Johnny Walker

Overview

Seven first-round finishes, four stoppage losses. Johnny Walker's UFC career runs on a short fuse, and it has cut both ways.

He fights at heavyweight out of SBG Ireland, and his UFC record is 10-7 with one no contest. Nine of the ten wins are finishes: eight by KO/TKO, one by submission. Only one went to the scorecards. He carries a two-fight win streak into his next fight, and both of those wins came inside the distance.

UFC Career

He arrived through Dana White's Contender Series Brazil 1.2, where he beat Henrique da Silva by unanimous decision. That fight isn't part of his UFC record. His first UFC bout came against Khalil Rountree Jr. in November 2018, and he won by TKO at 1:57 of round one. Two more first-round finishes followed: Justin Ledet in 15 seconds, then Misha Cirkunov in 36 seconds at UFC 235.

The next stretch was rougher. Corey Anderson stopped him in round one at UFC 244, and Nikita Krylov took a unanimous decision in 2020. A TKO of Ryan Spann in round one got him back on track, but he then dropped two main events: a five-round unanimous decision to Thiago Santos and a first-round TKO loss to Jamahal Hill.

His longest UFC win streak came in 2022 and 2023. He submitted Ion Cutelaba in round one, stopped Paul Craig in round one, and beat Anthony Smith by unanimous decision. Three straight wins.

Then came Magomed Ankalaev, an opponent our model rates as elite. Their first fight at UFC 294 ended in a no contest in round one. In the main-event rematch, Ankalaev stopped him in round two. A first-round TKO loss to Volkan Oezdemir followed.

He stopped Zhang Mingyang in round two, lost a split decision to Dominick Reyes, then won twice more: a first-round TKO of Mick Parkin and a round-three TKO of Waldo Cortes Acosta in a main event.

Big finishes, big losses. Rarely a quiet night.

Fighting Style

Johnny Walker is a striker who lands a lot and lands accurately. He is busy on his feet and connects with a high share of what he throws. The flip side is that he gets hit too. His defense is below the UFC average, and four of his seven UFC losses came by KO/TKO.

He rarely shoots for takedowns, and he is tougher to take down than most. He is not a one-note puncher, though. He hunts for submissions more than most fighters do, and one of his UFC wins came that way.

His finishes come early. Of nine, seven landed in round one, one in round two and one in round three. Eight of his ten UFC wins came by KO/TKO.

Notable Wins

• Misha Cirkunov — KO/TKO, round 1 (0:36), UFC 235 (2019)
• Paul Craig — KO/TKO, round 1 (2:16), UFC 283 (2023)
• Anthony Smith — unanimous decision, round 3, UFC Fight Night (2023)
• Waldo Cortes Acosta — KO/TKO, round 3 (2:27), UFC Fight Night (2026)

Quick Facts

• Division: Heavyweight
• UFC record: 10-7 (1 no contest)
• Professional record (all promotions): 24-10-0
• UFC debut: November 16, 2018
• Height: 6'6"; reach: 82"
• Team: SBG Ireland
• Born: Belford Roxo, RJ, Brazil