James Moontasri
American mixed martial arts fighter
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James Moontasri (Thai: เจมส์ มูลทาศรี; born April 10, 1988) is an American retired mixed martial artist who competed in the Light and Welterweight divisions. Moontasri competed in RFA and the UFC.[3][4][5][6] James was also a silver medalist at the 2007 Pan American Games in Tae Kwon Do, 2007 USA Tae Kwon Do Male Athlete of the Year, and 2x USA Tae Kwon Do National Champion.
Frankfurt, Germany
| James Moontasri | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 10, 1988 Frankfurt, Germany |
| Other names | Moonwalker |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1] |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st) |
| Division | Lightweight Welterweight |
| Reach | 71 in (180 cm)[1] |
| Style | Tae Kwon Do-Muay Thai-Brazilian Jiu Jitsu |
| Fighting out of | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Team | Blackhouse |
| Rank | 5th dan black belt in Taekwondo[2] Black belt in Muay Thai[2] Brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu[2] |
| Years active | 2008; 2011-2018 |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 14 |
| Wins | 9 |
| By knockout | 4 |
| By submission | 3 |
| By decision | 2 |
| Losses | 5 |
| By submission | 1 |
| By decision | 4 |
| Other information | |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Early life
Moontasri was born in Frankfurt, Germany to a Korean-American mother and a Thai-American military father.[7][8]
Mixed martial arts career
Resurrection Fighting Alliance
With a 4–1 mixed martial arts record, Moontasri made his RFA debut on August 16, 2013, facing R.J. Clifford at RFA 9: Munhoz vs. Curran. He won the bout via third round TKO.[9] In his next fight, he faced Rick Reger at RFA 12: Ortega vs. Koch on January 24, 2014, submitting Reger via a rear-naked choke in the second round.[10]
For his third appearance with the promotion, Moontasri faced Jordan Rinaldi at RFA 15: Casey vs. Sanchez on June 6, 2014.[11] He won the bout via second round KO, and just a couple weeks later, it was announced that Moontasri had signed with the UFC.[12]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
After his win over Rinaldi, Moontasri was picked up by the UFC and faced fellow promotional newcomer Joe Ellenberger at UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Stephens on June 28, 2014.[13] Despite hurting Ellenberger in the first round, he would rally in the second and third rounds and Moontasri lost via split decision.[14] 8 of 11 media outlets scored the bout for Moontasri, while 3 scored a draw.[15]
He was then scheduled to face Jake Lindsey at UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Thatch on February 14, 2015. However, Lindsey pulled out of the bout because of an injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Cody Pfister.[16] Moontasri was dominate in the fight, finishing Pfister with a rear-naked choke in the second round.[17]
Moontasri faced Kevin Lee on July 15, 2015 at UFC Fight Night 71.[18] He lost the fight via submission in the first round.[19]
Moontasri was expected to face Brendan O'Reilly in a welterweight bout on November 15, 2015 at UFC 193, filling in for an injured William Macário.[20] Subsequently, O'Reilly pulled out of the fight in the week leading up to the event citing injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Anton Zafir.[21] He won the fight via TKO in the first round.[22]
Moontasri next faced Alex Oliveira on July 23, 2016 at UFC on Fox 20.[23] He lost the one-sided fight via unanimous decision.[24]
Moontasri was expected to face Alex Morono on October 15, 2016 at UFC Fight Night 97.[25] However, the promotion announced on October 6 that they had cancelled the event entirely.[26][27] In turn, the pairing was quickly rescheduled and eventually took place on December 17, 2016 at UFC on Fox 22.[28] Moontasri lost the fight by unanimous decision.[29]
Mixed martial arts record
| 14 matches | 9 wins | 5 losses |
| By knockout | 4 | 0 |
| By submission | 3 | 1 |
| By decision | 2 | 4 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 9–5 | Alex Morono | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on Fox: VanZant vs. Waterson | December 17, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Sacramento, California, United States | |
| Loss | 9–4 | Alex Oliveira | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on Fox: Holm vs. Shevchenko | July 23, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | |
| Win | 9–3 | Anton Zafir | TKO (spinning back kick and spinning back fist) | UFC 193 | November 15, 2015 | 1 | 4:36 | Melbourne, Australia | Welterweight debut. |
| Loss | 8–3 | Kevin Lee | Submission (rear-naked choke) | UFC Fight Night: Mir vs. Duffee | July 15, 2015 | 1 | 2:56 | San Diego, California, United States | |
| Win | 8–2 | Cody Pfister | Submission (rear-naked choke) | UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Thatch | February 14, 2015 | 2 | 1:49 | Broomfield, Colorado, United States | Catchweight (158 lbs) bout; Moontasri missed weight. |
| Loss | 7–2 | Joe Ellenberger | Decision (split) | UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Stephens | June 28, 2014 | 3 | 5:00 | San Antonio, Texas, United States | |
| Win | 7–1 | Jordan Rinaldi | KO (punch) | RFA 15: Casey vs. Sanchez | June 6, 2014 | 2 | 1:14 | Culver City, California, United States | Catchweight (160 lbs) bout; Moontasri missed weight. |
| Win | 6–1 | Rick Reger | Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) | RFA 12: Ortega vs. Koch | January 24, 2014 | 2 | 0:28 | Los Angeles, California, United States | |
| Win | 5–1 | R.J. Clifford | TKO (punches) | RFA 9: Munhoz vs. Curran | August 16, 2013 | 3 | 2:40 | Los Angeles, California, United States | |
| Loss | 4–1 | Darren Smith | Decision (split) | FCOC: Fight Club OC | June 6, 2013 | 3 | 5:00 | Costa Mesa, California, United States | |
| Win | 4–0 | Joshua Aveles | Decision (unanimous) | RITC: Respect in the Cage | August 25, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Pomona, California, United States | |
| Win | 3–0 | Joshua Aveles | Decision (unanimous) | RITC: Respect in the Cage | November 19, 2011 | 3 | 5:00 | Pomona, California, United States | |
| Win | 2–0 | Tim Lindsay | KO (punch) | Gladiator Challenge: Hostile | April 22, 2011 | 1 | 0:56 | San Jacinto, California, United States | |
| Win | 1–0 | Jade Delong | Submission (verbal) | GC 83: Savage | August 29, 2008 | 2 | 0:37 | San Bernardino, California, United States |
