Rani Yahya

Overview

Seven submission wins and zero knockouts in 20 UFC fights, which tells you what Rani Yahya does and how little else he needs to do it.

Yahya is a Brazilian bantamweight from Brasilia who fights out of Constrictor Team Brazilia. His UFC record is 13-6-1 with one no contest. Every one of his seven finishes came by submission, and the other six wins went to the scorecards. He has never won by knockout and has never needed to.

Two stoppage losses in a row now define where his career stands.

UFC Career

Yahya debuted in January 2011 with a unanimous decision over Mike Brown, then dropped a decision to Chad Mendes later that year. He answered with a first-round submission of Josh Grispi in 3:15, then took decisions over Mizuto Hirota and Josh Clopton in 2013. Tom Niinimaki took a split decision from him that November.

His first fight with Johnny Bedford in April 2014 ended in a no contest at 0:39 of round 1. The rematch that September ended in a second-round submission.

The best stretch came from 2015 to 2018. A split decision over Masanori Kanehara started a run of four wins. Submissions of Matthew Lopez in round 3, Henry Briones in round 1, Russell Doane in round 3 and Luke Sanders in round 1 anchor it. A decision over Michinori Tanaka sits in between. Joe Soto ended the run in March 2017 with a unanimous decision, and Ricky Simon beat him the same way in 2019. Four is his longest win streak, and it needed those 2016 and 2017 fights to get there.

A majority draw with Enrique Barzola in 2020 came next. Then came a second-round submission of Ray Rodriguez and a decision over Kyung Ho Kang in 2021.

The recent fights read differently. Montel Jackson, an opponent our model rates as strong, stopped him in round 1 at 3:42 in April 2023. Victor Henry did the same in round 3 at 2:36 in April 2024. Those are his only two losses by KO/TKO, and he carries both into his next fight.

Before them, no one had stopped him in the UFC.

Fighting Style

Rani Yahya is a grappler first. He doesn't throw much on the feet and isn't especially accurate when he does, but he also takes little damage, so his fights tend to be low-volume affairs.

His offense runs through takedowns and submissions. He shoots often and hunts for submissions more than most fighters in the UFC. That pays off: all seven of his finishes are submission wins, three in the first round, two in the second and two in the third. He can catch a submission early or late.

Defending takedowns is the weak spot. He gets taken down more than most, which matters for a fighter whose game depends on the fight going to the mat. Two of his six losses came by knockout, with the other four going to the scorecards.

Notable Wins

• Josh Grispi — submission, round 1, UFC on FOX: Shogun vs Vera (2012)
• Johnny Bedford — submission, round 2, UFC Fight Night: Bigfoot vs Arlovski (2014)
• Matthew Lopez — submission, round 3, UFC Fight Night: McDonald vs. Lineker (2016)
• Luke Sanders — submission, round 1, UFC Fight Night: Gaethje vs. Vick (2018)

Quick Facts

• Division: Bantamweight
• UFC record: 13-6-1 (1 NC)
• Professional record (all promotions): 28-12-1 (1 NC)
• UFC debut: 2011
• Stance: Orthodox
• Height / reach: 5'6" / 67"
• Team: Constrictor Team Brazilia
• Born: Brasilia, Brazil