Introduction
Khalid Taha (born February 15, 1992) is a German mixed martial artist andcurrently competing in the bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
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.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Tahamade his UFC debut onJuly 22, 2018 at UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Smith againstNad Narimani.He lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Taha was scheduled to face Boston Salmon on November 30, 2018 at The Ultimate Fighter: Heavy Hitters#The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale. However Taha was pulled from the event due to a torn ACL and the bout was cancelled. The pairing was rescheduled at UFC 236on April 13, 2019. He won the fight via technical knockout in round one.
Taha was scheduled to face Bruno Gustavo Aparecido da Silva on September 7, 2019 at UFC 242.However, on August 21, it was reported that the bout was moved to UFC 243. Taha won the fight via a submission in round three. On December 23, 2019 Taha received one year USADA suspension for tested positive forfurosemide (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. He will be eligible to compete again in October 6, 2020.
Personal life
Taha is of Lebanese descent.
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 16 matches | 14 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 9 | 0 |
| By submission | 3 | 1 |
| By decision | 2 | 1 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 14–2 | Bruno Gustavo da Silva | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | UFC 243 | October 6, 2019 | 3 | 3:00 | Melbourne, Australia | Catchweight (137 lbs) bout; Taha missed weight. |
| 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 | 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 | Rizin Bantamweight Grand-Prix 1st 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 Fighting Championship 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 Fighting Championship 4 | November 28, 2015 | 1 | 2:20 | Eindhoven, Netherlands | |
| Win | 6–0 | Omer Cankardesler | Decision (unanimous) | Fair Fighting Championship 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 Fighting Championship 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 | Lightweight debut. |