Rafa García (fighter)

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Rafa García
BornRafael García Júnior[1]
(1994-08-05) August 5, 1994 (age 27)
Brawley, California, United States
Other namesGifted
ResidenceMexicali, Baja California, Mexico
NationalityMexican
Height5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Weight155 lb (70 kg; 11 st 1 lb)
DivisionLightweight
Reach70.0 in (178 cm)[2]
Fighting out ofMexicali, Baja California, Mexico
TeamTeam Punisher[3]
Yuma United MMA (formerly)[3]
UFC GYM Costa Mesa (2017–present)[3]
Huntington Beach Ultimate Training Center[3]
RankBlue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu[4]
Years active2014–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total15
Wins13
By knockout1
By submission7
By decision5
Losses2
By decision2
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Rafael García Júnior[1] (born August 5, 1994) is an American-born Mexican mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional mixed martial artist since 2014, García is also a former Combate Americas Lightweight Champion.

Background[]

García was born in Brawley, California to Mexican parents and grew up in El Centro, California, and has a sister and a younger brother.[3][5] He started training martial arts at the age of 13 when his father took him to a gym to learn self-defense.[3][6] He graduated from Imperial High School where he wrestled for one year.[3][5] He lives in Mexicali, Baja California since 2013.

Mixed martial arts career[]

Early career[]

Racking up a 4–0 record in Mexico, García participated in the inaugural Combate Americas open tryouts and receiving a contract after winning the tryouts.[7] In Combate Americas García went undefeated 8–0 and claiming the Combate Americas Lightweight Championship against Erick Gonzalez at Combate 44 on September 20, 2019.[8] He successfully defended the title against Humberto Bandenay at Combate 55 on February 21, 2020. On June 13, 2020, García announced that he had vacated the title.[9]

Ultimate Fighting Championship[]

On March 10, 2021, it was announced that García would be replacing Don Madge against Nasrat Haqparast at UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad on March 13, 2021.[10] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.[11]

In his sophomore appearance, García faced Chris Gruetzemacher at UFC on ESPN: Hall vs. Strickland on July 31, 2021. Despite knocking Gruetzemacher down in the first round, García went on to lose the fight via unanimous decision.[12]

García then faced Natan Levy at UFC Fight Night: Vieira vs. Tate on November 20, 2021.[13] He won the bout via unanimous decision.[14]

García is scheduled to face Jesse Ronson on April 16, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 206.[15]

Personal life[]

García and his wife have a daughter (born 2019) and a son (born 2021), both born in Mexicali, Mexico.[3][16]

Championships and accomplishments[]

  • Combate Americas
    • Combate Americas Lightweight Championship (one time; first; former)
      • One successful title defense

Mixed martial arts record[]

Professional record breakdown
15 matches 13 wins 2 losses
By knockout 1 0
By submission 7 0
By decision 5 2
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 13–2 Natan Levy Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Vieira vs. Tate November 20, 2021 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 12–2 Chris Gruetzemacher Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Hall vs. Strickland July 31, 2021 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 12–1 Nasrat Haqparast Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad March 13, 2021 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 12–0 Humberto Bandenay Decision (unanimous) Combate 55: Mexicali February 21, 2020 3 5:00 Mexicali, Mexico Defended the Combate Americas Lightweight Championship.
Win 11–0 Erick Gonzalez Decision (unanimous) Combate 44: Mexicali September 20, 2019 3 5:00 Mexicali, Mexico Won the inaugural Combate Americas Lightweight Championship.
Win 10–0 Estevan Payan Submission (rear-naked choke) Combate 39: Unbreakable June 7, 2019 1 4:50 Tucson, Arizona, United States
Win 9–0 Edgar Escarrega Submission (rear-naked choke) Combate 30: Mexicali February 8, 2019 2 1:07 Mexicali, Mexico
Win 8–0 LaRue Burley KO (punches) Combate 24: Alday vs. Lopez September 14, 2018 1 2:26 Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Win 7–0 Chase Gibson Decision (majority) Combate 20: Combate Estrellas 1 April 13, 2018 3 5:00 Los Angeles, California, United States Lightweight debut.
Win 6–0 Marcos Bonilla Submission (armbar) Combate 17: El Grito En La Jaula September 15, 2017 2 1:07 Redlands, California, United States
Win 5–0 Raúl Najera Ocampo Submission (heel hook) Combate 10 January 19, 2017 1 1:04 Mexico City, Mexico
Win 4–0 Jovany Amador Submission (armbar) Warrior Championship Fighting 8 December 3, 2016 1 3:21 Mexicali, Mexico
Win 3–0 Antonio Barajas N/A Fight for Glory 2 August 1, 2015 N/A N/A Mexicali, Mexico
Win 2–0 Mike Sandoval Submission (armbar) Warrior Championship Fighting 6 July 18, 2015 1 0:24 Mexicali, Mexico
Win 1–0 Dante Ramos Submission (armbar) Extreme Full Contact 4 October 18, 2014 1 2:06 Mexicali, Mexico Featherweight debut.

[17]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Mixed martial arts show results Date: March 13, 2021
  2. ^ "Stats | UFC". ufcstats.com.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Jesse Ruiz (October 25, 2020). Rafa "Gifted" Garcia talks Family, Fighting, and His Rise to the Top – via YouTube.
  4. ^ "Rafa Garcia". Ultimate Fighting Championship. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Imperial's Garcia to make UFC debut on Saturday". Imperial Valley Press. March 12, 2021.
  6. ^ "Ahead of Combate Americas title defense, Rafa Garcia reflects on Mexicali street fighting origins". MMA Junkie. 2020-02-21. Retrieved 2021-11-19.
  7. ^ Eric Kowal (March 13, 2018). "Combate Americas – Six New Fights Added To April 13 Live Event in LA". mymmanews.com.
  8. ^ Danny Segura (February 21, 2020). "Ahead of Combate Americas title defense, Rafa Garcia reflects on Mexicali street fighting origins". MMAjunkie.com.
  9. ^ Rafa García [@rafagifted1] (June 13, 2020). "After careful consideration with my family, team & management. I have decided to vacate the @combateamericas 155lbs belt. I would like to thank Combate for the opportunity to fight for the belt and defend it" – via Instagram.
  10. ^ Gabriel Gonzalez (March 9, 2021). "UFC Vegas 21: Rafa Garcia Steps in to Face Nasrat Haqparast". cagesidepress.com.
  11. ^ Alex Behunin (March 13, 2021). "UFC Vegas 21 Results: Nasrat Haqparast Defeats Rafa Garcia Via Unanimous Decision". cagesidepress.com.
  12. ^ Daniel Vreeland (July 31, 2021). "UFC Vegas 33 Results: Chris Gruetzemacher Pours it on, Decisions Rafa Garcia". cagesidepress.com.
  13. ^ Farah Hannoun (September 6, 2021). "UFC books Rafa Garcia vs. Natan Levy for Nov. 20 event". MMAjunkie.com.
  14. ^ Bitter, Shawn (2021-11-20). "UFC Vegas 43: Rafa Garcia Tops Natan Levy, Earns First UFC Win". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  15. ^ "Ronson vs. Garcia toegevoegd aan evenement op 16 april". Eurosport (in Dutch). 2022-01-18. Retrieved 2022-01-18.
  16. ^ Steven Fackman (September 17, 2021). "Rafa Garcia, Nathan Fletcher" (Podcast).
  17. ^ Sherdog.com. "Rafa García". Sherdog.

External links[]

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