Ryan Spann

Overview

Eight of Ryan Spann's ten UFC wins ended inside the distance, and six of them were over in the first round. He is also a fighter who has been finished in six of his seven UFC losses.

"Superman" fights out of Law School MMA and competes at Heavyweight. His UFC record is 10-7, with four wins by KO/TKO, four by submission and two on the scorecards. His 24-12-0 professional record includes fights outside the UFC.

Fast starts, fast endings. That is the whole profile.

UFC Career

Spann's first appearance on the Contender Series ended in a loss to Karl Roberson by KO/TKO at 0:15 of round one. He came back to beat Emiliano Sordi by submission in 26 seconds on the series. Neither fight counts toward his UFC record, which starts with a unanimous decision over Luis Henrique in September 2018.

Then came his best stretch. He knocked out Rogerio Nogueira in round one, submitted Devin Clark in round two and took a split decision from Sam Alvey. Later, wins over Misha Cirkunov (first-round KO/TKO, 1:11) and Ion Cutelaba (first-round submission) pushed his longest UFC win streak to four. Johnny Walker stopped him in round one of a loss that came between the Alvey and Cirkunov wins.

The losses tell the other half. Anthony Smith submitted him in the first round of a main event, then beat him again by split decision two years later. Nikita Krylov submitted him in round one. Bogdan Guskov, Waldo Cortes Acosta and Mario Pinto all finished him by KO/TKO in round two.

The Heavyweight run has been more mixed than the Light Heavyweight highs: a submission of Lukasz Brzeski in round one, a round-two KO/TKO of Marcus Buchecha, then the stoppage by Pinto at 0:55 of round two.

He carries a one-fight losing streak into his next fight.

Fighting Style

Spann is a fighter who is easy to hit. His striking output and the damage he takes both sit around the UFC average, but his accuracy is below average and his striking defense is well below it. Strikes have ended four of his seven UFC losses.

Submissions are what set him apart. He hunts for them far more than most UFC fighters, and it shows in the results: four of his ten UFC wins came by submission, three of them in round one. He doesn't shoot for takedowns often, and his takedown defense is about average, so his submission offense is not built on constant grappling volume.

Submissions account for as many of his wins as knockouts do, so he shouldn't be filed as a pure striker. Eight of his ten wins were finishes, six of them in the first round, and none came later than round two.

Notable Wins

• Anthony Smith is not here, since Smith beat him twice. The strongest names on his win list are:
• Misha Cirkunov — KO/TKO, round 1, UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad (2021)
• Dominick Reyes — KO/TKO, round 1, UFC 281: Adesanya vs. Pereira (2022)
• Ion Cutelaba — SUB, round 1, UFC Fight Night: Blachowicz vs. Rakic (2022)
• Ovince Saint Preux — SUB, round 1, UFC 307 (2024)

Quick Facts

• Division: Heavyweight
• UFC record: 10-7
• Professional record (all promotions): 24-12-0
• UFC debut: 2018 (UFC fights counted from September 2018; Contender Series fights excluded)
• Stance: Orthodox
• Height: 6'5"
• Reach: 79"
• Team: Law School MMA
• Born: Memphis, TN, United States