# Rinya Nakamura

Rinya Nakamura (Japanese: 中村倫也, Nakamura Rinya, born 23 March 1995) is a Japanese mixed martial artist and former freestyle wrestler who currently competes in the bantamweight division. Competing at 61 kilograms, Nakamura became the 2017 U23 World Champion during his wrestling career, before retiring at age 25 to pursue mixed martial arts.

## Background

Rinya is the son of Kozo Nakamura, who was involved in the early development of Shooto in the 90's. Having begun wrestling at the age of five, Nakamura's first notable accomplishment in the sport of freestyle wrestling was a bronze medal from the Cadet World Championships in 2011. A multiple-time Japanese National medalist at two different weight classes, his most remarkable achievement of his career came at the 2017 U23 World Championships, where he became the champion at 61 kilograms. After the delay of the 2020 Summer Olympics due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nakamura announced his retirement from wrestling in order to pursue a career in mixed martial arts.

## Mixed martial arts career
### Early career

In April 2020, Nakamura announced his serious intentions of competing in MMA. Nakamura made his professional debut against Takumi Arai in a mixed martial arts reality show Fighting Dreamers on 15 May 2021. He won the fight via first-minute knockout.
He then made his sophomore appearance against Akuri Ronda at Shooto 0725 on 25 July 2021. He won the bout via second-round knockout.
Nakamura faced Yasuyuki Nojiri at Shooto 0116 on January 16, 2022. He won the fight via first-minute technical knockout.
On April 24, 2022, he fought against Aliandro Caetano in POUNDSTORM, and although he was punched in round 1 and cut his right eyelid leading to intense bleeding, he utilised his takedown advantage and won the 3–0 decision.

### Road to UFC

Nakamura faced Gugun Gusman in the Quarter-Finals of the Bantamweight tournament on June 9, 2022, in Road to UFC Season 1: Episode 3. He won the bout in the first round via Americana submission.
Nakamura faced Shohei Nose in the Semi-Finals of the Bantamweight tournament on October 23, 2022, at Road to UFC Season 1: Episode 6. He won the bout in the first round, knocking out Nose.
In the finals of the tournament, Nakamura faced Toshiomi Kazama on February 4, 2023, at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Spivac. He won the fight via knockout in the first round. This win earned Nakamura his first Performance of the Night bonus award.

### Ultimate Fighting Championship

Nakamura faced Fernie Garcia at UFC Fight Night 225 on August 26, 2023. He won the bout in dominant fashion via unanimous decision.
Nakamura was scheduled to face Brady Hiestand on February 17, 2024, at UFC 298. However, Hiestand pulled out due injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Carlos Vera. Nakamura dominated most of the bout on the ground and won by unanimous decision.
Nakamura faced Muin Gafurov on January 18, 2025 at UFC 311. He lost the fight by unanimous decision, leading to his first loss in mixed martial arts.

## Championships and accomplishments
### Mixed martial arts

* Ultimate Fighting Championship
** Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Toshiomi Kazama
** Road to UFC Season 1 Bantamweight Tournament Winner.
** UFC.com Awards
*** 2023: Ranked #10 Newcomer of the Year

## Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown :
| 10 matches | 9 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 5 | 0 |
| By submission | 1 | 0 |
| By decision | 3 | 1 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| Loss | 9–1 | Muin Gafurov | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 311 | January 18, 2025 | 3 | 5:00 | Inglewood, California, United States | |
| Win | 9–0 | Carlos Vera | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 298 | February 17, 2024 | 3 | 5:00 | Anaheim, California, United States | |
| Win | 8–0 | Fernie Garcia | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs. The Korean Zombie | August 26, 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Kallang, Singapore | |
| Win | 7–0 | Toshiomi Kazama | KO (punch) | UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Spivac | February 4, 2023 | 1 | 0:33 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Won the Road to UFC Season 1 Bantamweight tournament. Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 6–0 | Shohei Nose | KO (punches) | Road to UFC Season 1: Episode 6 | October 23, 2022 | 1 | 2:21 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | Road to UFC Season 1 Bantamweight tournament semifinal. |
| Win | 5–0 | Gugun Gusman | Submission (keylock) | Road to UFC Season 1: Episode 3 | June 10, 2022 | 1 | 3:24 | Kallang, Singapore | Road to UFC Season 1 Bantamweight tournament quarterfinal. |
| Win | 4–0 | Aleandro Caetano | Decision (unanimous) | LDH Martial Arts: Pound Storm | April 24, 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 3–0 | Yasuyuki Nojiri | TKO (punches) | Shooto: 2022 Vol. 1 | January 16, 2022 | 1 | 0:25 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 2–0 | Akuri Ronda | KO (head kick) | Shooto: 2021 Vol. 5 | July 25, 2021 | 2 | 0:20 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 1–0 | Takumi Arai | KO (punch) | LDH Martial Arts: Fighting Dreamers | May 15, 2021 | 1 | 0:42 | Tokyo, Japan | Bantamweight debut. |

## Freestyle record

Senior Freestyle Matches :
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Score | Date | Event | Location |
| 2019 Japan Nationals at 65 kg |||||||
| Loss | 36–9 | Takuto Otoguro | TF 0–10 | 19–22 December 2019 | 2019 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 36–8 | Takuma Taniyama | TF 11–0 | 19–22 December 2019 | 2019 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 35–8 | Masakazu Kamoi | 9–5 | 19–22 December 2019 | 2019 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 34–8 | Isojiro | TF 11–0 | 19–22 December 2019 | 2019 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 33–8 | Yamato Hagiwara | 4–2 | 19–22 December 2019 | 2019 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2018 Japan Nationals at 65 kg |||||||
| Win | | Rei Higuchi | INJ | 20–23 December 2018 | 2018 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 32–8 | Hirotaka Abe | 8–3 | 20–23 December 2018 | 2018 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 31–8 | Takuto Otoguro | TF 0–10 | 20–23 December 2018 | 2018 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 31–7 | Fukuda Toki | TF 12–2 | 20–23 December 2018 | 2018 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 30–7 | Takuya Funaki | TF 10–0 | 20–23 December 2018 | 2018 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2018 Meiji Cup DNP at 65 kg |||||||
| Loss | | Hirotaka Abe | INJ | 14–17 June 2018 | 2018 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 29–7 | Koki Terada | 13–7 | 14–17 June 2018 | 2018 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2018 World Cup for Team JPN at 61 kg |||||||
| Win | 28–7 | Sandeep Tomar | TF 11–0 | 7–8 April 2018 | 2018 World Cup | Iowa City, Iowa |
| Win | 27–7 | Lasha Lomtadze | 9–2 | 7–8 April 2018 | 2018 World Cup | Iowa City, Iowa |
| 2017 U23 World Championships at 61 kg |||||||
| Win | 26–7 | Kuat Amirtaev | TF 12–2 | 21–26 November 2017 | 2017 U23 World Championships | Bydgoszcz, Poland |
| Win | 25–7 | Islam Dudaev | TF 10–0 | 21–26 November 2017 | 2017 U23 World Championships | Bydgoszcz, Poland |
| Win | 24–7 | Husein Shakhbanau | 10–4 | 21–26 November 2017 | 2017 U23 World Championships | Bydgoszcz, Poland |
| Win | 23–7 | Gabriel Janatsch | TF 11–0 | 21–26 November 2017 | 2017 U23 World Championships | Bydgoszcz, Poland |
| 2017 World Championships 5th at 61 kg |||||||
| Loss | 22–7 | Yowlys Bonne | Fall | 25 August 2017 | 2017 World Championships | Paris, France |
| Win | 22–6 | Mykola Bolotňuk | TF 10–0 | 25 August 2017 | 2017 World Championships | Paris, France |
| Win | 21–6 | Alibek Osmonov | TF 10–0 | 25 August 2017 | 2017 World Championships | Paris, France |
| Loss | 20–6 | Haji Aliyev | 1–10 | 25 August 2017 | 2017 World Championships | Paris, France |
| Win | 20–5 | Andrei Prepeliţă | 7–3 | 25 August 2017 | 2017 World Championships | Paris, France |
| 2017 Meiji Cup at 61 kg |||||||
| Win | 19–5 | Rei Higuchi | 9–5 | 16–18 June 2017 | 2017 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 18–5 | Rei Higuchi | 14–5 | 16–18 June 2017 | 2017 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 17–5 | Shoya Shimae | TF 10–0 | 16–18 June 2017 | 2017 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 16–5 | Sakaki Daimu | TF 10–0 | 16–18 June 2017 | 2017 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2017 Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov International 9th at 61 kg |||||||
| Loss | 15–5 | Timur Aitkulov | Fall | 8–9 April 2017 | 2017 Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov Memorial | Madrid, Spain |
| Win | 15–4 | Kairat Amirtayev | TF 12–1 | 8–9 April 2017 | 2017 Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov Memorial | Madrid, Spain |
| Win | 14–4 | Amar Laissaoui | Fall | 8–9 April 2017 | 2017 Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov Memorial | Madrid, Spain |
| 2016 Meiji Cup at 57 kg |||||||
| Win | 13–4 | Yuki Takahashi | TF 10–0 | 27–29 May 2016 | 2016 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 12–4 | Gaku Akazawa | TF 10–0 | 27–29 May 2016 | 2016 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 11–4 | Toshihiro Hasegawa | TF 10–0 | 27–29 May 2016 | 2016 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2015 Japan Nationals at 57 kg |||||||
| Win | 10–4 | Yasuhiro Morita | TF 10–0 | 21–23 December 2015 | 2015 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 9–4 | Rei Higuchi | 6–8 | 21–23 December 2015 | 2015 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 9–3 | Gaku Akazawa | TF 14–4 | 21–23 December 2015 | 2015 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 8–3 | Yasuhiro Inaba | TF 10–0 | 21–23 December 2015 | 2015 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2015 Spain Grand Prix at 57 kg |||||||
| Loss | 7–3 | Sung Gwon Kim | 0–1 | 11 July 2015 | 2015 Grand Prix of Spain | Madrid, Spain |
| Win | 7–2 | Juan Pablo Gonzalez | 9–1 | 11 July 2015 | 2015 Grand Prix of Spain | Madrid, Spain |
| Win | 6–2 | Marco Coetzee | TF 10–0 | 11 July 2015 | 2015 Grand Prix of Spain | Madrid, Spain |
| Win | 5–2 | Amin Nouri | TF 13–2 | 11 July 2015 | 2015 Grand Prix of Spain | Madrid, Spain |
| 2015 Meiji Cup at 57 kg |||||||
| Win | 4–2 | Yasuhiro Morita | TF 11–0 | 19–21 June 2015 | 2015 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Loss | 3–2 | Yuki Takahashi | 0–5 | 19–21 June 2015 | 2015 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 3–1 | Kazuaki Oshiro | TF 10–0 | 19–21 June 2015 | 2015 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 2–1 | Toshihiro Hasegawa | TF 14–4 | 19–21 June 2015 | 2015 Meiji Cup (JPN World Team Trials) | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2014 Japan Nationals DNP at 57 kg |||||||
| Loss | 1–1 | Fumitaka Morishita | 2–4 | 21–23 December 2014 | 2014 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |
| Win | 1–0 | Rei Kuwagi | 9–7 | 21–23 December 2014 | 2014 Japanese National Championships | Tokyo, Japan |