Nationality American
Nigerian Name Anthony Njokuani Notable relatives Chidi Njokuani Reach 75.5 in (192 cm) Number of contests 1 | Division Lightweight Other names Christian Okoye Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) Role Mixed martial artist | |
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Born Anthony Obinnia Njokuani
March 1, 1980 (age 44)
Enugu, Nigeria ( 1980-03-01 ) Weight 70.1 kg (155 lb; 11.04 st) Fighting out of Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Profiles | ||
How to pronounce anthony njokuani lightweight fighter ufc mma tko ko knock out punch hit
Anthony Obinnia Njokuani (born March 1, 1980) is an American-Nigerian professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Lightweight division of Legacy FC. A professional competitor since 2001, Njokuani has also formerly competed for the UFC and the WEC.
Contents
- How to pronounce anthony njokuani lightweight fighter ufc mma tko ko knock out punch hit
- MMA fighter Anthony Njokuani returns to Muay Thai roots at Lion Fight 34
- Background
- Early career 20012008
- World Extreme Cagefighting 20092010
- Ultimate Fighting Championship 20112014
- Legacy Fighting Championship 2014present
- Lion Fight
- Kickboxing
- Mixed Martial Arts
- References
MMA fighter Anthony Njokuani returns to Muay Thai roots at Lion Fight 34
Background
Born in Enugu, Nigeria on March 1, 1980, Anthony Njokuani and his family immigrated to the United States in 1983, settling in Garland, Texas. Njokuani began his martial arts training in Tae Kwon Do at the age of 17 before later moving on to Muay Thai and then mixed martial arts at the age of 21. Njokuani's younger brother, Chidi, is also a professional mixed martial artist.
Early career (2001–2008)
Njokuani began his professional career in 2001, initially fighting as a kickboxer. He enjoyed some success in the sport by compiling a 22–0 record and winning the Kansas state Muay Thai title. He turned his hand to mixed martial arts in 2003 and became champion of the Texas-based Art of War promotion in 2007 before making a brief return to kickboxing to compete for the Oklahoma Destroyers in the -74.3 kg/164 lb division in the team-based World Combat League promotion during the 2007-08 season.
Having compiled a 9–1 (1) MMA record by 2008, Njokuani signed with World Extreme Cagefighting.
World Extreme Cagefighting (2009–2010)
Njokuani made his promotional debut on January 25, 2009 at WEC 38, losing to future WEC Lightweight Champion and future UFC Lightweight Champion, Benson Henderson via second round submission.
Njokuani was expected to face Anthony Pettis on April 5, 2009 at WEC 40. However, Pettis pulled out of the fight with a hand injury and was replaced by Bart Palaszewski. Njokuani defeated Palaszewski via TKO in the second round.
Njokuani next face Muhsin Corbbrey on October 10, 2009 at WEC 43. Njokuani defeated Corbbrey via second round TKO.
Njokuani fought IFL veteran Chris Horodecki, who made his WEC debut on December 19, 2009 at WEC 45. Njokuani won via first-round TKO, earning the Knockout of the Night award for the third consecutive time in the WEC.
Njokuani faced Shane Roller at WEC 48 on April 24, 2010. He lost the fight via first round rear-naked choke submission.
He was defeated by newcomer Maciej Jewtuszko via first-round TKO at WEC 50.
Njokuani defeated WEC newcomer Edward Faaloloto via second-round TKO on November 11, 2010 at WEC 52.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (2011–2014)
In October 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.
In his UFC debut, Njokuani faced touted prospect Edson Barboza on March 19, 2011 at UFC 128. He lost the fight via unanimous decision, but the bout won the Fight of the Night bonus.
Njokuani fought Andre Winner on July 2, 2011 at UFC 132, winning via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26). UFC commentator, Joe Rogan, called it Njokuani's best performance of his career. With this performance, Njokuani became the sixth fighter to land over 100 significant strikes in a single bout.
Njokuani was expected to face Paul Taylor on November 5, 2011 at UFC 138. However, just days before the event, Taylor pulled out of the bout citing an injury. With no time to find a suitable replacement the bout was scrapped.
Njokuani was expected to face Ramsey Nijem on December 30, 2011 at UFC 141. However, Nijem was forced out the bout with an injury and replaced by Danny Castillo. He lost the fight via split decision.
Njokuani defeated John Makdessi on April 21, 2012 at UFC 145 via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
Njokuani was expected to face Paul Taylor on July 11, 2012 at UFC on Fuel TV: Munoz vs. Weidman. However, Taylor was forced out of the bout with yet another injury and replaced by Rafael dos Anjos. Njokuani lost the fight via unanimous decision, and was sidelined for six months as he recovered from surgery to repair a broken right hand suffered in the bout.
Njokuani faced debuting Strikeforce fighter Roger Bowling on April 20, 2013 at UFC on Fox 7. He won the fight via KO in the second round.
A bout with Paul Taylor was scheduled for the third time and was expected to take place on October 26, 2013 at UFC Fight Night 30. However, Taylor was forced to pull out of the bout once again with another injury and later retired. Taylor was replaced this time by Al Iaquinta. On September 24, Njokuani also pulled out of the event with an injury. and was replaced by Piotr Hallmann.
After over a year away from the cage, Njokuani returned to face Vinc Pichel on May 24, 2014 at UFC 173. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Njokuani faced Daron Cruickshank on October 4, 2014 at UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine. He lost the fight by unanimous decision, and was subsequently released from the promotion.
Legacy Fighting Championship (2014–present)
Just two days after his UFC release was announced, it was announced that Njokuani had signed a multi-fight deal with Legacy FC. He made his debut against David Burrow at Legacy FC 38 on February 13, 2015. Despite dominating the first two rounds via his stand up, Njokuani lost the fight via submission in the third round.
Lion Fight
On February 3, 2017 Njokuani returned to Muay Thai action at Lion Fight 34 at the Tropicana in Las Vegas. He defeated Australia's Chris Harrington by third round (T)KO to keep his undefeated record.