German MMA fighter
Khalid Taha (born February 15, 1992) is a German mixed martial artist currently competing in the bantamweight division. A professional since 2013, he has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Rizin Fighting Federation .
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Taha started fighting MMA professionally in 2013. He has fought under numerous organizations, notably German MMA Championship, Fair Fighting Championship and Rizin Fighting Federation .[ 3]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Taha made his UFC debut on July 22, 2018, at UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Smith against Nad Narimani .[ 4] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.[ 5]
Taha was scheduled to face Boston Salmon on November 30, 2018, at The Ultimate Fighter: Heavy Hitters#The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale .[ 6] However Taha was pulled from the event due to a torn ACL and the bout was cancelled.[ 7] The pairing was rescheduled at UFC 236 on April 13, 2019.[ 7] He won the fight via technical knockout in round one.[ 8]
Taha was scheduled to face Bruno Gustavo da Silva on September 7, 2019, at UFC 242.[ 9] However, on August 21, it was reported that the bout was moved to UFC 243 .[ 10] Taha won the fight via a submission in round three.[ 11] On December 23, 2019, Taha received one year USADA suspension for tested positive for furosemide (diuretics ) in an in-competition urine sample provided on Oct. 6 2019 where Taha took a medicine for reducing inflammation and swelling in his eyes which contained furosemide.[ 12] He became eligible to compete again on October 6, 2020.[ 13]
Taha was expected to face Jack Shore on November 7, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Santos vs. Teixeira .[ 14] However, Shore was removed from the bout in late-October due to undisclosed reasons and replaced by Raoni Barcelos .[ 15] Taha lost the fight via unanimous decision.[ 16] This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.[ 17]
Taha faced Sergey Morozov on July 17, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 26 .[ 18] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.[ 19]
Taha was scheduled to face Mario Bautista on February 19, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 201 .[ 20] However, Taha had to pull out off the bout due to undisclosed reasons.[ 21]
Taha was scheduled to face Taylor Lapilus on September 3, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 209 .;[ 22] but on August 23, Lapilus forfeited from the event due to a broken hand,[ 23] and he was replaced by Cristian Quiñónez.[ 24] He lost the fight via technical knockout in round one.[ 25]
After the loss, it was announced that Taha was no longer on the UFC roster.[ 26]
Championships and accomplishments
Mixed martial arts
Personal life
Taha is of Lebanese descent.[ 27] [ 28]
Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
20 matches
14 wins
5 losses
By knockout
10
1
By submission
2
1
By decision
2
3
No contests
1
Res.
Record
Opponent
Method
Event
Date
Round
Time
Location
Notes
Win
14–5 (1)
William Valentim
TKO (punches)
NFC 13
March 25, 2023
1
2:26
Dortmund , Germany
Return to Featherweight.
Loss
13–5 (1)
Cristian Quiñónez
TKO (punches)
UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Tuivasa
September 3, 2022
1
3:15
Paris , France
Loss
13–4 (1)
Sergey Morozov
Decision (unanimous)
UFC on ESPN: Makhachev vs. Moisés
July 17, 2021
3
5:00
Las Vegas, Nevada , United States
Loss
13–3 (1)
Raoni Barcelos
Decision (unanimous)
UFC on ESPN: Santos vs. Teixeira
November 7, 2020
3
5:00
Las Vegas , Nevada , United States
Fight of the Night.
NC
13–2 (1)
Bruno Gustavo da Silva
NC (overturned)
UFC 243
October 6, 2019
3
3:00
Melbourne , Australia
Catchweight (137 lb) bout; Taha missed weight. Originally a submission (arm-triangle choke) win for Taha; overturned after he tested positive for furosemide .
Win
13–2
Boston Salmon
TKO (punches)
UFC 236
April 13, 2019
1
0:25
Atlanta, Georgia , United States
Return to Bantamweight.
Loss
12–2
Nad Narimani
Decision (unanimous)
UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Smith
July 22, 2018
3
5:00
Hamburg , Germany
Win
12–1
Hamza Kooheji
Submission (rear-naked choke)
Brave 12
May 11, 2017
2
N/A
Jakarta , Indonesia
Return to Featherweight.
Loss
11–1
Takafumi Otsuka
Submission (guillotine choke)
Rizin Fighting World Grand Prix 2017: 2nd Round
December 29, 2017
3
3:23
Saitama , Japan
2017 Rizin Bantamweight Grand Prix Quarterfinal.
Win
11–0
Keita Ishibashi
KO (knees and punches)
Rizin World Grand Prix 2017: Opening Round - Part 1
July 30, 2017
1
4:52
Saitama , Japan
2017 Rizin Bantamweight Grand Prix First round.
Win
10–0
Timo-Juhani Hirvikangas
Decision (split)
German MMA Championship 9
November 19, 2016
3
5:00
Castrop-Rauxel , Germany
Win
9–0
Michail Chrisopoulos
KO (punch)
Fair FC 5
November 19, 2016
1
1:20
Eindhoven , Netherlands
Win
8–0
Nijat Valujev
TKO (punches)
Fair FC: Top Ten Champions
March 12, 2016
1
2:26
Herne , Germany
Win
7–0
Daniel Makin
TKO (punches)
Fair FC 4
November 28, 2015
1
2:20
Eindhoven , Netherlands
Win
6–0
Omer Cankardesler
Decision (unanimous)
Fair FC 3
March 28, 2015
3
5:00
Rheinberg , Germany
Won the Fair FC Bantamweight Championship.
Win
5–0
Ali Selcuk Ayin
TKO (submission to punches)
German MMA Championship 5
September 13, 2014
1
4:59
Herne , Germany
Win
4–0
Manuel Bilić
Submission (rear-naked choke)
Fair FC 1
February 8, 2014
2
4:24
Herne , Germany
Bantamweight debut.
Win
3–0
Florin Gârdan
TKO (knees)
RNC: Martial Arts Gala
November 30, 2013
2
4:43
Frankenthal , Germany
Featherweight debut.
Win
2–0
John Isac
TKO (punches)
GMC 4
July 6, 2013
2
0:20
Herne , Germany
Win
1–0
Muhammed Celebi
TKO (punches)
MMA Bundesliga 2
April 6, 2013
2
2:43
Herne , Germany
[ 3]
See also
References
^ a b c "Khalid Taha | UFC" . www.ufc.com . 14 September 2018. Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ "Khalid Taha - Official UFC Profile" . UFC.com . Archived from the original on July 23, 2018.
^ a b Sherdog.com. "Khalid" . Sherdog . Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ "Nad Narimani победи Khalid Taha в дебюта си за UFC — MMA.BG" . mma.bg (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ "UFC Fight Night 134 results: Nad Narimani takedown attack grinds out Khalid Taha" . MMA Junkie . 2018-07-22. Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ David Tees (2018-10-20). "Boston Salmon faces Khalid Taha at TUF 28 Finale" . fightful.com. Retrieved 2018-11-29 .
^ a b "EXCLUSIVE: Boston Salmon vs Khalid Taha rescheduled for April 13" . MyMMANews.com . 2019-02-06. Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ "UFC 236 results: Khalid Taha left hand earns 25-second win over Boston Salmon" . MMA Junkie . 2019-04-14. Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ Cruz, Guilherme (2019-05-21). "Khalid Taha vs. Bruno Silva set for UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi" . MMA Fighting . Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ "ran FIGHTING" . ranfighting.de (in German). 18 April 2018. Retrieved 2019-10-05 .
^ Shillan, Keith (2019-10-05). "UFC 243 Results: Khalid Taha Beats Bruno Silva by third round submission" . Cageside Press . Retrieved 2019-10-06 .
^ "Khalid Taha – alles andere als ein Dopingsünder!" . German Fight News (in German). 2019-12-24. Retrieved 2019-12-25 .
^ Sherdog.com. "USADA Suspends Khalid Taha 1 Year for Failed Drug Test at UFC 243" . Sherdog . Retrieved 2019-12-24 .
^ DNA, MMA (2020-09-27). "Jack Shore en Khalid Taha treffen elkaar op 7 november" . MMA DNA . Retrieved 2020-09-28 .
^ Farah Hannoun (2020-10-28). "With Jack Shore out, Raoni Barcelos steps in to face Khalid Taha at UFC on ESPN+ 40" . mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2020-10-28 .
^ Vreeland, Daniel (2020-11-07). "UFC Vegas 13 Results: Raoni Barcelos Outslugs Khalid Taha" . Cageside Press . Retrieved 2020-11-08 .
^ a b Hiergesell, Dan (2020-11-08). "UFC Vegas 13 Bonuses! 'King Kong' Banks $50K For Insane Forearm Submission" . MMAmania.com . Retrieved 2020-11-08 .
^ Behunin, Alex (2021-04-09). "Khalid Taha vs. Sergey Morozov Set For July 17 UFC Event" . Cageside Press . Retrieved 2021-04-10 .
^ McClory, Mike (2021-07-17). "UFC Vegas 31 Results: Sergey Morozov Earns One-Sided Decision Against Khalid Taha" . Cageside Press . Retrieved 2021-07-18 .
^ DNA, MMA (2021-11-12). "Mario Bautista treft Khalid Taha op 19 februari tijdens een UFC evenement" . MMA DNA . Retrieved 2021-11-13 .
^ Anderson, Jay (2022-02-15). "Jay Perrin Gets Short-Notice Call to Face Mario Bautista at UFC Vegas 48" . Cageside Press . Retrieved 2022-02-15 .
^ "Taylor Lapilus re-signs with UFC, meets Khalid Taha on Sept. 3 in Paris" . MMA Junkie . 2022-07-21. Retrieved 2022-07-24 .
^ "UFC Paris. Le Français Taylor Lapilus forfait en raison d'une fracture à la main gauche" . Ouest-France. 23 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2022 .
^ "Tapilus lesionado, Cristian Quinonez enfrenta a Khalid Taha en UFC París - MMA.uno, #1 En noticias de Artes Marciales Mixtas (MMA) en Español" . mma.uno (in Spanish). 2022-08-25. Retrieved 2022-08-26 .
^ Richardson, Andrew (2022-09-03). "UFC Paris highlights: Cristian Quinonez stops Khalid Taha in the first round for debut victory" . MMA Mania . Retrieved 2022-09-03 .
^ Cox, Susan (2022-09-14). "The UFC parts ways with four more fighters" . | BJPenn.com . Retrieved 2022-09-14 .
^ "Lebanese-German Khalid Taha set for Rizin FF Grand Prix" . Arab's MMA . 26 June 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2019 .
^ Altatis, Conan (14 April 2019). "Lebanese-German Khalid Taha earns 1st UFC win at 'UFC 236' in Atlanta, Georgia" . CONAN Daily. Retrieved 5 October 2019 .
External links