Introduction
Roosevelt Roberts (born February 11, 1994) is an American mixed martial artist (MMA) and currently competes in the Lightweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Background
Roberts was born in Miami, Florida in 1994. After his mother left the family due to domestic violence, Roberts began living with friends and family members whenever they could take him in. Roberts began selling drugs and stealing to support himself. As a result, he ended up in a youth correctional facility in San Francisco, California for a year. Roberts started to turn his life around at 19 years old when his daughter was born and started training in MMA. He took his first amateur fight in 2014 and turned professional in 2016.
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Roberts started his professional MMA career in 2016 and amassed a record of 5-0 prior to his tenure in The Ultimate Fighter 28 UFC TV mma competition series which he was subsequently signed by UFC after the show.
Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series
Roberts appeared in DWTNCS: Season 2, Episode 7 web-series program on July 21, 2018 facing Garrett Gross. He won the fight via a submission in the second round and was signed by UFC.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Roberts made his UFC debut on November 20, 2018 against Darrell Horcher at The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale. He won the fight via a guillotine choke in round one. This win earned the Performance of the Nightaward.
His next fight came on April 27, 2019 against Thomas Gifford at UFC Fight Night: Jacaré vs. Hermansson. He won the fight via unanimous decision.
Roberts faced Vinc Pichel on June 29, 2019 atUFC on ESPN 3. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Roberts faced Alexander Yakovlev on November 9, 2019 at UFC on ESPN+ 21.He won the fight via unanimous decision.
Roberts is expected to face Matt Frevola on April 25, 2020 at UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Teixeira.
Championships and accomplishments
- Ultimate Fighting Championship
- Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Darrell Horcher
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 10 matches | 9 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 3 | 0 |
| By submission | 4 | 0 |
| By decision | 2 | 1 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 9–1 | Alexander Yakovlev | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Magomedsharipov vs. Kattar | November 9, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Moscow, Russia | |
| Loss | 8–1 | Vinc Pichel | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Ngannou vs. dos Santos | June 29, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States | |
| Win | 8–0 | Thomas Gifford | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Jacaré vs. Hermansson | April 27, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Sunrise, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 7–0 | Darrell Horcher | Submission (guillotine choke) | The Ultimate Fighter: Heavy Hitters Finale | November 30, 2018 | 1 | 4:50 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 6–0 | Garrett Gross | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Dana White's Contender Series 15 | July 31, 2018 | 2 | 2:13 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 5–0 | Tommy Aaron | TKO (punches) | Bellator 192 | January 20, 2018 | 1 | N/A | Inglewood, California, United States | |
| Win | 4–0 | Shohei Yamamoto | TKO (punches) | CXF 9 | August 19, 2017 | 2 | 1:47 | Studio City, California, United States | Won the interim CXF Lightweight Championship. |
| Win | 3–0 | Dominic Clark | Submission (guillotine choke) | CXF 8 | June 17, 2017 | 1 | 1:47 | Burbank, California, United States | |
| Win | 2–0 | Andrew Kauppila | TKO (punches) | KOTC: Groundbreaking | May 6, 2017 | 1 | 0:23 | San Jacinto, California, United States | |
| Win | 1–0 | Michael Thomas | Submission (guillotine choke) | California Fight League 9 | October 22, 2016 | 1 | 2:58 | Victorville, California, United States | Lightweight debut. |