Jeff Hughes (fighter)

Jeff Hughes
Born (1988-05-17) May 17, 1988 (age 36)
Canton, Ohio, United States[1]
Other namesLight Out
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight265 lb (120 kg; 18 st 13 lb)
DivisionHeavyweight
Reach77 in (196 cm)[1]
Fighting out ofCanton, Ohio, United States
TeamEvolve MMA and Victory Martial Arts[citation needed]
Strong Style Fight Team (2017–present)[2]
Years active2014–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total15
Wins10
By knockout4
By submission1
By decision5
Losses4
By knockout1
By submission1
By decision2
No contests1
Other information
OccupationTruck driver[citation needed]
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Jeff Hughes (born May 17, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist. A professional since 2014, he has also fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Legacy Fighting Alliance, where he was a former heavyweight champion.

Background

Hughes was born and raised in Canton, Ohio. He played basketball and wrestled in high school. He then turned to MMA after he graduated from high school in his hometown of Canton, Ohio.[3]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

After compiling an amateur record of 11-3 from 2007 until 2013, Hughes started his professional MMA career in 2014 and fought under numerous organizations, notably Legacy Fighting Alliance where he was the Heavyweight Champion twice.[4][5] He amassed a record of 9-1 before competing in Dana White's Contender Series 14.[6]

Dana White's Contender Series

Hughes appeared in Dana White's Contender Series 14 web-series program on July 24, 2018, facing Josh Appelt.[7] He won the fight via first-round TKO. With this win, Hughes was awarded a contract with the UFC.[8]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Hughes made his UFC debut on March 9, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 146 against Daniel Spitz.[9] However, Spitz pulled out of the fight in February citing injury and he was replaced by Maurice Greene.[10] He lost the fight via a split decision.[11]

Hughes faced Todd Duffee on September 14, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 158.[12] The bout ended in the first round as a no contest due to an accidental eye poke that rendered Duffee unable to continue.[13]

Hughes faced Raphael Pessoa on October 26, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 162.[14] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.[15]

Hughes was expected to face promotional newcomer Carlos Felipe on March 14, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 170.[16] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was eventually postponed .[17]

Hughes faced Juan Espino on September 27, 2020 at UFC 253.[18] He lost the fight via submission in round one.[19]

On October 2, 2020 it was reported that Hughes was released by the UFC.[20]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
15 matches 10 wins 4 losses
By knockout 4 1
By submission 1 1
By decision 5 2
No contests 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 10–4 (1) Juan Espino Submission (scarf hold choke) UFC 253 September 27, 2020 1 3:48 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Loss 10–3 (1) Raphael Pessoa Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Askren October 26, 2019 3 5:00 Kallang, Singapore
NC 10–2 (1) Todd Duffee NC (accidental eye poke) UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Gaethje September 14, 2019 1 4:03 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Accidental eye poke rendered Duffee unable to continue.
Loss 10–2 Maurice Greene Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. dos Santos March 9, 2019 3 5:00 Wichita, Kansas, United States
Win 10–1 Josh Appelt TKO (punches) Dana White's Contender Series 14 July 24, 2018 1 4:26 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 9–1 Maurice Greene Decision (unanimous) LFA 38 April 27, 2018 5 5:00 Minneapolis, United States Defended the LFA Heavyweight Championship.
Win 8–1 Richard Odoms Decision (unanimous) LFA 26 November 3, 2017 5 5:00 Houston, Texas, United States Won the LFA Heavyweight Championship.
Win 7–1 Ryan Pokryfky Decision (unanimous) Big Guns 24 June 10, 2017 3 5:00 Tallmadge, Ohio, United States
Loss 6–1 Dan Spohn TKO (punches) IT Fight Series 48 December 10, 2016 5 2:02 Columbus, Ohio, United States For the vacant IT Fight Series Heavyweight Championship.
Win 6–0 John Hawk Decision (unanimous) Big Guns 18 March 19, 2016 3 5:00 Mansfield, Ohio, United States
Win 5–0 Jason Riley KO (spinning back kick) Caged Madness 40 January 16, 2016 1 4:59 Akron, Ohio, United States
Win 4–0 Curt Lemmon Decision (unanimous) Big Guns 16 August 22, 2015 3 5:00 Streetsboro, Ohio, United States
Win 3–0 Ed Abrasley TKO (punches) PA Cage Fight 21 May 30, 2015 1 1:59 Akron, Ohio, United States
Win 2–0 Leviticus Roberson TKO (retirement) RFO: Big Guns 15 March 21, 2015 1 5:00 Akron, Ohio, United States
Win 1–0 Devon Wilson Submission (guillotine choke) Rock N Rumble 8 October 4, 2014 1 3:52 Canton, Ohio, United States Heavyweight debut.

[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Jeff Hughes | UFC". www.ufc.com. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  2. ^ John Hyon Ko (August 12, 2019). "Interview: Jeff Hughes (UFC Heavyweight)" (Podcast).
  3. ^ "LFA heavyweight champion Jeff "Lights Out" Hughes looks to pass one more test and earn a UFC contract on Contender Series". MyMMANews.com. 2018-07-16. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  4. ^ a b "LFA 26 Results & Fight Highlights: Jeff Hughes Crowned Heavyweight Champion". MMAWeekly.com. 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  5. ^ a b Sherdog.com. "Jeff Hughes Outpaces Maurice Greene to Retain Legacy Fighting Alliance Heavyweight Crown". Sherdog. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  6. ^ a b Sherdog.com. "Jeff". Sherdog. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  7. ^ Kontek, Riley. "Contender Series: Season 2, Episode 6 Preview and Predictions". Combat Press. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  8. ^ "Dana White's Contender Series 14 results: Sodiq Yusuff, Jeff Hughes, Jim Crute win UFC deals". MMA Junkie. 2018-07-25. Retrieved 2019-10-18.
  9. ^ DNA, MMA (4 January 2019). "Daniel Spitz treft LFA Heavyweight Kampioen Jeff Hughes tijdens UFC Wichita". Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  10. ^ DNA, MMA (16 February 2019). "Blessuregeval zorgt voor rematch tussen Jeff Hughes en Maurice Greene tijdens UFC Wichita". Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  11. ^ Staff (2019-03-09). "UFC Wichita Preliminary Card Results and Recap". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  12. ^ "Five fights official for UFC on ESPN+ 16, including return of Todd Duffee". MMA Junkie. 2019-06-26. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  13. ^ Evanoff, Josh (2019-09-14). "UFC Vancouver Results: Todd Duffee vs. Jeff Hughes Ends In No-Contest". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  14. ^ Sherdog.com. "Jeff Hughes vs. Raphael Pessoa Added to UFC Fight Night 162 Lineup". Sherdog. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  15. ^ Harshman, Heath (2019-10-26). "UFC Singapore Results: Noticeably Improved Raphael Pessoa Earns Decision Against Jeff Hughes". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
  16. ^ Marcelo Barone (2019-12-04). "Undefeated in MMA, Carlos Boi will face Jeff Hughes at UFC Brasilia in March". sportv.globo.com (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2019-12-04.
  17. ^ Nolan King and John Morgan (2020-03-15). "UFC postpones three events amid growing coronavirus outbreak". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  18. ^ Tristen Critchfield (2020-09-08). "UFC 253 UPDATE: HEAVYWEIGHTS JUAN ESPINO, JEFF HUGHES TO CLASH IN ABU DHABI". Sherdog. Retrieved 2020-09-08.
  19. ^ Evanoff, Josh (2020-09-26). "UFC 253 Results: Juan Espino Submits Jeff Hughes". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2020-09-27.
  20. ^ Martin, Damon (2020-10-02). "Mara Romero Borella, Iuri Alcantara, Jeff Hughes and Khadis Ibragimov released by UFC". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2020-10-03.