Calvin Kattar

Calvin Kattar ( ; born March 26, 1988) is an American professional mixed martial artist and owner of MMA promotion Combat Zone. He currently competes in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2007, Kattar formerly competed for EliteXC.

Background The son of James and Sandra Kattar, Calvin was born and raised in Methuen, Massachusetts. He has Lebanese ancestry. His family runs a golf course. He has two brothers and a sister. being ranked as high as eighth in the state (160 pounds) and placing fifth at the Division I MIAA state championships as a senior in 2006. After graduating, he was unsure whether he should wrestle in college or not, and ended up opting to pursue a career in mixed martial arts. In an interview, Kattar expressed that he got a chance to train with Nick and Nate Diaz when he was 19 years old, and how that influenced his way of training, stating:

Mixed martial arts career Kattar won eight consecutive bouts and was unbeaten in over seven years competing on the regional circuit primarily in his native New England prior to his UFC career.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Kattar made his UFC debut replacing Choi Doo-ho against Andre Fili on July 29, 2017 at UFC 214.

Kattar faced undefeated prospect Shane Burgos on January 20, 2018 at UFC 220. Kattar won the fight via technical knock out in round three. The fight was awarded the Fight of the Night bonus.

Kattar faced Renato Moicano on April 7, 2018 at UFC 223. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Kattar faced promotional newcomer Chris Fishgold on October 27, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 138. He won the fight via technical knockout in the first round. By the bout, Kattar fulfilled his first four-fight contract with the UFC.

Kattar faced Ricardo Lamas at UFC 238 on June 8, 2019. He won the fight via knockout in the first round.

Kattar was scheduled to face Zabit Magomedsharipov on October 18, 2019 at UFC on ESPN 6. However, Magomedsharipov was removed from the card due to injury on September 13 and the pairing was rescheduled for the following month at UFC on ESPN+ 21. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.

Kattar was scheduled to face Jeremy Stephens on April 18, 2020 at UFC 249. However, on April 9, Dana White, the president of UFC announced that this event was postponed and the bout eventually took place on May 9, 2020. At the weigh-ins on May 8, Stephens missed weight, weighing in at 150.5 pounds, 4.5 pounds over the non-title featherweight limit. As a result, the bout proceeded as a catchweight bout and Stephens was fined 20% of his purse which went to Kattar. Kattar won the fight via technical knockout in round two.

The first bout of his new six-fight contract came against Dan Ige on July 16, 2020 at UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Ige. Kattar won the fight via unanimous decision.

Next, Kattar faced former UFC Featherweight champion Max Holloway, while headlining UFC on ABC 1 on January 16, 2021. In a one-sided fight where Kattar suffered plenty of physical trauma due to Holloway's strikes, which set multiple UFC records, he was defeated by unanimous decision. Despite being a one-sided fight, both competitors earned the Fight of the Night award as Kattar was able to land powerful strikes of his own, despite all the damage he received.

Kattar faced Giga Chikadze on January 15, 2022 at UFC on ESPN 32. He won the fight via unanimous decision after knocking down and almost finishing Chikadze in the final seconds of the bout. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.

Kattar faced Josh Emmett on June 18, 2022 in the main event at UFC on ESPN 37. He lost the close bout via split decision. 14 of 19 MMA media outlets scored the bout in favor of Kattar. This fight earned him his third consecutive Fight of the Night award.

Kattar faced Arnold Allen on October 29, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 213. He lost the fight via technical knockout following a knee injury.

Kattar faced former UFC Bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling on April 13, 2024 at UFC 300. Kattar lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Kattar was scheduled to face Kyle Nelson on September 7, 2024, at UFC Fight Night 242. However, Kattar withdrew from the bout for unknown reasons and was replaced by Steve Garcia.

Kattar faced Youssef Zalal on February 15, 2025 at UFC Fight Night 251. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Kattar faced Steve Garcia on July 12, 2025 at UFC on ESPN 70. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship Fight of the Night (Five times) 2020: Ranked #9 Knockout of the Year 2022: Ranked #8 Fight of the Year

MMA Junkie 2020 May Knockout of the Month vs. Jeremy Stephens Slacky Awards 2022 Gameplan of the Year

Mixed martial arts record Loss

Steve Garcia Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Lewis vs. Teixeira

Nashville, Tennessee, United States Loss

Youssef Zalal Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Rodrigues

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Aljamain Sterling Decision (unanimous) UFC 300

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Arnold Allen TKO (knee injury) UFC Fight Night: Kattar vs. Allen

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Josh Emmett Decision (split) UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Emmett

Austin, Texas, United States Win

Giga Chikadze Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Chikadze

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Max Holloway Decision (unanimous) UFC on ABC: Holloway vs. Kattar

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Win

Dan Ige Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Ige

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Win

Jeremy Stephens KO (elbows) UFC 249

Jacksonville, Florida, United States Loss

Zabit Magomedsharipov Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Magomedsharipov vs. Kattar

Moscow, Russia Win

Ricardo Lamas KO (punches) UFC 238

Chicago, Illinois, United States Win

Chris Fishgold TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Volkan vs. Smith

Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada Loss

Renato Moicano Decision (unanimous) UFC 223

Brooklyn, New York, United States Win

Shane Burgos TKO (punches) UFC 220

Boston, Massachusetts, United States Win

Andre Fili Decision (unanimous) UFC 214

Anaheim, California, United States Win

Chris Foster Decision (unanimous) CES MMA 38

Mashantucket, Connecticut, United States Win

Kenny Foster Decision (split) CES MMA 34

Mashantucket, Connecticut, United States Win

Gabriel Baino Decision (unanimous) Combat Zone 44

Salem, New Hampshire, United States Win

Saul Almeida Decision (unanimous) CES MMA 13

Providence, Rhode Island, United States Win

Cody Stevens Decision (unanimous) Combat Zone 39

Salem, New Hampshire, United States Win

Luiz Rodrigues Decision (unanimous) Combat Zone 36

Salem, New Hampshire, United States Win

Chris Connor TKO (punches) Combat Zone 33

Gilford, New Hampshire, United States Win

Jeff Anderson TKO (punches) Xtreme Championship Fight League 2

Lowell, Massachusetts, United States Loss

Don Carlo-Clauss Decision (split) Xtreme Championship Fight League 1

Marlborough, Massachusetts, United States Win

Andrew Montanez Decision (unanimous) American Steel Cagefighting 2

Salem, New Hampshire, United States Win

Rodrigo Almeida Submission (guillotine choke) World Championship Fighting 7

Wilmington, Massachusetts, United States Win

Jonathan Bermudez TKO (punches) Combat Zone 27

Salem, New Hampshire, United States Win

Bobby Diaz Submission (triangle choke) World Championship Fighting 5

Wilmington, Massachusetts, United States Win

Kevin Roddy KO (punches) Combat Zone 26

Salem, New Hampshire, United States Loss

James Jones Submission (rear-naked choke) EliteXC: Primetime

Newark, New Jersey, United States Win

Bob Pupa TKO (submission to punches) Combat Zone 24

Revere, Massachusetts, United States Win

Donald Peters TKO (punches) Combat Zone 23

Revere, Massachusetts, United States Win

Tony Armijo TKO (punches) Combat Zone 22

Derry, New Hampshire, United States