Joey Beltran

Joey Beltran (born December 9, 1981) is an American bare-knuckle fighter and mixed martial artist. A professional mixed martial artist since 2007, he has competed for the UFC, Bellator, Strikeforce, and King of the Cage. He also competed in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship where he was the former BKFC Heavyweight Champion.

Background Beltran was born in Oceanside, California, and raised in Carlsbad, California, by a single mother. He has an older sister. Beltran began boxing when he was 10 years old, and also was involved in street fighting from a young age. Beltran also began wrestling in middle school During the first semester, Beltran was introduced to mixed martial arts at a local gym, Bulls Pen.

Bellator Beltran made his Bellator debut at Bellator 5 on May 1, 2009, against former UFC fighter Sherman Pendergarst. Beltran won the fight in the first round via TKO.

In his next appearance, under the King of the Cage banner, Beltran defeated Wes Combs via TKO only 25 seconds into the fight.

Beltran would go 1–1 before picking up another TKO win over another UFC veteran, Houston Alexander, and was subsequently signed by the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Beltran made his UFC debut at UFC 109 against Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Rolles Gracie. Beltran was stepping in as a last minute replacement for Gracie's original opponent, Mostapha Al-turk. Beltran upset the fatigued Gracie and was victorious via a second round TKO.

Beltran returned to action on May 8, 2010, at UFC 113. He was originally set to fight Chad Corvin, but after Corvin's paperwork was not approved by the Quebec Athletic Commission he was pulled from the card and replaced by Tim Hague. Beltran defeated Hague after three rounds, taking the unanimous decision.

Beltran next faced Matt Mitrione on September 25, 2010, at UFC 119. Beltran fought and lost to Mitrione via unanimous decision. Even though he lost, he still earned Fight of the Night honors.

Beltran then fought highly regarded kickboxer Pat Barry at UFC Fight for the Troops 2 on January 22, 2011, in Fort Hood, Texas. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. During the fight, Beltran received a high volume of leg kicks from Barry, a former K-1 kickboxing competitor, yet only collapsed at the end of the final round. However, after Herman was shuffled to the main card, Beltran instead faced another UFC newcomer in Aaron Rosa. After a back-and-forth first two rounds, Beltran defeated Rosa via TKO in the third round.

Beltran fought Stipe Miocic on October 8, 2011, at UFC 136, losing via unanimous decision.

Beltran faced former Strikeforce heavyweight Lavar Johnson on January 28, 2012, at UFC on Fox: Evans vs. Davis, where he was knocked out for the first time in his career in the first round. Following the loss, Beltran was released from the promotion.

Post-UFC After being released, Beltran announced that he would be dropping down to compete in the Light heavyweight division. He officially made his Light heavyweight debut on April 28, 2012, at C3 Fights in Oklahoma, where he defeated Anton Talamantes via unanimous decision.

Return to the UFC Beltran made his return to the UFC replacing Brandon Vera against Australian James Te Huna on July 11, 2012, at UFC on Fuel TV 4. Although Beltran lost via unanimous decision, the back and forth bout earned Fight of the Night honors.

Beltran was expected to face Anthony Perosh on December 15, 2012, at UFC on FX 6. However, Perosh was forced from the bout with a toe injury and replaced by Igor Pokrajac. He won the fight via unanimous decision. On January 10, 2013, it was announced that Beltran had failed his post fight drug test, testing positive for nandrolone. Beltran was subsequently suspended for 9 months, retroactive to December 14, 2012. His win over Pokrajac was changed to a No Contest.

Returning from his suspension, Beltran faced Fábio Maldonado on October 9, 2013, at UFC Fight Night 29 in Maldonado's home-country of Brazil. He lost the back-and-forth fight via split decision. He was subsequently released from the promotion.

Return to Bellator On October 30, 2013, it was announced that Beltran had signed with Bellator MMA. He faced former UFC Light heavyweight Champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson on November 15, 2013, in the main event at Bellator 108. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round.

Beltran faced Vladimir Matyushenko at Bellator 116 on April 11, 2014, winning by third round submission, his first submission win since 2007.

Bellator title shot Beltran challenged Emanuel Newton for the Bellator Light heavyweight Championship at Bellator 124 on September 12, 2014. He lost the fight via knockout in the third round.

Drop down to middleweight Beltran made his Middleweight debut against Brian Rogers on April 10, 2015, at Bellator 136. He won the fight by majority decision.

Beltran next faced Kendall Grove at Bellator 143 on September 25, 2015. He lost the fight via TKO in the third round.

On September 21, 2016, it was announced that Beltran would be facing Alessio Sakara in the co-main event of Bellator 168 on December 10, 2016. He lost via knockout in the first round. He was subsequently released from the promotion.

Post-Bellator and rehab After the latest loss and release, Beltran succumbed into alcohol and drug addiction and entered rehabilitation.

He would take yet another fight in the Russian circuit against Dmitry Tebekin at S-70 event on August 14, 2019, winning the fight via unanimous decision.

Bare knuckle boxing After having problems with getting fights in the regional circuit, an opportunity presented itself to compete in bare-knuckle boxing. He won the brutal back-and-forth fight via unanimous decision.

BKFC World Heavyweight Championship At BKFC 9 Beltran won a unanimous decision victory over Chase Sherman, becoming the BKFC World Heavyweight Champion, as well as the National Police Gazette Heavyweight American Champion.

Beltran was expected to defend his title against Mark Godbeer at BKFC 12 on April 11, 2020. However, the whole event was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the bout was scrapped.

On October 10, 2020, at BKFC 13, Beltran became the first man to defend the BKFC World Heavyweight title by defeating former University of Alabama football linebacker Marcel Stamps via fourth round TKO. The outcome of this bout also resulted in Beltran retaining the Police Gazette Heavyweight World Championship, a title that had not been in the ring since 1899.

Beltran's second defense of the BKFC World Heavyweight Championship at BKFC 18 was against Sam Shewmaker. He won the bout via unanimous decision.

Beltran's next defense of the BKFC World Heavyweight Championship was against former BKFC World Heavyweight Champion Arnold Adams in a rematch on November 6, 2021, at BKFC Fight Night 3. He lost by unanimous decision, ending his reign as champion. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.

Post-championship reign Beltran then faced Frank Tate at BKFC Fight Night 7 on April 21, 2022. He was knocked out just 23 seconds into the bout.

He then headlined BKFC 33 on November 18, 2022, against Houston Alexander in a rematch of their MMA bout in 2010. He lost the bout via second-round knockout. A month later, BKFC President Dave Feldman stated that Beltran would not fight for the company anymore.

Championships and accomplishments Bare-knuckle boxing Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship BKFC World Heavyweight Champion (one time; former) Two successful title defenses Police Gazette World Heavyweight Champion (one time; former) Fight of the Night (One time) vs. Arnold Adams 2 & Ranked #4 Upset of the Year 2012: Ranked #9 Fight of the Year

Mixed martial arts record Win

Dmitry Tebekin Decision (unanimous) S-70: Plotforma Cup 2019

Sochi, Russia Loss

Sergei Kharitonov Decision (unanimous) Russian Cagefighting Championship

Yekaterinburg, Russia Loss

Alessio Sakara KO (punches) Bellator 168

Florence, Italy Loss

Chase Gormley Decision (split) Bellator 155

Boise, Idaho, United States Win

Lamont Stafford TKO (punches) C3 Fights: Beltran vs Stafford

Newkirk, Oklahoma, United States Loss

Kendall Grove TKO (punches) Bellator 143

Hidalgo, Texas, United States Win

Brian Rogers Decision (majority) Bellator 136

Irvine, California, United States Loss

Emanuel Newton KO (spinning back fist) Bellator 124

Plymouth Township, Michigan, United States Win

Vladimir Matyushenko Submission (north-south choke) Bellator 116

Temecula, California, United States Loss

Quinton Jackson KO (punches) Bellator 108

Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States Loss

Fábio Maldonado Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Shields

Barueri, Brazil NC

Igor Pokrajac NC (overturned) UFC on FX: Sotiropoulos vs. Pearson

Gold Coast, Australia Loss

James Te Huna Decision (unanimous) UFC on Fuel TV: Munoz vs. Weidman

San Jose, California, United States Win

Anton Talamantes Decision (unanimous) C3 Fights

Newkirk, Oklahoma, United States Loss

Lavar Johnson KO (punches) UFC on Fox: Evans vs. Davis

Chicago, Illinois, United States Loss

Stipe Miocic Decision (unanimous) UFC 136

Houston, Texas, United States Win

Aaron Rosa TKO (punches) UFC 131

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Loss

Pat Barry Decision (unanimous) UFC: Fight For The Troops 2

Fort Hood, Texas, United States Loss

Matt Mitrione Decision (unanimous) UFC 119

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States Win

Tim Hague Decision (unanimous) UFC 113

Montreal, Quebec, Canada Win

Rolles Gracie Jr. TKO (punches) UFC 109

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Houston Alexander TKO (punches) 5150 Combat League / Xtreme Fighting League: New Year's Revolution

Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States Loss

Tony Lopez Decision (unanimous) KOTC: Distorted

Highland, California, United States Win

Tracy Willis TKO (punches and elbows) 5150 Combat League: Rumble at the Rally

Sparks, Oklahoma, United States Win

Wes Combs TKO (punches) KOTC: Legends

Winterhaven, California, United States Win

Sherman Pendergarst TKO (punches) Bellator 5

Dayton, Ohio, United States Win

Jacob Browy TKO (punches) Gladiator Challenge: Warriors

Pauma Valley, California, United States Win

Wes Fenton TKO (punches) Total Combat 32

El Cajon, California, United States Loss

Tony Lopez Submission (kimura) KOTC: Opposing Force

Highland, California, United States Win

Phil Friedman TKO (punches) Total Combat 28

San Diego, California, United States Win

Ray Seraile TKO (punches) TC 25: Fight Club

San Diego, California, United States Win

Tony Velarde Submission (kimura) Total Combat 21

San Diego, California, United States Win

Paul Ingrassia TKO (punches) Total Combat 20

San Diego, California, United States Loss

Yohan Banks Decision (unanimous) Strikeforce: Young Guns

San Jose, California, United States Bare knuckle record Loss

Houston Alexander KO (punches) BKFC 33

Omaha, Nebraska, United States Loss

Frank Tate KO (punches) BKFC Fight Night: Ft. Lauderdale: Beltran vs. Tate

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States Loss

Arnold Adams Decision (unanimous) BKFC Fight Night New York: Beltran vs. Adams

Salamanca, New York, United States Win

Sam Shewmaker Decision (unanimous) BKFC 18

Miami, Florida, United States Win

Marcel Stamps KO (punches) BKFC 13

Salina, Kansas, United States Win

Chase Sherman Decision (unanimous) BKFC 9

Biloxi, Mississippi, United States Win

Jamie Campbell TKO (punches) BKFC 6

Tampa, Florida, United States Draw

Tony Lopez Draw (split) BKFC 4

Cancun, Mexico Loss

Arnold Adams TKO (doctor stoppage) BKFC 2

Biloxi, Mississippi, United States Win

Tony Lopez Decision (unanimous) BKFC 1

Cheyenne, Wyoming, United States