James Moontasri (Thai: เจมส์ มูลทาศรี; born April 10, 1988) is an American retired mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division. Moontasri competed in RFA and the UFC.[3][4][5][6] James was also a silver medalist at the 2007 Pan American Games in taekwondo, 2007 USA Tae Kwon Do Male Athlete of the Year, and 2x USA Tae Kwon Do National Champion.
| 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 | Taekwondo |
| 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 |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Early life
editMoontasri was born in Frankfurt, Germany to a Korean-American mother and a Thai-American military father.[7][8]
Mixed martial arts career
editResurrection Fighting Alliance
editWith 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
editAfter 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
edit| 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 |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Fight Card - UFC Fight Night Mir vs. Duffee". UFC.com. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
- ^ a b c "James Moontasri - Official UFC Fighter Profile". UFC.com. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
- ^ "RFA 15: Alan Jouban, James Moontasri ready to make name for themselves". Daily News. 5 June 2014. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
- ^ "Being Prepared for Any Outcome". USA Taekwondo. Archived from the original on August 11, 2014. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
- ^ "Mixed martial arts looks to Southern California hotbed". Los Angeles Times. 2 June 2013. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
- ^ "James Moontasri explains why his game "caught on fire" ahead of RFA 15". MMA Corner. Archived from the original on 2023-11-10. Retrieved 2015-03-08.
- ^ "Interview with James Moontasri". 17 December 2015.
- ^ "Why You Should be a Fan of Asian UFC Fighter James Moontasri". 17 February 2015.
- ^ "Resurrection Fighting Alliance 9 Official Results". mixedmartialarts.com. August 16, 2013.
- ^ "Video: Watch the action-packed RFA 12 video highlights". mmajunkie.com. January 25, 2014.
- ^ "RFA 15: Alan Jouban, James Moontasri ready to make name for themselves". dailynews.com. June 5, 2014.
- ^ "Welcome to the UFC Montano, Bush, Moontasri, Howell". bloodyelbow.com. June 24, 2014.
- ^ "Joe Ellenberger loses another opponent, now meets James Moontasri at UFC Fight Night 44". mmajunkie.com. June 18, 2014.
- ^ "UFC Fight Night 44 results: Joe Ellenberger wins debut by split decision over James Moontasri". mmamania.com. June 28, 2014.
- ^ "Joe Ellenberger def JamesMoontasri". mmadecisions.com. Retrieved 2015-07-14.
- ^ "Newcomer Cody Pfister replaces Jake Lindsey at UFC Fight Night 60". mmajunkie.com. January 26, 2015.
- ^ "UFC Fight Night 60 results, photos: James Moontasri chokes out Cody Pfister". mmajunkie.com. February 14, 2015.
- ^ Tristen Critchfield (2015-04-25). "Kevin Lee vs. James Moontasri added to UFC Fight Night in San Diego". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2015-04-25.
- ^ Dann Stupp (2015-07-15). "UFC Fight Night 71 results: Kevin Lee submits James Moontasri with first-round choke". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-07-15.
- ^ Emma Challands (2015-09-21). "Brendan O'Reilly gets new opponent in James Moontasri for UFC 193". fightnewsaustralia.com. Retrieved 2015-09-21.
- ^ Alex Oates (2015-11-06). "UFC 193: Zafir gets his chance after O'Reilly forced out". heraldsun.au. Retrieved 2015-11-06.
- ^ Brent Brookhouse (2015-11-14). "UFC 193 results: James Moontasri doubles up on spinning stuff to stop Anton Zafir in first". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-11-14.
- ^ Staff (2016-04-04). "UFC on Fox 20 update: 4 bouts confirmed for July 23 Card in Chicago". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2016-04-04.
- ^ Steven Marrocco (2016-07-23). "UFC on FOX 20 results: Alex Oliveira dominates James Moontasri to take wide decision". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2016-07-23.
- ^ Staff (2016-09-03). "Moontasri vs. Morono, Yang vs. Janes announced for UFC Fight Night 97". themmareport.com. Retrieved 2016-09-03.
- ^ Staff (2016-10-06). "UFC Fight Night Manila: Lamas vs. Penn to be rescheduled". ufc.com. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
- ^ Staff (2016-10-06). "After B.J. Penn's withdrawal, UFC cancels next week's UFC Fight Night 97 event in Philippines". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
- ^ Brian Martin (2016-10-17). "James Moontasri vs. Alex Morono added to UFC on Fox 22". whittierdailynews.com. Retrieved 2016-10-17.
- ^ Ben Fowlkes (2016-12-17). "UFC on FOX 22 results: Alex Morono rallies, finishes in dominant form against James Moontasri". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2016-12-17.
