# Jeremy Kennedy

Jeremy Michael Fitz-Kennedy (born September 16, 1992) is a Canadian mixed martial artist, currently competing in the Featherweight division of Bellator MMA. In addition to competing for Bellator, Kennedy has also competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and the Professional Fighters League (PFL).

## Background

Kennedy was born and raised in Fleetwood, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. He started training boxing and Brazilian jiu-jitsu at the age of 13 to put up with his older brother. He graduated from Fleetwood Park Secondary School.

## Mixed martial arts career
### Early career

Before joining the UFC, Kennedy held both the Battlefield Fight League Amateur and Professional Featherweight Championships while amassing an amateur record of 8–1 and a professional record of 8–0.

### Ultimate Fighting Championship

Kennedy made his promotional debut on August 27, 2016, at UFC on Fox 21 against Alessandro Ricci. He won the fight by unanimous decision.
Kennedy was briefly tabbed as a short notice replacement to face Mirsad Bektic on October 8, 2016, at UFC 204. Subsequently, after his participation was publicly confirmed, Kennedy indicated he was injured and unable to take the fight. He was replaced by Russell Doane.
Kennedy next faced Rony Jason on March 11, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 106. He won the bout by unanimous decision.
Kennedy faced Kyle Bochniak on July 22, 2017, at UFC on Fox 25. Kennedy won the fight via unanimous decision.
Kennedy was scheduled to face Alexander Volkanovski at UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Tybura on 19 November 2017. However, Kennedy pulled out of the fight on October 5 citing a back injury.
The bout with Volkanovski was rescheduled and took place on February 11, 2018, at UFC 221. He lost the fight via technical knockout in round two.

### Brave Combat Federation

Kennedy's contract with the UFC ended after the Volkanovski bout and Kennedy grew tired of the contract negotiations for renewing, eventually leading him to sign with a new promotion - Brave CF. Kennedy headlined Brave 14 against Danyel Pilo on August 18, 2018. He won the fight via knockout in round one.
Kennedy was expected to face Marcos Galvão at PFL 8 for the alternate spot in the Professional Fighters League's 2018 featherweight tournament. Due to a misunderstanding when making the contract with Brave CF, Kennedy assumed he was eligible to compete in other organizations' events. Just before Kennedy's fight, Brave CF officials contacted PFL to deny him from fighting. Briefly after the news surfaced, Brave CF officials revealed that Kennedy had signed a bout agreement to fight Marat Magomedov at Brave 18 on November 16, 2018.
Kennedy headlined Brave 21 against Magomedov on December 28, 2018. He won the fight via TKO in the third round.

### Professional Fighters League

In 2019, Kennedy joined the Professional Fighters League as an entrant in their 2019 Featherweight tournament. He was scheduled to face Alexandre Bezerra in the opening round, but Bezerra missed weight and was replaced by Luis Rafael Laurentino. Kennedy lost the fight via TKO in the first round.
In the second round of PFL 2 regular season, Kennedy faced Steven Siler at PFL 5 on July 25, 2019. He won the fight by unanimous decision and advanced to the playoffs.
In the quarterfinals, Kennedy faced Luis Rafael Laurentino at PFL 8 on October 17, 2019. He won the fight via second-round knockout and advanced to the semifinals contested later on the same day. In semifinals Kennedy lost to Daniel Pineda via first round submission and was eliminated from the tournament. However, Pineda tested positive for a banned substance and the result was overturned to no contest.

### Bellator MMA

Kennedy signed with Bellator MMA in October 2020. He made his promotional debut against Matt Bessette at Bellator 253 on November 19, 2020. Kennedy won the fight by unanimous decision.
Kennedy faced Ádám Borics on April 9, 2021, at Bellator 256. He lost the bout via unanimous decision.
Kennedy faced Emmanuel Sanchez on December 3, 2021, at Bellator 272. He won the bout via unanimous decision.
Kennedy was scheduled to face Aaron Pico on April 15, 2022, at Bellator 277. However, due to unknown reasons, Kennedy withdrew 8 days before the event.
The bout against Aaron Pico was rebooked for October 1, 2022 at Bellator 286. After Pico hurt his shoulder midway through the first round, the bout was stopped after the first round by the doctor.
Kennedy faced Pedro Carvalho on February 25, 2023, at Bellator 291. He won the fight by unanimous decision.
Kennedy was scheduled to face James Gallagher on March 22, 2024, at Bellator Champions Series 1. However, at the beginning of the month, Kennedy was rescheduled for a Bellator Featherweight Championship bout against reigning champion Patrício Pitbull. Despite cutting Pitbull and stumbling him, he lost the bout in the third round as Pitbull landed a flurry of punches and knees on Kennedy.

### Return to PFL

Kennedy was scheduled to face Jesus Pinedo on November 29, 2024, at PFL 10. However, Pinedo withdrew from the bout due to missing weight by six pounds and was replaced by Gabriel Alves Braga on one day's notice. Braga won the bout against Kennedy by unanimous decision.
On February 12, 2025, the promotion officially revealed that Kennedy will join the 2025 PFL Featherweight Tournament.

## Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown :
| 25 matches | 19 wins | 5 losses |
| By knockout | 7 | 3 |
| By submission | 2 | 0 |
| By decision | 10 | 2 |
| No contests | 1 | 1 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| Loss | 19–5 (1) | Gabriel Alves Braga | Decision (unanimous) | PFL 10 (2024) | November 29, 2024 | 3 | 5:00 | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | |
| Loss | 19–4 (1) | Patrício Pitbull | TKO (knees and punches) | Bellator Champions Series 1 | March 22, 2024 | 3 | 4:07 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | For the Bellator Featherweight World Championship. |
| Win | 19–3 (1) | Pedro Carvalho | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 291 | February 25, 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Dublin, Ireland | |
| Win | 18–3 (1) | Aaron Pico | TKO (shoulder injury) | Bellator 286 | October 1, 2022 | 1 | 5:00 | Long Beach, California, United States | |
| Win | 17–3 (1) | Emmanuel Sanchez | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 272 | December 3, 2021 | 3 | 5:00 | Uncasville, Connecticut, United States | |
| Loss | 16–3 (1) | Ádám Borics | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 256 | April 9, 2021 | 3 | 5:00 | Uncasville, Connecticut, United States | |
| Win | 16–2 (1) | Matt Bessette | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 253 | November 19, 2020 | 3 | 5:00 | Uncasville, Connecticut, United States | |
| NC | 15–2 (1) | Daniel Pineda | NC (overturned) | PFL 8 (2019) | October 17, 2019 | 1 | 4:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | 2019 PFL Featherweight Tournament Semifinal. Originally a Submission (guillotine choke) win for Pineda; overturned after he tested positive for a banned substance. |
| Win | 15–2 | Luis Rafael Laurentino | TKO (punches) | PFL 8 (2019) | October 17, 2019 | 2 | 1:24 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | 2019 PFL Featherweight Tournament Quarterfinal. |
| Win | 14–2 | Steven Siler | Decision (unanimous) | PFL 5 (2019) | July 25, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States | |
| Loss | 13–2 | Luis Rafael Laurentino | TKO (punches) | PFL 2 (2019) | May 23, 2019 | 1 | 0:23 | Uniondale, New York, United States | |
| Win | 13–1 | Marat Magomedov | TKO (punches) | Brave CF 21 | December 28, 2018 | 3 | 1:08 | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia | |
| Win | 12–1 | Danyel Pilo | KO (elbows) | Brave CF 14 | August 18, 2018 | 1 | 2:02 | Tangier, Morocco | |
| Loss | 11–1 | Alexander Volkanovski | TKO (punches and elbows) | UFC 221 | February 11, 2018 | 2 | 4:57 | Perth, Australia | |
| Win | 11–0 | Kyle Bochniak | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on Fox: Weidman vs. Gastelum | July 22, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Uniondale, New York, United States | |
| Win | 10–0 | Rony Jason | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum | March 11, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Fortaleza, Brazil | |
| Win | 9–0 | Alessandro Ricci | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on Fox: Maia vs. Condit | August 27, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada | Lightweight bout. |
| Win | 8–0 | Drew Brokenshire | Decision (unanimous) | Battlefield Fight League 43 | March 7, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada | |
| Win | 7–0 | Mario Pereira | Decision (unanimous) | Battlefield Fight League 34 | January 24, 2015 | 5 | 5:00 | Richmond, British Columbia, Canada | Won the BFL Featherweight Championship. |
| Win | 6–0 | Andre Da Silva | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Battlefield Fight League 32 | August 23, 2014 | 2 | 3:15 | Richmond, British Columbia, Canada | Featherweight debut. |
| Win | 5–0 | Matthew Middleton | Submission (Peruvian necktie) | Chiang Mai FC 4 | July 26, 2014 | 1 | 2:35 | Chiang Mai, Thailand | |
| Win | 4–0 | Viktor Larsson | TKO (punches) | Songkran MMA Festival | April 12, 2014 | 2 | 0:00 | Hua Hin, Thailand | Lightweight debut. |
| Win | 3–0 | Natthapol Thanaruethai | KO (punches) | Chiang Mai FC 2 | March 7, 2014 | 1 | 3:58 | Chiang Mai, Thailand | |
| Win | 2–0 | Blake Shearing | TKO (doctor stoppage) | Fivestar Fight League 10 | November 8, 2013 | 2 | 2:11 | Grand Prairie, Alberta, Canada | Catchweight (150 lbs) bout. |
| Win | 1–0 | Dan Lin | Decision (unanimous) | Battlefield Fight League 24 | June 8, 2013 | 3 | 5:00 | Penticton, British Columbia, Canada | Bantamweight debut. |