Alonzo Menifield

Overview

Six of Alonzo Menifield's seven UFC finishes came in the first round, and the other one needed just two. The light heavyweight is 12-6-1 in the UFC, and when a fight reaches the later rounds, it tends to go to the judges. He carries a two-fight win streak into his next fight.

Fast starts, then. Nothing in between.

UFC Career

Menifield fought on Dana White's Contender Series twice before the UFC, beating Daniel Jolly by doctor's stoppage in round 1 and Dashawn Boatwright by KO/TKO at 0:08 of round 1. Those fights aren't part of his UFC record.

He debuted in January 2019 with a first-round KO/TKO of Vinicius Moreira, then stopped Paul Craig in round 1 five months later. Two fights, two first-round finishes.

Then came the first rough patch. Devin Clark beat him by unanimous decision at UFC 250, and Ovince Saint Preux stopped him in round 2 three months later. A submission of Fabio Cherant in 1:11 and a decision over Ed Herman followed, before William Knight took a unanimous decision in December 2021.

The next run was his best stretch. He finished Askar Mozharov and Misha Cirkunov in 2022, both by first-round KO/TKO, then fought Jimmy Crute twice in 2023. The first was a majority draw at UFC 284. The rematch ended in a round 2 submission at UFC 290.

A decision win over Dustin Jacoby, an opponent our model rates as strong, came next. After it, the losses piled up: Carlos Ulberg finished him 12 seconds into round 1, and Azamat Murzakanov stopped him in round 2. Both opponents rate as strong in our model.

Since then it has been mixed. He won a split decision over Julius Walker and a unanimous decision over Oumar Sy, lost in round 1 to Volkan Oezdemir, then stopped Zhang Mingyang in round 1. The last result is a split decision over Iwo Baraniewski, another strong opponent.

Four of his six UFC losses are knockouts. He has been finished in the first round twice.

Fighting Style

Menifield is a striker. He lands more per minute than most UFC fighters and does it accurately, while the shots he takes and the way he avoids them are about what the UFC average looks like. He hits well without being hard to hit.

He rarely goes after takedowns or submissions, but he is very hard to take down. His wrestling is almost entirely defensive, which keeps fights standing where he wants them.

The finishing pattern is front-loaded. Five of his seven finishes are first-round KO/TKOs, and he has two submission wins, Cherant and Crute. Five of his twelve UFC wins went to the scorecards.

Notable Wins

• Jimmy Crute — submission, round 2 (1:55), UFC 290 (2023)
• Misha Cirkunov — KO/TKO, round 1 (1:28), UFC Fight Night: Grasso vs. Araujo (2022)
• Dustin Jacoby — unanimous decision, UFC 296 (2023)
• Iwo Baraniewski — split decision, UFC 331 (2026)

Quick Facts

• Division: Light Heavyweight
• UFC record: 12-6-1
• Professional record (all promotions): 19-6-1
• UFC debut: 2019
• Stance: Orthodox
• Height: 6'0"
• Reach: 76"
• Born: Los Angeles, CA, United States