Ben Nguyen or Nguyễn Ben, (born August 3, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist who competed as a flyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he compiled a record of 4–3 with the organization. He is also a former Nitro Bantamweight Champion and[4] K-Oz Bantamweight Champion.[5]
MMA career
Early career
Nguyen began his professional mixed martial arts career while working during the day as a computer technician. In 2012 he went to Thailand to attend Tiger Muay Thai & MMA Scholar Athlete program. He then moved to Brisbane, Australia fighting from there.
Nguyen made his professional MMA debut in December 2006, losing his first fight. Over the next nearly eight years, he amassed a record of 14 wins against 5 losses and in the process became the Nitro Bantamweight Champion, K-Oz Bantamweight Champion and the number one Bantamweight in Australia in 2015.
Nguyen achieved internet fame when his March 8, 2014 fight versus Julian Wallace surfaced on YouTube. Wallace attempted to intimidate Nguyen at the pre-fight weigh-ins by forcefully putting his fist against Nguyen's chin and trying to put Nguyen off his game.[6][7] This tactic, however, proved ineffective as Nguyen knocked Wallace out within 25 seconds of the first round. The video of this fight went viral and has amassed over 58 million views on YouTube, and over 100 million views on Facebook and other social network platforms.[8][9][10]
Nguyen faced Ryan Benoit on November 15, 2015, at UFC 193.[13] He won the fight via submission in the first round.[14]
Nguyen was expected to face Justin Scoggins on March 20, 2016, at UFC Fight Night 85.[15] However, Scoggins pulled out of the fight in the week leading up to the event citing injury. As a result, Nguyen was pulled from the card entirely.[16]
Nguyen was expected to face Joseph Benavidez on June 11, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 110.[21] However, Benavidez pulled out of the fight on May 10 with a knee injury and was replaced by Tim Elliott.[22] He won the fight by submission due to a rear-naked choke in the first round.[23] The win also earned him his first Performance of the Night bonus award.[24]
Nguyen faced Jussier Formiga on February 11, 2018, at UFC 221.[25] He lost the fight via technical submission in the third round due to a rear-naked choke.[26]
Nguyen faced Wilson Reis on December 2, 2018, at UFC Fight Night 142.[27] He lost the fight via unanimous decision and was subsequently released from the promotion.[28][29]
Rizin Fighting Federation
On January 31, 2019 Rizin Fighting Federation announced Nguyen had signed for the promotion.[30] He faced Kyoji Horiguchi in a 132-pound catchweight bout on April 21, 2019, at Rizin 15.[31] Nguyen lost the fight via TKO in the first round.[32]
Personal life
Nguyen's hometown is Sioux Falls, South Dakota.[33] Nguyen said that he started Taekwondo when he was twelve years old after he was bullied in school by both White American and Black American students.[34] After high school, he went to college to become an engineer but then he switched paths to follow his dream of becoming an MMA fighter.
Nguyen met his wife, Brisbane kickboxer April Adams, while training in Thailand, eventually following her to make Brisbane his home. They married in late 2015.[35] In a 2015 video, Nguyen said that he owns two cats which were both about a year old.[36] Nguyen said that he likes cars and motorcycles.[37]
Ben is a fan of the anime Hajime no Ippo. He's said that the show had been an inspiration to him as long as he's been fighting. He uses "Inner Light," one of the anime's opening songs, as his intro song for his fights.[38]
^In a video titled, "Ben Nguyen anxious to fight again in Sioux Falls after eight years away from home", which was published to YouTube on July 11, 2016, someone off camera asked Nguyen, "Give us an idea of what it's like. This is a fight you wanted. You got it, so how's it feel to be here now?". Nguyen said, "It's, it's like living a dream almost, like I woulda never have thought UFC woulda came to my hometown of Sioux Falls, but, um, yeah, I just can't, it kinda came full circle for me. Um, when I started my journey, and I uh went to Tiger Muay Thai, in Thailand, uh to train, and get a little bit of extra knowledge, um, you know. I lived in Australia for a bit, now I'm back here in Sioux Falls, my hometown, so it's, for the UFC, so that's even, like, I can't even put words to describe it. It's just, it's just surreal. It's like a dream." A person off camera asked Nguyen, "Are, are you living here again?" Nguyen responded, "No, I'm not living here permanently right now, but um, no I always come back every, uh, every year to visit my mom and dad, and uh, my whole family's out here, so, it's good." The first question by the person off camera starts at the beginning of the video, and the first question ends at the 0:05 mark of the video. Nguyen's first response starts at the 0:05 mark of the video, and his first response ends at the 0:37 mark of the video. The second question by the person off camera starts at the 0:36 mark of the video, and that question ends at the 0:38 mark of the video. Nguyen's second response starts at the 0:38 mark of the video, and Nguyen's second response ends at the 0:51 mark of the video.
^Nguyen talks about himself in a video that was published to YouTube on April 3, 2013. From the 6:43 mark of the video to the 6:52 mark of the video, Nguyen said, "Taekwondo, I started when I was twelve, after uh I got bullied in school. My mom threw me into martial arts."
^In a video that was published to YouTube on December 2, 2015, Nguyen said that he owns two cats. From the 2:13 mark of the video to the 2:25 mark of the video, Nguyen said, "So, I've got two cats. Uh, they're about a year old. Their names uh Tofu and Yuki, and uh I take good care of them, and play with them throughout the day. They kinda keep me sane, you know, just cutting weight and stuff."
^Nguyen talked about himself in a video that was published to YouTube on December 2, 2015. From the 2:25 mark of the video to the 2:38 mark of the video, Nguyen said, "I really like, cars and motorcycles. I just love riding, just love the, the freedom of just, not being enclosed in a, a steel cage, and, even though like I fight one sometimes. Ha! Ha!"
