Tyson Nam

Tyson Ka’eo Nam (born October 6, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division. A professional since 2006, Nam has formerly competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, World Series of Fighting, Elite XC, and King of the Cage.

Background Born and raised in Waimanalo, Hawaii on the island of Oahu. Nam competed in various sports from a young age and began training in judo at the age of six before he began boxing in high school, then transitioned to kickboxing, before turning his focus to mixed martial arts. Nam attended and graduated from the University of Hawaii.

Mixed martial arts

Early career Nam began his professional MMA career in the Hawaii-based promotion, ICON Sport. Nam compiled a 3–1 record in the promotion during 2006 and was then signed to compete in Elite XC, in which he recorded a decision victory. Nam then fought in various other promotions, such as King of the Cage, before he was signed by Bellator Fighting Championships. Nam was signed in March 2011 as a short-notice replacement in the promotion's season 6 bantamweight tournament, after the original participant, Rodrigo Lima was forced to withdraw. However, Lima was later declared able to compete and was re-entered into the tournament, forcing Nam out. The fight was in the Shooto Brazil promotion, in an event that served as a fundraiser for the "Batalhao de Operacoes Policiais Especiais" (Special Police Operations Battalion), which was Rio de Janeiro's military special forces. Just days prior to the bout, Dantas was ranked as the seventh best bantamweight in the world by Sherdog, making this Nam's most notable opponent to date. During the fight, Nam kept the action standing. Dantas attacked with multiple knees, before attempting a flying knee. After Dantas threw one more standing knee, Nam connected with a counter right hook which knocked Dantas unconscious. Insider sources claimed that Bellator, UFC and the newly formed "World Series of Fighting" promotion had all showed interest in signing Nam. Though Bellator had previously released Nam without him ever participating in a fight, they took out the clause to enable them to attempt to re-sign Nam. stating "I'm hoping the next time you guys see me fight is in the UFC." Nam's trainer, Phil Claud, also commented on the situation, stating: "Bellator is basically saying that they want to sit on Tyson. They want him to go into the tournament, which would not be matching the other fight agreements. We don't want to go into the tournament. This is the third tournament that's been promised to Tyson. Basically, they were saying if you don't (sign the tournament contract), we'll give you an individual fight deal sitting on [him] for a year." Bellator CEO, Bjorn Rebney, later defended his contractual clauses, saying "The essence of them is that you're not asking to restrict a fighter's ability to fight. You're not looking to hold somebody back from participating. All you're asking for is, look, if we give you an incredible opportunity to fight our champion in a non-title fight, or we give you a great opportunity to be on TV, we at least want what most promoters believe is fair – the ability just to match another offer. Not to give you less, but to give you what somebody else is offering, and they're in every single agreement we have, and I think they're probably in every single agreement the UFC has, as well."

Despite Bellator's stance on the clauses, it was announced on September 26, 2012, Bellator had declined to match the second offer made by the World Series of Fighting promotion and that Nam had officially signed with WSOF.

World Series of Fighting After Nam signed with the World Series of Fighting promotion, it was announced that his debut fight would be against the winner of the Miguel Torres vs. Marlon Moraes fight at WSOF 1 in November. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Nam faced Kai Kara-France on February 23, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 168. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Nam was expected to face Ryan Benoit on June 13, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Eye vs. Calvillo. However, on June 9, 2020, Benoit withdrew from the bout for unknown reason and he was replaced by promotional newcomer Zarrukh Adashev. At the weigh-ins on June 12, Adashev missed weight, weighing in at 138.5 pounds, 2.5 over the non-title bantamweight limit of 136 pounds. The bout proceeded at a catchweight and Adashev was fined 20% of his purse. Nam won the bout via knockout just 32 seconds into the first round. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award.

Nam was expected to face Matt Schnell on September 12, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 177. However, Schnell was removed from the fight on the day of the event's weigh-in for health issues related to his weight cut. As a result, the fight was cancelled.

Nam faced Jerome Rivera on September 19, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 178. He won the fight via technical knockout early into the second round.

The bout with Schell was rescheduled and was expected to take place on December 19, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 183. In turn, the contest eventually took place on January 20, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 20. Nam lost the bout by split decision.

Nam was scheduled to face Tagir Ulanbekov on June 19, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 25. However, the bout was never officially announced by the promotion and the matchup will not take place on the card due to a recent undisclosed illness for Ulanbekov.

The pair was rescheduled to meet on June 25, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 38

Nam faced Ode' Osbourne on August 13, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 41. He won the fight via knockout in round one. This win earned him a Performance of the Night award.

Nam faced Bruno Gustavo da Silva on March 11, 2023, at UFC Fight Night 221. He lost the fight via technical submission due to a rear-naked choke in round two.

Nam faced Azat Maksum on July 15, 2023, at UFC Fight Night 224. He lost the fight via split decision.

After the bout, it was announced that Nam was no longer on the UFC roster.

Post UFC In his first bout post UFC release, Nam faced Mark Coates on March 29, 2024 at Front Street Fights 28, knocking Coates out at the end of the first round.

Nam next faced Erik Vo at Destiny MMA: Bad Blood 2 on July 12, 2024, winning via TKO in the first round.

Nam is scheduled to face Abdul Hussein at Ice Cage Fighting 6 on December 26, 2025 in Espoo, Finland. The fight is for the inaugural Ice Cage Fighting Bantamweight Championship.

Karate Combat career On January 24, 2025, Nam made his Karate Combat debut against Loxbey Montalvan, winning via TKO in the second round.

Dirty Boxing career On August 29, 2025, Nam made his debut with Mike Perry's "Dirty Boxing Championships" promotion, facing Ricky Bandejas in the opening bout of the card. Nam won via TKO in the first round.

Championships and accomplishments Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship Performance of the Night (Two times)

Personal life Nam's older brother, Jason Nam, a professional bodybuilder, was shot and killed outside of his apartment on March 10, 2006. Jason Nam was also engaged to his fiancé at the time.

Mixed martial arts record Loss

Tuomas Grönvall Decision (split) Voimaa on! Fight Night 1

Joensuu, Finland Loss

Abdul Hussein KO (punch) Ice Cage Fighting 6

Espoo, Finland Win

Erik Vo TKO (punches to the body) Destiny MMA: Bad Blood 2

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Win

Mark Coates TKO (punch) Front Street Fights 28

Boise, Idaho, United States Loss

Azat Maksum Decision (split) UFC on ESPN: Holm vs. Bueno Silva

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Bruno Gustavo da Silva Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC Fight Night: Yan vs. Dvalishvili

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Ode' Osbourne KO (punches) UFC on ESPN: Vera vs. Cruz

San Diego, California, United States | Loss

Matt Schnell Decision (split) UFC on ESPN: Chiesa vs. Magny

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Win

Jerome Rivera TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Covington vs. Woodley

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Zarrukh Adashev KO (punch) UFC on ESPN: Eye vs. Calvillo

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Kai Kara-France Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. Hooker

Auckland, New Zealand Loss

Sergio Pettis Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Rodríguez vs. Stephens

Mexico City, Mexico Win

Shojin Miki Decision (unanimous) X-1 World Events 55: MMA Independence Day

Waipahu, Hawaii, United States Win

Donald Gonzalez TKO (punches) X-1 World Events 54: Champions 4

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Loss

Zhalgas Zhumagulov Decision (unanimous) Fight Nights Global 86: Nam vs. Zhumagulov

Almaty, Kazakhstan Win

Rizvan Abuev KO (punch) Fight Nights Global 75: Deák vs. Chistyakov

Saint Petersburg, Russia Win

Ali Bagautinov KO (head kick) Fight Nights Global 64: Nam vs. Bagautinov

Moscow, Russia Draw

Yoni Sherbatov Draw (majority) Destiny MMA: Trinity

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Win

Ian Dela Cuesta Decision (split) Destiny MMA: Trinity Sports Combat

Kapolei, Hawaii, United States Win

Arnold Berdon KO (punch) Destiny MMA: Na Koa 10

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Loss

Fernando Vieira Decision (unanimous) XFC International 8

São Paulo, Brazil Loss

Jeremiah Labiano Decision (unanimous) WCFC 11: Mitchell vs. Major

Sacramento, California, United States Loss

Cody Bollinger Decision (unanimous) WSOF 8

Hollywood, Florida, United States Loss

Marlon Moraes KO (head kick and punches) WSOF 2

Atlantic City, New Jersey United States Win

Eduardo Dantas KO (punch) Shooto Brazil 33

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Win

Chanti Johnson Decision (unanimous) CageSport 16

Tacoma, Washington, United States Win

Chuck Jordan TKO (punches) Sportfight: Brawl at the Barn

Prineville, Oregon, United States Win

Chanti Johnson TKO (punches) Square Ring Promotions

Grand Ronde, Oregon, United States Loss

Jesse Brock Decision (unanimous) Sportfight 29: All In

Grand Ronde, Oregon, United States Loss

Keola Silva Decision (majority) Galaxy MMA: Worlds Collide

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Win

Nick Honstein TKO (punches) Sportfight 27: Wild Card

Grand Ronde, Oregon, United States Win

Zach Lari Decision (unanimous) Arena Rumble: Horn vs. Guida

Spokane, Washington, United States Win

Zach Skinner KO (punches) KOTC: Thunderstruck

Everett, Washington, United States Win

Butch McGavran Submission (rear-naked choke) Carnage at the Creek 6

Shelton, Washington, United States Loss

Russell Doane TKO (punches) ICON Sport: Baroni vs. Hose

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Win

Albert Manners Decision (unanimous) EliteXC: Uprising

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Loss

Mark Oshiro TKO (punches) ICON Sport: Mayhem vs. Trigg

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Win

Ikaika Silva Decision (unanimous) ICON Sport: Mayhem vs. Lawler

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Win

Bill Dexter Decision (unanimous) ICON Sport: Mayhem vs. Giant

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Win

Ryan Lee TKO (punches) ICON Sport: Lawler vs. Niko 2

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States Karate Combat record 09cWin

Loxbey Montalvan TKO (Right Cross) Karate Combat 52

Miami, Florida, United States Dirty Boxing record