# Alex Nicholson (fighter)

Alex Nicholson (born May 2, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist formally competing in the heavyweight division of the Professional Fighters League. A professional competitor since 2014, he has competed for the UFC and Legacy Fighting Alliance.

## Background

Born and raised in Apopka, Florida, Nicholson played basketball growing up before being introduced to martial arts and boxing. In boxing, he was a Florida Golden Gloves Champion, as well as a state amateur Muay Thai champion, in which he was undefeated.

## Mixed martial arts career
### Early career

After an amateur career in 2012 and 2013 where he held a record of 4–7, Nicholson made his professional MMA debut in February 2014. He amassed a record of 6 wins against 1 loss before signing with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

### Ultimate Fighting Championship

Nicholson made his UFC debut on February 6, 2016, at UFC Fight Night: Hendricks vs. Thompson. He faced Misha Cirkunov on the card and lost the fight via submission in the second round.
In his second fight for the promotion, Nicholson faced Devin Clark in a Middleweight bout at UFC Fight Night: McDonald vs. Lineker on July 13, 2016. He won the fight via knockout in the first round.
In his third fight for the promotion, Nicholson faced Sam Alvey at UFC Fight Night: dos Anjos vs. Ferguson on November 5, 2016. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.
In his fourth fight for the promotion, Nicholson faced Jack Hermansson at UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Teixeira on May 28, 2017. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round. Subsequent to this fight, Nicholson was released from the promotion.

### Professional Fighters League

In June 2018, Nicholson entered into the $1 million Heavyweight tournament held by Professional Fighters League. He faced Jake Heun in the opening round at PFL 1 on June 7, 2018. He won the fight via knockout due to a flying knee in the second round. On July 19, Nicholson lost via TKO to Philipe Lins at PFL 4. In October 2018, Nicholson defeated Jack May by TKO but then lost later that night via KO to Josh Copeland.
In June 2019, Nicholson entered the second season of PFL's Heavyweight tournament and lost a decision to Francimar Barroso. In August, he defeated Zeke Tuinei-Wiley. On October 31, Nicholson lost a rematch against Barroso again by decision. In December 2019, Nicholson was suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for four years due to testing positive for three steroids.

### Regional circuit

Nicholson was scheduled to headline Gamebred FC 2 against Antônio Silva on September 11, 2021. However, Silva's prevailing contract with Eagle Fighting Championship prevented him from competing at the event and he was initially replaced by Jack May. In turn, May tested positive for COVID-19 and was replaced by Jonathan Ivey. Furthermore, the event was postponed to take place on October 1, 2021, in order to ensure housing for those impacted of Hurricane Ida. He won the bout via TKO in the first round.
Nicholson faced Tony Lopez on December 17, 2021, at Gamebred FC 3. He won the bout via KO in the first round.
Nicholson faced Oscar Sosa for the Titan FC Heavyweight Championship on July 29, 2022, at Titan FC 78. He won the bout and title via anaconda choke in the first round.
Nicholson defended his title against Valter Ignacio at Titan FC 82/ SBC 47: Revenge on June 2, 2023. losing the bout in the fourth round after tapping out due to injury.
Nicholson faced Prince McLean at Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 6 on November 10, 2023. He won the fight via knockout 19 seconds into the bout.
Nicholson faced Chase Sherman at Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 7 on March 2, 2024. Nicholson lost in the first round by way of knockout.

## Professional boxing

Nicholson made his professional boxing debut in 2015, a KO win. He fought again two months later and lost via KO to Simon Kean.

## Personal life

Nicholson has a son with fellow mixed martial artist Hannah Goldy.
In 2016, Nicholson faced criticism for the racially-charged comments he made while cornering teammate Mike Perry in his bout against South Korean fighter Hyun Gyu Lim. During the fight, Nicholson was recorded shouting "He [Lim] can't even open his motherfucking eyes." The UFC issued a formal statement that any future racially derogatory remarks by Nicholson "could result in a suspension from competition, or termination of his contract." Prior to the fight, Nicholson made a Facebook post where he referred to Lim as "dung him Kong Jung foo" and claimed Perry would "rip [Lim's] limbs off."

## Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown :
| 32 matches | 20 wins | 12 losses |
| By knockout | 18 | 7 |
| By submission | 2 | 1 |
| By decision | 0 | 4 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| Loss | 20–12 | Frank Tate | KO (punches) | Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 8 | November 15, 2024 | 1 | 0:56 | Biloxi, Mississippi, United States | Bare knuckle MMA. |
| Win | 20–11 | Zac Pauga | TKO (elbows and punches) | XFC 51 | September 27, 2024 | 2 | 1:16 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States | |
| Win | 19–11 | Carl Seumanutafa | TKO (elbow and punches) | XFC: Detroit Grand Prix 2 | May 31, 2024 | 1 | 4:09 | Detroit, Michigan, United States | |
| Loss | 18–11 | Chase Sherman | KO (punch) | Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 7 | March 2, 2024 | 1 | 3:57 | Orlando, Florida, United States | Bare Knuckle MMA. |
| Win | 18–10 | Prince McLean | KO (punches) | Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 6 | November 10, 2023 | 1 | 0:19 | Biloxi, Mississippi, United States | Bare knuckle MMA. |
| Loss | 17–10 | Valter Walker | TKO (retirement) | Titan FC 82 / SBC 47 | June 2, 2023 | 4 | 0:50 | Novi Sad, Serbia | Lost the Titan FC Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 17–9 | Oscar Sosa | Submission (anaconda choke) | Titan FC 78 | July 29, 2022 | 1 | 3:47 | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | Won the vacant Titan FC Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 16–9 | Tony Lopez | KO (knee) | Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 3 | December 17, 2021 | 1 | 1:48 | Biloxi, Mississippi, United States | Bare knuckle MMA. |
| Win | 15–9 | Johnathan Ivey | TKO (knees and elbows) | Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 2 | October 1, 2021 | 1 | 1:56 | Biloxi, Mississippi, United States | Bare knuckle MMA bout. |
| Loss | 14–9 | Francimar Barroso | Decision (unanimous) | PFL 9 (2019) | October 31, 2019 | 2 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | 2019 PFL Heavyweight Tournament Quarterfinal. |
| Win | 14–8 | Zeke Tuinei-Wily | TKO (punches) | PFL 6 (2019) | August 8, 2019 | 1 | 3:07 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States | |
| Loss | 13–8 | Francimar Barroso | Decision (split) | PFL 3 (2019) | June 6, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Uniondale, New York, United States | |
| Loss | 13–7 | Josh Copeland | KO (punch) | PFL 8 (2018) | October 5, 2018 | 1 | 1:27 | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | 2018 PFL Heavyweight Tournament Semifinal. |
| Win | 13–6 | Jack May | TKO (leg kick and punches) | PFL 8 (2018) | October 5, 2018 | 1 | 2:03 | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | 2018 PFL Heavyweight Tournament Quarterfinal. |
| Loss | 12–6 | Philipe Lins | TKO (punches) | PFL 4 (2018) | July 19, 2018 | 2 | 3:39 | Uniondale, New York, United States | |
| Win | 12–5 | Jake Heun | KO (flying knee) | PFL 1 (2018) | June 7, 2018 | 2 | 0:58 | New York City, New York, United States | |
| Win | 11–5 | Ricco Rodriguez | TKO (submission to punches) | AFC 24: CamSoda Legends | April 26, 2018 | 1 | 1: 27 | Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States | |
| Loss | 10–5 | Ryan Spann | KO (punches) | LFA 32 | January 26, 2018 | 1 | 4:24 | Lake Charles, Louisiana, United States | For the LFA Light Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 10–4 | Daniel Madrid | TKO (punches) | Iron Boy MMA 9 | November 18, 2017 | 1 | 1:42 | Phoenix, Arizona, United States | Middleweight bout. |
| Win | 9–4 | Chris Barnett | KO (elbow) | Island Fights 42 | October 14, 2017 | 1 | 0:40 | Pensacola, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 8–4 | Demoreo Dennis | KO (elbow) | Next Level Fight Club 8 | September 16, 2017 | 1 | 1:06 | Raleigh, North Carolina, United States | Return to Heavyweight. |
| Loss | 7–4 | Jack Hermansson | TKO (punches) | UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Teixeira | May 28, 2017 | 1 | 2:00 | Stockholm, Sweden | |
| Loss | 7–3 | Sam Alvey | Decision (unanimous) | The Ultimate Fighter Latin America 3 Finale: dos Anjos vs. Ferguson | November 5, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| Win | 7–2 | Devin Clark | KO (punch) | UFC Fight Night: McDonald vs. Lineker | July 13, 2016 | 1 | 4:57 | Sioux Falls, South Dakota, United States | Return to Middleweight. |
| Loss | 6–2 | Misha Cirkunov | Submission (neck crank) | UFC Fight Night: Hendricks vs. Thompson | February 6, 2016 | 2 | 1:28 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Light Heavyweight bout. |
| Win | 6–1 | Chaz Morgan | TKO | Island Fights 34 | August 1, 2015 | 1 | 4:03 | Pensacola, Florida, United States | Won the Island Fights Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 5–1 | Dillon Cleckler | KO (spinning back fist) | Island Fights 33 | March 28, 2015 | 2 | 1:34 | Pensacola, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 4–1 | Ronnie Phillips | TKO (head kick and punches) | Florida Championship Fighting | January 30, 2015 | 1 | 4:08 | Fern Park, Florida, United States | Light Heavyweight bout. |
| Win | 3–1 | Chase Sherman | TKO (spinning back fist) | Island Fights 31 | December 5, 2014 | 1 | N/A | Pensacola, Florida, United States | Heavyweight debut. |
| Win | 2–1 | Derrick Brown | Submission (neck crank) | Top Alliance Combat 3 | September 6, 2014 | 1 | 4:56 | McDonough, Georgia, United States | Light Heavyweight debut. |
| Loss | 1–1 | Mark Inge | Decision (unanimous) | Top Alliance Combat 1 | April 12, 2014 | 3 | 5:00 | McDonough, Georgia, United States | |
| Win | 1–0 | Baraq Hunter | KO | Island Fights 27 | February 8, 2014 | 1 | 0:37 | Pensacola, Florida, United States | Middleweight debut. |

## Professional boxing record

| 2 fights | 1 win | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 1 | 1 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
| 2 | Loss | 1–1 | Simon Kean | KO | 1 (4), 2:38 | 4 Dec 2015 | Métropolis, Montreal, Quebec, Canada | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Joseph White | KO | 2 (4), 2:24 | 10 Oct 2015 | Florida Orange Event Center, Lakeland, Florida, US | |