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Gilbert Melendez

From Alfawiki
Gilbert Melendez
Born (1982-04-12) April 12, 1982 (age 44)
Santa Ana, California, United States
Other namesEl Niño
OccupationProfessional mixed martial artist
Known forFormer Strikeforce Lightweight Champion, former WEC Lightweight Champion, UFC competitor
Notable workCompeted in PRIDE FC, Shooto, Rumble on the Rock; coach on The Ultimate Fighter 20

Gilbert Melendez (born April 12, 1982) is an American professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight category of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is a former Strikeforce Lightweight Champion twice over and also held the WEC Lightweight Championship. Throughout his career, Melendez has competed in prominent organizations such as PRIDE FC, Shooto, and Rumble on the Rock.

Known by the nickname El Niño, given by a Japanese commentator due to his aggressive fighting approach and supremacy in Shooto’s Lightweight division, Melendez has established himself as a significant figure across several leading MMA promotions.

Background

Hailing from Santa Ana, California with Mexican heritage, Melendez was a wrestler during his time at Santa Ana High School. His introduction to mixed martial arts came after college through his friend and fellow fighter Jake Shields. Initially enrolled at San Francisco State University pursuing liberal arts with aspirations to become an educator, Melendez left academia to dedicate himself fully to MMA and employment. Prior to turning professional, he worked as a waiter and was employed at a Fairtex equipment store, which later became one of his sponsors.

Mixed martial arts career

Melendez began his professional journey in World Extreme Cagefighting, securing knockout victories in his first three bouts before winning the WEC Lightweight Championship by TKO against Olaf Alfonso at WEC 10. He then moved on to Japan’s Shooto organization, where he achieved three straight wins, including a unanimous decision triumph over Hiroyuki Takaya. Melendez’s Strikeforce debut resulted in a victory when Harris Sarmiento submitted to him.

He earned the Strikeforce Lightweight title by defeating future UFC competitor Clay Guida via split decision on June 9, 2006.

Making his debut in PRIDE FC at PRIDE Bushido 12, Melendez won by unanimous decision and followed this with another unanimous decision win over then Shooto Lightweight Champion Tatsuya Kawajiri. Returning to Strikeforce, he bested Tetsuji Kato in a non-title fight via unanimous decision.

At the year-end 2007 event Yarennoka! held at Japan’s Saitama Super Arena, Melendez experienced his first professional defeat, losing by unanimous decision to Mitsuhiro Ishida.

Strikeforce

Melendez maintained possession of the Strikeforce Lightweight title for two years before surrendering it to Josh Thomson, who won by unanimous decision (50–45 across all judges) at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Thomson on June 27, 2008.

A rematch with Thomson was scheduled for August 15, 2009, at Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg, but Thomson withdrew due to leg complications. Consequently, Mitsuhiro Ishida stepped in for Melendez’s initial Interim title defense.

On December 19, 2009, Melendez reclaimed undisputed status by defeating Thomson via unanimous decision, avenging one of his only two career losses.

He went on to defend the Strikeforce Lightweight title successfully against DREAM Lightweight Champion and former Shooto Middleweight Champion Shinya Aoki on April 17, 2010.

A second encounter with Tatsuya Kawajiri occurred on April 9, 2011, at Strikeforce 33, where Melendez dominated and secured a first-round TKO victory through a combination of strikes and takedown defense.

Following this, Melendez retained his championship against Jorge Masvidal at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal, winning by unanimous decision. UFC president Dana White had signaled intentions to integrate Melendez into the UFC roster with the possibility of an immediate title challenge.

On May 19, 2012, Melendez faced Thomson for a third time at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Cormier in San Jose, California. He emerged victorious via split decision amid contentious reactions from fans during his post-fight remarks; Thomson encouraged the audience to support Melendez despite their disagreement.

Melendez was scheduled to defend his title against Pat Healy on September 29, 2012, in Sacramento but withdrew because of injury. The cancellation of this fight led Showtime to call off the entire event, marking the second MMA card cancellation under the ownership of Zuffa within one month.

The matchup was rescheduled for January 12, 2013, at Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine, but once again Melendez pulled out due to a shoulder injury.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

On January 12, 2013, Strikeforce was officially merged into the UFC by its parent organization, Zuffa. Melendez was immediately granted a title opportunity in the UFC, making his debut against Benson Henderson on April 20, 2013, at UFC on Fox 7, where he narrowly lost via split decision.

In his sophomore UFC appearance, Melendez secured a unanimous decision victory over Diego Sanchez at UFC 166 on October 19, 2013, which earned him his inaugural Fight of the Night accolade. UFC analyst Joe Rogan praised their matchup as one of the finest he had witnessed.

Melendez was slated to compete against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 170, but the bout was called off for undisclosed reasons.

During contract discussions, rumors circulated that Melendez might join either Bellator MMA or World Series of Fighting. Although he initially accepted Bellator's offer, the UFC matched it, leading Melendez to re-sign with the promotion. He also took on a coaching role in The Ultimate Fighter 20, ultimately facing UFC Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis at UFC 181 on December 6, 2014, where he was defeated by guillotine choke in the second round.

On June 13, 2015, Melendez faced off against Eddie Alvarez at UFC 188, losing by split decision. Subsequently, he was removed from a scheduled fight against Al Iaquinta at UFC Fight Night 71 on July 15, 2015, after testing positive for banned substances following UFC 188 and received a suspension lasting one year.

Melendez made his return to competition against Edson Barboza on July 23, 2016, at UFC on Fox 20, where he was defeated via unanimous decision. He then moved to featherweight to fight Jeremy Stephens at UFC 215 on September 9, 2017; despite losing by unanimous decision, both fighters earned the Fight of the Night distinction.

Melendez was set to battle Arnold Allen at The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale on November 30, 2018; however, due to injury, he withdrew and was replaced by Rick Glenn. The two eventually met at UFC 239 on July 6, 2019, where Melendez lost by unanimous decision.

On November 11, 2019, the UFC officially released Melendez from their roster.

Personal life

Melendez and his wife Keri Anne Taylor-Melendez have a daughter born on August 8, 2010. Keri Anne is a professional Muay Thai competitor with a record of ten wins and two losses and has also secured a knockout victory in MMA competition.

Film and television

Melendez appeared alongside teammates Jake Shields and the Diaz brothers in the acclaimed MMA documentary Fight Life, directed by James Z. Feng and released in 2013. Additionally, he has contributed as a commentator and analyst for ESPN Pay Per View events and served as a coach during season 20 of The Ultimate Fighter, titled A Champion Will Be Crowned, for the UFC.

Championships and accomplishments

  • Strikeforce
    • Strikeforce Lightweight Championship (Two-time champion; last titleholder)
      • Successfully defended title five times
    • Interim Strikeforce Lightweight Championship (One-time champion)
      • One successful defense
    • Holds record for most title fight victories in Strikeforce history (9)
    • Most championship bouts contested in Strikeforce history (10)
    • Record for most successful title defenses in Strikeforce history (6)
    • Longest streak of consecutive title defenses in Strikeforce history (4)
    • Highest number of wins recorded in Strikeforce history (11)
    • Most significant strikes landed within Strikeforce history (749)
  • International Fighting Championships
    • Winner of IFC Night of Warriors Amateur Tournament
  • Inside MMA
    • Received the Bazzie Award for Fight of the Year in 2013 for match vs. Diego Sanchez on October 19
  • Sports Illustrated
    • Awarded Round of the Year in 2009 for Round 5 against Josh Thomson on December 19
  • MMAFighting
    • Named Lightweight of the Year in 2006

Mixed martial arts record

|- |Loss |align=center|22–8 |Arnold Allen |Unanimous decision |UFC 239 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Loss |align=center|22–7 |Jeremy Stephens |Unanimous decision |UFC 215 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Edmonton, Alberta, Canada | | |- |Loss |align=center|22–6 |Edson Barboza |Unanimous decision |UFC on Fox: Holm vs. Shevchenko | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Chicago, Illinois, United States | |- |Loss |align=center|22–5 |Eddie Alvarez |Split decision |UFC 188 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Mexico City, Mexico | |- |Loss |align=center|22–4 |Anthony Pettis |Submission (guillotine choke) |UFC 181 | |align=center|2 |align=center|min1:53 | |- |- |Win 

|align=center |22–3
|Diego Sanchez
|Unanimous decision
|UFC 166
| 
|align=center |3
|align=center |5:00
|
|- 
|- |Loss
|align=center |21–3
|Benson Henderson
|Split decision
|UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Melendez
| 
|align=center |5
|align=center |5:00
|
|- 
|- |Win
|align=center |21–2
|Josh Thomson
|Split decision
|Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Cormier
| 
|align=center |5
|align=center |5:00
|
|- 
|- |Win
|align=center |20–2
|Jorge Masvidal
|Unanimous decision
|Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal
| 
|align=center |5
|align=center |5:00
|
|- 
|- |Win
|align=center |19–2
|Tatsuya Kawajiri
|TKO (elbows)
|Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley
| 
|align=center |1
|align=center|min3:14 |
|- 
|- || Win || align=center ||18–2|| Shinya Aoki || Unanimous decision || Strikeforce: Nashville ||  || align=center || 5 || align=center ||5:00||

|- |- || Win || align=center ||17–2|| Josh Thomson || Unanimous decision || Strikeforce: Evolution || || align=center || 5 || align=center ||5:00|| |- |- || Win || align=center ||16–2|| Mitsuhiro Ishida || TKO (punches) || Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg || || align=center || 3 || align=center|min3:56|| |- |- || Win || align=center ||15–2|| Rodrigo Damm || KO (punches) || Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz || || align=center || 2 || align=center|min2:02|| |- |- Loss||14–2||Josh Thomson||Unanimous decision||Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Thomson||||align=center||5||align=center||5:00|| |- |- Win||14–1||Gabe Lemley||TKO (punches)||Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Le||||align=center||2||align=center|min2:18|| |- |- Loss||13–1||Mitsuhiro Ishida||Unanimous decision||Yarennoka!||||align=center||2||align=center||5:00|| |- |- Win||13–0||Tetsuji Kato||Unanimous decision||Strikeforce: Playboy Mansion||||align=center||3||align=center||5:00|| |- |- Win||12–0||Tatsuya Kawajiri||Unanimous decision||Pride Shockwave 2006||||align=center||2||align=center||5:00|| |- |- Win||11–0||Nobuhiro Obiya||Unanimous decision||Pride Bushido 12||||align=center||2||align=center||5:00|| |- |- Win||10–0||Clay Guida||Split decision||Strikeforce: Revenge||||align=center||5||align=center||5:00|| |- |- Win|||9–0|||Harris Sarmiento|||Submission (punches)||Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Gracie||||||align=center|||2|||align=center|||0:44|| |- |- Win|||8–0|||Rumina Sato|||TKO (doctor stoppage)||Shooto: Alive Road||||||align=center|||1|||align=center|||1:32|| |- |- Win|||7–0|||Naoya Uematsu|||TKO (doctor stoppage)||Shooto: Korakuen Hall||||||align=center|||2|||align=center|||4:30|| |- |- Win|||6–0|||Hiroyuki Takaya|||Unanimous decision||Shooto Year End Show 2004||||||align=center|||3|||align=center|||5:00|| |- |- Win|||5–0|||Kaynan Kaku|||TKO (punches)||Rumble on the Rock 6||||||align=center|||2|||align=center|||3:58|| |- |- Win|||4–0|||Olaf Alfonso|||TKO (punches)||WEC 10||||||align=center|||3|||align=center|||4:54|| |- |- Win|||3–0|||Stephen Palling|||TKO (punches)||Rumble on the Rock 4||||||align=center|||2|||align-center|||4:59|| |- |- Win|||2–0|||Jeff Hougland|||TKO (punches)||WEC 6||||||align-center|||2|||align-center|min2:05|| |- |- Win|||1–0|||Greg Quan|||TKO (punches)||WEC 5 Halloween Havoc||||||align-center|||1|||min4:37||


See also

External links

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