Nicolae Negumereanu

Nicolae Negumereanu (born September 4, 1994), commonly known as Nick Negumereanu, is a Romanian mixed martial artist (MMA) who currently competes in the Light heavyweight division in the UFC.

Nicolae Negumereanu
BornNicolae Negumereanu
(1994-09-04) September 4, 1994
Brașov, Romania
NationalityRomanian
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight206 lb (93 kg; 14.7 st)
DivisionHeavyweight
Light Heavyweight
Reach78 in (198 cm)[1]
StyleWrestling
Fighting out ofBrașov, Romania
TeamCorona Brașov
TrainerNinel Ianculescu
WrestlingFreestyle Wrestling
Years active2016–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total15
Wins13
By knockout8
By submission3
By decision2
Losses2
By knockout1
By decision1
SpouseNegumereanu Elena
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Medal record
Men's freestyle wrestling
Romania Senior National Championships
Gold medal – first place 2018 97 kg[2]
Silver medal – second place 2017 125 kg[3]
Romanian Senior Cup
Silver medal – second place 2019 97 kg[4]
Silver medal – second place 2018 97 kg[5]
Silver medal – second place 2017 125 kg[6]

A former Real Xtreme Fighting (RXF) Light Heavyweight champion, Negumereanu is known for making his entrance in a traditional Dacian hat called pileus.[7]

Background

Starting wrestling when he was 15 years old, he was able to become a national wrestling champion and a national kempo champion. He changed his mind and shifted his focus to MMA after seeing one of his friends compete at an RXF show.[8]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

He made his pro-MMA debut on October 10, 2016, against Alexandru Gavrila. Nicolae was victorious in his first MMA bout via a TKO. He went undefeated fighting mostly in Real Xtreme Fighting, with some of the opponents that he defeated being Marius Pîslaru, Constantin Pădure, Robert Orbocea, Yuri Gorbenko, and Kovács Kálmán. On November 19, 2018, he defeated Dan Konecke via Brabo Choke at RXF 32 to capture his first MMA title, the RXF Light Heavyweight Championship.[8]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Negumereanu, as a last-minute replacement for Gökhan Saki, faced Saparbek Safarov on March 16, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal in London, England.[9] Negumereanu lost the fight by unanimous decision.[10]

Due to two surgeries, one on his back and one on his knee, he would miss the next two years.[11] Negumereanu stated that he accepted the fight with Safarov only three weeks before, and he fought with a cracked hand and a cold. Later he also said that he was coming to the match with Villanueva after a meniscus operation but he did not want to cancel the match, entering unprepared again but this time winning the match.[12][13]

Negumereanu faced Aleksa Camur at UFC on ESPN: The Korean Zombie vs. Ige on June 19, 2021.[14] He won the bout via split decision. This fight had its fair share of controversy after Negumereanu repeatedly illegally held holding Camur against the fence.[15][16]

Negumereanu faced Ike Villanueva on October 23, 2021, at UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori.[17] He won the fight via knockout in round one.[18]

Negumereanu was scheduled to face Ihor Potieria on March 5, 2022, at UFC 272.[19] However, Potieria pulled out of the bout and was replaced by Kennedy Nzechukwu.[20] Negumereanu won the fight via split decision.[21] 8 out of 15 media scores gave it to Nzechukwu, while 6 scored it a draw, with only one giving it to Negumereanu.[22]

Negumereanu was scheduled to face Alonzo Menifield on June 4, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 207.[23] However, Negumereanu was removed from the event for undisclosed reasons and he was replaced by Askar Mozharov.[24]

Negumereanu faced Ihor Potieria on July 30, 2022 at UFC 277.[25] He won the fight via technical knockout in the second round.[26]

Negumereanu faced Carlos Ulberg on November 12, 2022, at UFC 281.[27] He lost the fight via knockout in the first round.[28]

Personal life

He has 3 brothers, their father died when Nicolae was 10 years old. Negumereanu worked from the age of 14-15 to support his family. He declared that if he had had better performances in wrestling than being national champion, he probably would not have started MMA. He was active in wrestling for only 4-5 years and already after 2 years he started defeating opponents with 10 years of experience.[29] Later, Negumereanu also studied BJJ in Brașov, Romania.[30] He also said that MMA is not developed in Romania, unlike the much more popular kickboxing, and that it has only been practiced for 5 years. At one point, Negumereanu trained only on the striking part of kickboxing, and the former coach did not manage to improve his ground part.[31]

He also trained at the UFC Performance Institute.[32]

Nicolae Negumereanu is an Eastern Orthodox Christian. He said his idol is Lucian Bute, and that he was also inspired by Leonard Dorin Doroftei and Alexandru Lungu. He would like to end up like Conor McGregor and have a match with Jon Jones.[11]

Nicolae says that he is passionate about Dacian culture (Dacology) and listens to Subcarpați's music. He worked for many years as a security guard.[33]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
15 matches 13 wins 2 losses
By knockout 8 1
By submission 3 0
By decision 2 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 13–2 Carlos Ulberg KO (punches) UFC 281 November 12, 2022 1 3:44 New York City, New York, United States
Win 13–1 Ihor Potieria TKO (knees and punches) UFC 277 July 30, 2022 2 3:33 Dallas, Texas, United States
Win 12–1 Kennedy Nzechukwu Decision (split) UFC 272 March 5, 2022 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Nzechukwu was deducted one point in round 3 due to repeated eye pokes.
Win 11–1 Ike Villanueva TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori October 23, 2021 1 1:18 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 10–1 Aleksa Camur Decision (split) UFC on ESPN: The Korean Zombie vs. Ige June 19, 2021 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 9–1 Saparbek Safarov Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal March 16, 2019 3 5:00 London, England Safarov was deducted one point in round 1 for continuously grabbing the cage.
Win 9–0 Dan Konecke Submission (brabo choke) RXF 32 November 19, 2018 2 0:30 Brașov, Romania Won the RXF Light Heavyweight Championship.
Win 8–0 Kálmán Kovács Submission (rear-naked choke) RXF 31 October 1, 2018 1 3:12 Cluj-Napoca, Romania Heavyweight bout.
Win 7–0 Olutobi Ayodeji Kalejaiye TKO (punches) RXF 29 December 18, 2017 2 3:04 Brașov, Romania Light Heavyweight debut.
Win 6–0 Yuri Gorbenko TKO (retirement) RXF 28 October 30, 2017 2 5:00 Brașov, Romania
Win 5–0 Hatef Moeil TKO (doctor stoppage) Superior FC 18 September 16, 2017 1 2:35 Ludwigshafen, Germany
Win 4–0 Robert Orbocea TKO (punches) RXF 27 July 29, 2017 1 1:55 Piatra Neamț, Romania
Win 3–0 Constantin Pădure Submission (armbar) RXF 26 April 25, 2017 2 1:08 Brașov, Romania
Win 2–0 Marius Pîslaru TKO (punches) RXF 25 December 19, 2016 1 0:57 Ploiești, Romania
Win 1–0 Alex Gavrilă TKO (punches) RXF 24 October 10, 2016 1 0:10 Brașov, Romania Heavyweight debut.

[34]

See also

References
  1. "Stats | UFC". ufcstats.com.
  2. Lupte. Colectie de medalii la Nationale, Dinamo – locul 1 la greco-romane, locul 2 la libere
  3. Nicu Negumereanu, vicecampion național
  4. Lupte. Rareș Chintoan a câștigat Cupa Românie
  5. Lupte. Alin Alexuc si Stefan Daniliuc au castigat Cupa Romaniei
  6. Lupte. Dinamo, noua clasari pe podium la Cupa Romaniei
  7. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea a 4-a. Ce planuri are în UFC, după prima victorie obținută
  8. Marian, Stoica (2021-04-26). "LUPTE: Brașoveanul Nicolae Negumereanu este singurul român din UFC!". Sport Brasov (in Romanian). Retrieved 2021-10-23.
  9. Marcel Dorff. "Nick Negumereanu makes UFC debut against Saparbeg Saforov during UFC London". mmadna.com. Retrieved 2019-03-04.
  10. "UFC London results: Saparbek Safarov survives point deduction to defeat Nicolae Negumereanu". MMA Junkie. 2019-03-16. Retrieved 2019-03-17.
  11. "Nick Negumereanu, primul interviu după victoria istorică din UFC. Luptătorul a vorbit pentru Fanatik de pe aeroport. Exclusiv". fanatik.ro (in Romanian). 2021-06-23. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
  12. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea 1
  13. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea a 2-a. ”Mi-am imaginat cum ridic tricolorul în cușca UFC”
  14. "Nicolae Negumereanu returns from 27-month layoff, fights Aleksa Camur at UFC event on June 19". MMA Junkie. 2021-04-02. Retrieved 2021-06-17.
  15. Behunin, Alex (2021-06-19). "UFC Vegas 29 Results: Aleksa Camur Falls to Nicolae Negumereanu in Split Decision". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  16. "Aleksa Camur to appeal UFC on ESPN 25 loss after plethora of Nicolae Negumereanu fence grabs". MMA Junkie. 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
  17. Behunin, Alex. "Nick Negumereanu vs. Ike Villanueva Set For October 23 UFC Event". Cageside Press. Cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  18. Evanoff, Josh (2021-10-23). "UFC Vegas 41 Results: Nicolae Negumereanu Controversially KO's Ike Villanuenva". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
  19. "Negumereanu treft debutant Potieria tijdens UFC 272". Eurosport (in Dutch). 2022-01-19. Retrieved 2022-01-19.
  20. Wannan, Jack (2022-02-04). "Kennedy Nzechukwu Steps In To Face Nick Negumereanu At UFC 272". Knockdown News. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
  21. McClory, Mike (2022-03-05). "UFC 272: Nicolae Negumereanu Survives Eye Pokes, Wins Split Decision Against Kennedy Nzechukwu". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
  22. "Nicolae Negumereanu def. Kennedy Nzechukwu :: UFC 272 :: MMA Decisions". www.mmadecisions.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  23. Behunin, Alex (2022-04-28). "Alonzo Menifield vs. Nicolae Negumereanu Added To June 4 UFC Fight Night". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  24. Behunin, Alex (2022-04-29). "UFC: Negumereanu Out, Askar Mozharov In Against Alonzo Menifield on June 4". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2022-04-29.
  25. "UFC 277 | Alles wat je moet weten over UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes 2". Eurosport (in Dutch). 2022-05-12. Retrieved 2022-05-26.
  26. Theodosi, Jamie (2022-07-30). "UFC 277: Nicolae Negumereanu Overwhelms Ihor Potieria". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  27. "Carlos Ulberg vs. Nicolae Negumereanu agregado a UFC 281 - MMA.uno , #1 En noticias de Artes Marciales Mixtas (MMA) en Español". mma.uno (in Spanish). 2022-08-25. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  28. Val Dewar (2022-11-12). "UFC 281: Carlos Ulberg Sleeps Nicolae Negumereanu In First Round". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2022-11-12.
  29. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea 1
  30. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea a 2-a. ”Mi-am imaginat cum ridic tricolorul în cușca UFC”
  31. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea a 3-a. ”Îmi doresc să ajung la nivelul lui McGregor”
  32. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea a 4-a. Ce planuri are în UFC, după prima victorie obținută
  33. Nicolae Negumereanu la AS.ro LIVE, partea a 4-a. Ce planuri are în UFC, după prima victorie obținută
  34. Sherdog.com. "Nicolae-Negumereanu". Sherdog. Retrieved 2019-03-16.
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