Joseph Morales (fighter)

Joseph Morales
Born (1994-08-22) August 22, 1994 (age 30)
Clovis, California, United States
Other namesBopo
Height5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Weight125 lb (57 kg; 8 st 13 lb)
DivisionFlyweight
Reach68.0 in (173 cm)[1]
Fighting out ofSacramento, California
TeamTeam Alpha Male
Years active2014–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total14
Wins12
By knockout2
By submission6
By decision4
Losses2
By knockout1
By decision1
Other information
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Joseph Morales (born August 22, 1994) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

In his MMA debut at WSOF 16, Joseph defeated Christian Espinosa via unanimous decision. Then he defeated Roque Reyes via TKO in the first round. At WFC 14, Joseph submitted Benji Gomez in the second round via rear naked choke. He also tapped out Gerald Bailey in round one via guillotine choke at GKO 4. Joseph submitted his next two opponents in Sammy Saunders and Gerald Bailey respectively. At GKO 8, he defeated Josh Paiva via unanimous decision, earning him the GKO Flyweight Championship. At CFFC 64 Joseph defeated Sean Santella via TKO in the second round and earned his ticket to the UFC in the process.[2]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Morales made his promotional debut on August 5, 2017, at UFC Fight Night: Pettis vs. Moreno, facing Roberto Sanchez.[3] He won the fight via a rear-naked choke in round one and earned a Performance of the Night bonus.[4]

On February 3, 2018, Morales faced Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Anders.[5] He lost the fight via technical knockout in round two.[6]

Morales faced Eric Shelton on November 10, 2018, at UFC Fight Night: Korean Zombie vs. Rodríguez.[7] He lost the fight via split decision.[8]

After losing his last two fights, Morales got released from the UFC in May 2019.[9]

Post-UFC career

Morales made his return to mixed martial arts, after a three year absence from the sport, to face Kevin Wirth at Cage Warriors 126 on August 1, 2021. Morales won the fight by unanimous decision.[10]

Morales faced Sidemar Honorio on March 4, 2022, at Cage Warriors 133. He won the bout via split decision.[11]

Morales won the A1C Flyweight Championship on February 3, 2023, submitting Anthony Do in the third round via triangle choke.[12]

Professional grappling career

Morales was booked to compete in the Combat Jiu-Jitsu bantamweight world championship on July 30, 2023.[13]

Championships and achievements

Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
14 matches 12 wins 2 losses
By knockout 2 1
By submission 6 0
By decision 4 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 12–2 Anthony Do Submission (triangle choke) Urijah Faber's A1 Combat 8 February 3, 2023 3 4:46 Lemoore, California, United States Won the A1C Flyweight Championship.
Win 11–2 Sidemar Honorio Decision (split) Cage Warriors 133 March 4, 2022 3 5:00 San Diego, California, United States
Win 10–2 Kevin Wirth Decision (unanimous) Cage Warriors 126 August 1, 2021 3 5:00 San Diego, California, United States
Loss 9–2 Eric Shelton Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Korean Zombie vs. Rodríguez November 10, 2018 3 5:00 Denver, Colorado, United States
Loss 9–1 Deiveson Figueiredo TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Anders February 3, 2018 2 4:34 Belém, Brazil
Win 9–0 Roberto Sanchez Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC Fight Night: Pettis vs. Moreno August 5, 2017 1 3:56 Mexico City, Mexico Performance of the Night.
Win 8–0 Sean Santella TKO (punches) CFFC 64 - Sayles vs. Aguilera 25 March 2017 2 3:24 San Diego, California, United States
Win 7–0 Josh Paiva Decision (unanimous) Global Knockout 8 November 19, 2016 5 5:00 Jackson, California, United States Won Vacant Global Knockout Flyweight Championship.
Win 6–0 Gerald Bailey Submission (rear-naked choke) Global Knockout 7 August 27, 2016 1 3:48 Jackson, California, United States
Win 5–0 Sammy Saunders Submission (triangle choke) Global Knockout 6 March 26, 2016 1 3:50 Jackson, California, United States
Win 4–0 Gerald Bailey Submission (rear-naked choke) Global Knockout 4 August 29, 2015 1 2:30 Jackson, California, United States Bantamweight bout.
Win 3–0 Benji Gomez Submission (rear-naked choke) WFC 14 May 30, 2015 2 2:21 Sacramento, California, United States
Win 2–0 Roque Reyes TKO (punches) WCFC 13 February 28, 2015 1 1:43 Sacramento, California, United States Bantamweight bout.
Win 1–0 Christian Espinosa Decision (unanimous) WSOF 16 December 13, 2014 3 5:00 Sacramento, California, United States

[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ ufc.com. "Joseph Morales". ufc. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  2. ^ "Golden Lion – featuring UFC fighter Joseph Morales". MMAUK. 2017-08-05. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  3. ^ "Así le fue a los mexicanos en el UFC Night en México". Sopitas.com (in European Spanish). 2017-08-06. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
  4. ^ "UFC Fight Night 114 results: Joseph Morales turns tables on Roberto Sanchez, earns submission win". MMAjunkie. 2017-08-05. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
  5. ^ DNA, MMA. "Battle of the Undefeated tussen Deiveson Alcantara Figueiredo en Joseph Morales tijdens UFC Belem". mmadna.nl. Retrieved 2018-02-20.
  6. ^ Anderson, Jay (2018-02-03). "UFC Belem Results: Deiveson Figueiredo Stuns Joseph Morales in Second Round". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2018-02-20.
  7. ^ Marcel Dorff (2018-10-24). "Flyweight fight between Joseph Morales and Eric Shelton added to UFC Denver" (in Dutch). mmadna.nl. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  8. ^ "UFC Fight Night 139 results: Takedowns help Eric Shelton to win over Joseph Morales". MMAjunkie. 2018-11-11. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
  9. ^ "Bryan Caraway, Joseph Morales among many shown door by the UFC". Bloodyelbow. 2019-06-28. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  10. ^ FightBookMMA. "Cage Warriors 126 results". fightbookmma.com. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  11. ^ Sherdog.com. "Kyle Driscoll Upends Joshua Jones in Cage Warriors 133 Main Event". Sherdog. Retrieved 2022-03-05.
  12. ^ Goodwillie, Jack (3 February 2023). "Urijah Faber's A1 Combat 8: Taichi Palace Results". MMA Sucka. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  13. ^ Rogers, Kian. "Lineup Announced For Combat Jiu-Jitsu Bantamweight World Championship 2023". JitsMagazine. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  14. ^ Sherdog.com. "Joseph Morales". Sherdog. Retrieved 2020-08-07.