarified plans stating that the pairing was off and that Benavidez would serve as an alternate for the headliner bout in the case that either Henry Cejudo or T.J. Dillashaw is barred from the main event. Benavidez subpoenaed himself that he would like to compete on the cards, so even as an alternate for the headliner, a rematch with Dustin Ortiz took place at the tournament. Benavidez will win the match by a unanimous vote. Before the fight with Ortiz, Benavidez signed a new, four-fight deal with the UFC.
On June 29, 2019, Benavidez met Jussier Formiga in a rematch at UFC on ESPN 3. In the second round, he won the fight by virtue of a technical knockout. He was named Performance of the Night in this series. In the post-fight interview, he declared himself "Joey Two Times."
On February 29, 2020, Benavidez defeated Deiveson Figueiredo for the vacant UFC Flyweight Championship at UFC Fight Night 169. On the weigh-ins on February 28, Figueiredo lost weight, weighing in at 127.5 pounds, and was ineligible to win the Flyweight championship. In addition, Figueiredo was fined 30 percent of his money, which went to Benavidez. In round two, Benavidez was disqualified by TKO.
On July 19, 2020, Benavidez rematched with Deiveson Figueiredo for the vacant UFC Flyweight Championship. Figueiredo tested positive for COVID-19 on July 11, 2020. The fight had yet to be officially ended, according to Figueiredo's boss, and Figueiredo was administered a second COVID-19 test on July 12, 2020, when the conclusion would be announced on July 13, 2020, if Figueiredo was free to fight. Multiple COVID-19 experiments were passed by Figueiredo, allowing the competition to continue as the main event. In round one, Benavidez lost due to a technical error.
On March 6, 2021 at UFC 258, Benavidez face Askar Askarov. Askar weighed in at 127 pounds, one pound over the flyweight non-title fight maximum. Askarov was fined a small amount of his individual wealth, which went to Benavidez, as a result of the match's catchweight. Benavidez was disqualified by a unanimous decision, which ended the match.
Benavidez resigned from MMA in September 2021.