Joaquin Buckley Biography: Joaquin Yuconri Buckley born April 27, 1994 is an American professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the UFC’s welterweight division. Competing professionally since 2014, he has previously fought in promotions such as Bellator MMA and Legacy Fighting Alliance. As of April 29, 2026, Buckley is ranked #7 in the UFC welterweight rankings.
Joaquin Buckley Biography
Joaquin Buckley is a 31-year-old American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the UFC’s welterweight division. Since turning pro in 2014, Buckley has built a record of 16 wins and 6 losses, including 12 victories by knockout and 4 first-round finishes. Before securing a multi-fight contract with the UFC, he fought in several other promotions, including Bellator MMA, Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA), and Shamrock FC.
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Visit Express VPNJoaquin Buckley Biography 2026 Details
| Born | Joaquin Yuconri Buckley April 27, 1994 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Other names | New Mansa |
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb) |
| Division | Middleweight (2019–2022) Welterweight (2014–2018, 2023–present) |
| Reach | 76 in (193 cm) |
| Style | Wrestling |
| Fighting out of | St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Team | Finney’s MMA (2012–present) Murcielago MMA (2020–present) |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Category | WWE News |
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About Joaquin Buckley
Joaquin Yuconri Buckley is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional since 2014, he has also formerly competed for Bellator MMA and Legacy Fighting Alliance.
Joaquin Buckley Achievements
Nicknamed “New Mansa,” Buckley stepped into the UFC cage for the first time against Kevin Holland on August 8, 2020, at UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas—and, well, it didn’t go his way, ending in a third-round TKO. Over the next three years, he fought ten times, learning more from the scrapes and near-wins than any highlight reel could show. He started out in middleweight but eventually dropped back down to welterweight, most recently facing Andre Fialho, proving that whether it’s a stumble or a win, Buckley’s never afraid to take the next fight and see what happens.
Joaquin Buckley Wiki
- Born: 27 April 1994 (age 31 years), St. Louis, Missouri, United States
- Style: Wrestling
- Weight: 77 kg
- Height: 1.73 m
- Nickname: New Mansa
- Education: Marquette High School
- Division: Middleweight (2019–2022); Welterweight (2014–2018, 2023–present)
Early Life
Buckley grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, mostly under the care of his mom and grandmother, which meant early lessons in toughness and figuring life out fast. Losing his mom in sixth grade hit Buckley like a freight train, and suddenly wrestling mats felt tiny compared to the anger and grief he was carrying. Marquette High gave him a place to throw himself at something real when words didn’t work, and somewhere between bruised ribs, scraped knees, and long nights of replaying every mistake, that restless energy slowly morphed into an obsession with fighting.
What happened to Buckley’s mother and father?
As he grew up in a matriarchal household, ‘New Mansa’ understood the importance of women in one’s life. “My mom was the really strict one. I had to be in the house at a certain time, I had to do my homework, and I had to get everything done,” said Buckley told ‘MMA Junkie’ in 2015. ‘New Mansa’ considered his grandmother to be his role model and also credited his grandparents for instilling various things in him. According to him, “My grandma was more lenient. She would encourage me to get out and be creative and have fun.” His grandmother’s efforts led Buckley to write stories when he was younger, during a time when he kept more to himself.
Well, things changed when he was in the sixth grade as he lost his mother due to some heart condition. After losing his only parent, Buckley turned a little bit numb, but he found solace in fighting. Well, the fighter is looking to make his lineage proud as he is claiming the ranks. Regardless, what’s your take on Joaquin Buckley? Can he slay Colby Covington to climb further up the rankings this weekend? State your thoughts in the comments below.
All about Joaquin Buckley’s race, nationality, and ethnicity
Born on April 27, 1994, Joaquin Buckley started his MMA training when he was in high school by making wrestling his base. ‘New Mansa’ eventually grew his interest in the field of MMA and soon transitioned to fighting full-time. Born and brought up in the streets of St. Louis, Missouri, Buckley started training in MMA in a gym in his hometown. Immigration reports suggest that a massive number of people named ‘Buckley’ came to the States during the peak of wartime. Regardless, there might be multiple reasons why ‘New Mansa’ has such a name. Well, now that we know about his ethnicity and nationality. Let us have a look at his parents.
Mixed Martial Arts Career
Buckley started his pro MMA grind in 2014, picking up a 10–2 record while bouncing around Shamrock FC, Bellator, and LFA—the kind of early hustle that makes you respect a fighter long before he hits the big stage. One of his first real tests was against Logan Storley at Bellator 197 in 2018, and yeah, he lost by unanimous decision—painful, but part of paying dues in this brutal sport. After a couple of TKO wins in LFA, the UFC called, and Buckley plunged straight into the deep end against Kevin Holland in August 2020, just a week after another LFA victory—talk about getting thrown into the fire—and ended up stopped in the third round. Then came a last-minute shake-up: he was set to face Abu Azaitar in October, who suddenly bailed, leaving Buckley with Impa Kasanganay instead.
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Joaquin Buckley Net Worth 2026
Joaquin Buckley’s net worth sits around $1 million, which is honestly impressive for a guy still climbing the UFC ranks. Hailing from St. Louis, Missouri, most of that comes from actually getting in the cage and delivering the kind of highlight-reel moments fans lose their minds over. But he’s not just punching and kicking for a living—he’s smart about it, too. Social media deals, like the one with PureFuel before his UFC Fight Night bout against Dawson in Las Vegas, pad the paycheck, and his personal website doubles as a little entrepreneurial playground where he’s open to sponsors, endorsements, and anything else that screams “I’m making this work.” It’s the mix of being a rising UFC star and a hustling, slightly nerdy business-minded fighter that makes his story feel real, messy, and worth following.
Joaquin Buckley Salary
Buckley walked into the cage against Andre Fialho at UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Hill on May 20, 2026, with a paycheck on the line that could make anyone’s eyes pop—$260,000 all told, with $150K just for showing up, a $100K bonus for actually winning, and a humble $10K from sponsors that feels like pocket change next to the octagon chaos. And chaos it was—he didn’t just scrape by; he finished Fialho with a TKO at 4:15 of the second round, the kind of victory that makes announcers lose their minds and fans spill their drinks. Watching it, there’s a mix of awe and “holy crap, that’s brutal,” and yeah, the numbers are nice, but the real thrill is seeing all that sweat and risk translate into something as raw and satisfying as a perfectly timed strike.
