Paul Craig

Paul Lindsey Craig - (born 27 November 1987) is a Scottish mixed martial artist who competes in the Light heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2013, Craig formerly competed for BAMMA, where he was the BAMMA World Light Heavyweight Champion. As of October 4, 2021, he is #11 in the UFC Light Heavyweight rankings

Mixed martial arts career

Craig made his promotional debut against Luis Henrique da Silva on 17 December 2016 at UFC on Fox: VanZant vs. Waterson. He won the fight via submission in Round 2 and was awarded a Performance of the Night bonus.

Craig faced Tyson Pedro on 4 March 2017 at UFC 209. He lost the bout via first-round TKO.

Craig faced Khalil Rountree at UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Ponzinibbio on 16 July 2017. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round.

Craig faced Magomed Ankalaev on 17 March 2018 at UFC Fight Night 127. He won the fight via submission at 4:59 in Round 3, resulting in the latest submission finish in a 3-round fight in UFC history. He was also awarded a Performance of the Night bonus.

Following the win against Ankalaev, Craig signed a new, four-fight contract with UFC.

Craig faced promotional newcomer Jimmy Crute on 2 December 2018 at UFC Fight Night 142. He lost the fight via kimura in the third round.

Craig faced promotional newcomer Kennedy Nzechukwu on 30 March 2019 at UFC on ESPN 2. He won the fight via submission due to a triangle choke in the third round.This win earned him the Performance of the Night awar

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Craig competed in the 2015 British Pro Jiu Jitsu Championship, taking 1st place in the Purple Belt 95+ kg Division and qualifying for the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship. He also took 3rd place in the Absolute Purple 75+ kg Division. After defeating Jamahal Hill in 2021, Craig was promoted to black belt

Personal life

Paul played football before becoming an MMA fighter. He also worked as a football coach before becoming a teacher for an educational charity

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Performance of the Night (Six times) vs. Henrique da Silva, Magomed Ankalaev, Kennedy Nzechukwu, Vinicius Moreira, Gadzhimurad Antigulov and Jamahal Hill

Tied (with Jon Jones, Misha Cirkunov, and Ovince Saint Preux) for the second most submission wins in the UFC Light Heavyweight division (five)

BAMMA

BAMMA World Light heavyweight Championship (One time)

MMAJunkie.com

2019 March Submission of the Month vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu