Kevin Vallejos
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
December 8, 2001
Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| Kevin Vallejos | |
|---|---|
| Born | Kevin Axel Vallejos Montenegro[1] December 8, 2001 Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Other names | El Chino |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) |
| Weight | 145 lb (66 kg; 10 st 5 lb) |
| Division | Featherweight Lightweight |
| Reach | 68 in (173 cm)[2] |
| Fighting out of | Mar del Plata, Argentina |
| Team | Brothers of Life MMA |
| Years active | 2021–present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 19 |
| Wins | 18 |
| By knockout | 13 |
| By submission | 2 |
| By decision | 3 |
| Losses | 1 |
| By decision | 1 |
| Other information | |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Kevin Axel Vallejos Montenegro (born December 8, 2001) is an Argentine mixed martial artist, who competes in the featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).[3] As of March 17, 2026, he is #10 in the UFC featherweight rankings.[4]
Early career
Vallejos made his professional mixed martial arts debut in September 2021, defeating Rocco Cena by technical knockout at Supreme Warrior 6. He later competed in the Argentine promotion Samurai Fight House, where he captured multiple regional titles including bantamweight, featherweight, and lightweight championships[5] including a defence over UFC veteran Luiz Eduardo Garagorri.
Dana White's Contender Series
After compiling an 11-0 professional record, Vallejos would compete for a UFC contract on Dana White's Contender Series: Season 7, Week 5 on September 6, 2023, but lost a unanimous decision to Jean Silva, marking his first career loss.[6]
After two more wins on the South American regional scene, Vallejos was scheduled to return on Week 7 of Season 8 of Dana White's Contender Series on September 24, 2024, to face Luke Riley.[7] However, Riley had to withdraw from the contest due to visa issues and was subsequently replaced by undefeated prospect Cam Teague. He won the fight via first-round knockout and was awarded a contract by Dana White.[8]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Vallejos made his UFC debut on March 15, 2025 at UFC Fight Night 254, where he defeated Seung Woo Choi by first-round technical knockout.[9]
Vallejos would next face Danny Silva at UFC on ESPN 71 on August 2, 2025.[10] He would win the fight by unanimous decision.[11]
Vallejos would next fight Giga Chikadze in the co-main event of UFC on ESPN 73 on December 13, 2025.[12] Vallejos recorded a knockout victory over Chikadze in the second round with a spinning backfist.[13] This fight earned him a Performance of the Night award.[14]
Vallejos faced Josh Emmett in the main event of UFC Fight Night 269 on March 14, 2026.[15] He won the fight by technical knockout in the first round.[16] This fight earned him a $100,000 Performance of the Night award.[17]
Championships and accomplishments
- Ultimate Fighting Championship
- Performance of the Night (Two times) vs. Giga Chikadze and Josh Emmett[14][17]
- UFC.com Awards
- Samurai Fight House
- SFH Bantamweight Champion
- SFH Featherweight Champion
- SFH Lightweight Champion
Mixed martial arts record
| 19 matches | 18 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 13 | 0 |
| By submission | 2 | 0 |
| By decision | 3 | 1 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 18–1 | Josh Emmett | TKO (knees and punches) | UFC Fight Night: Emmett vs. Vallejos | 14 March 2026 | 1 | 3:33 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 17–1 | Giga Chikadze | KO (spinning backfist and elbows) | UFC on ESPN: Royval vs. Kape | 13 December 2025 | 2 | 1:29 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 16–1 | Danny Silva | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Taira vs. Park | 2 August 2025 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 15–1 | Choi Seung-woo | TKO (punches) | UFC Fight Night: Vettori vs. Dolidze 2 | March 15, 2025 | 1 | 3:09 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 14–1 | Cam Teague | TKO (punches) | Dana White's Contender Series 73 | 24 September 2024 | 1 | 2:23 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 13–1 | Gonzalo Contreras | KO (punch) | Samurai Fight House 15 | 2 March 2024 | 2 | 4:23 | Salto, Uruguay | Defended the SFH Featherweight Championship. |
| Win | 12–1 | Maximiliano Perez | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Samurai Fight House 14 | 22 December 2023 | 3 | 1:30 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | Defended the SFH Featherweight Championship. |
| Loss | 11–1 | Jean Silva | Decision (unanimous) | Dana White's Contender Series 61 | 5 September 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 11–0 | Luiz Eduardo Garagorri | TKO (elbows and punches) | Samurai Fight House 11 | 13 May 2023 | 2 | 3:15 | Lomas de Zamora, Argentina | Return to Featherweight. Defended the SFH Featherweight Championship. |
| Win | 10–0 | Natanael Aldo Espindola | TKO (punches) | Samurai Fight House 10 | 11 March 2023 | 1 | 2:23 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | Lightweight debut. Won the vacant SFH Lightweight Championship. |
| Win | 9–0 | Nestor Machado | Decision (unanimous) | Samurai Fight House 8 | 16 December 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Santa Fe, Argentina | Won the vacant SFH Featherweight Championship. |
| Win | 8–0 | Emmanuel Vallejos | TKO (punches) | Samurai Fight House 7 | 19 November 2022 | 2 | 1:04 | San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina | Return to Featherweight. Won the interim SFH Featherweight Championship. |
| Win | 7–0 | Pablo Etelechea | TKO (punches) | Samurai Fight House 6 | 15 October 2022 | 1 | 3:06 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | Bantamweight debut. Won the inaugural SFH Bantamweight Championship. |
| Win | 6–0 | Mauricio Gabriel Flores | TKO (punches) | Samurai Fight House 5 | 19 June 2022 | 1 | 0:49 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| Win | 5–0 | Gabriel Vargas | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Samurai Fight House 4 | 22 May 2022 | 1 | 1:59 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| Win | 4–0 | Jesus Ru | Decision (unanimous) | Circuito Argentino de MMA 7 | 12 March 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Mar del Plata, Argentina | |
| Win | 3–0 | Lucas Miletich | KO (punch) | Samurai Fight House 3 | 12 February 2022 | 1 | 4:08 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| Win | 2–0 | Matias Ponce | KO (punch) | Cobra Fighter 1 | 5 December 2021 | 1 | 0:39 | Pontevedra, Argentina | |
| Win | 1–0 | Rocco Cena | KO (punch) | Supreme Warriors 6 | 4 September 2021 | 2 | 3:40 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | Featherweight debut. |
