• Champion
  • Women's Bantamweight
  • 🇺🇸 USA

Kayla Harrison Record, stats and next fight

19-1-0 (W-L-D)

6Wins by knockout
8Wins by submission
9First round finishes
Portrait de Kayla Harrison, combattant de MMA
Photo : Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Stats and record

20Pro fights
74%Finish rate
3UFC fights
1Title fights
1Performance bonuses
4Win streak

Wins by method

KO / TKO6 (32 %)
Submission8 (42 %)
Decision5 (26 %)

Losses by method

KO / TKO0 (0 %)
Submission0 (0 %)
Decision1 (100 %)

Profile

Age
36 years
Born
July 2, 1990
Birthplace
Middletown, Ohio, USA
Height
5'8" (173 cm)
Weight
134 lbs (61 kg)
Reach
66" (168 cm)
Division
Women's Bantamweight
Fighting out of
Coconut Creek, Florida, U.S.
Team
American Top Team
Trainer
Jimmy Pedro
UFC debut
April 13, 2024

Fight history

  1. Win

    vs Julianna Peña Title Bonus

    UFC 316 · Jun 7, 2025 · Newark, New Jersey, United States

    Method
    Submission (kimura)
    Round
    2
    Time
    4:55
  2. Win

    vs Ketlen Vieira

    UFC 307 · Oct 5, 2024 · Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

    Method
    Decision (unanimous)
    Round
    3
    Time
    5:00
  3. Win

    vs Holly Holm

    UFC 300 · Apr 13, 2024 · Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

    Method
    Submission (rear-naked choke)
    Round
    2
    Time
    1:47
  4. Win

    vs Aspen Ladd

    PFL 10 (2023) · Nov 24, 2023 · Washington, D.C., United States

    Method
    Decision (unanimous)
    Round
    3
    Time
    5:00
  5. Loss

    vs Larissa Pacheco

    PFL 10 (2022) · Nov 25, 2022 · New York City, New York, United States

    Method
    Decision (unanimous)
    Round
    5
    Time
    5:00
  6. Win

    vs Martina Jindrová

    PFL 9 (2022) · Aug 20, 2022 · London, England

    Method
    Submission (arm-triangle choke)
    Round
    1
    Time
    3:17
  7. Win

    vs Kaitlin Young

    PFL 6 (2022) · Jul 1, 2022 · Atlanta, Georgia, United States

    Method
    TKO (punches)
    Round
    1
    Time
    2:35
  8. Win

    vs Marina Mokhnatkina

    PFL 3 (2022) · May 6, 2022 · Arlington, Texas, United States

    Method
    Decision (unanimous)
    Round
    3
    Time
    5:00
Show 12 earlier fights
  1. Win

    vs Taylor Guardado

    PFL 10 (2021) · Oct 27, 2021 · Hollywood, Florida, United States

    Method
    Submission (armbar)
    Round
    2
    Time
    4:00
  2. Win

    vs Genah Fabian

    PFL 8 (2021) · Aug 19, 2021 · Hollywood, Florida, United States

    Method
    TKO (punches)
    Round
    1
    Time
    4:01
  3. Win

    vs Cindy Dandois

    PFL 6 (2021) · Jun 25, 2021 · Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States

    Method
    Submission (armbar)
    Round
    1
    Time
    4:44
  4. Win

    vs Mariana Morais

    PFL 3 (2021) · May 6, 2021 · Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States

    Method
    TKO (punches)
    Round
    1
    Time
    1:23
  5. Win

    vs Courtney King

    Invicta FC 43 · Nov 20, 2020 · Kansas City, Kansas, United States

    Method
    TKO (punches)
    Round
    2
    Time
    4:48
  6. Win

    vs Larissa Pacheco

    PFL 10 (2019) · Dec 31, 2019 · New York City, New York, United States

    Method
    Decision (unanimous)
    Round
    5
    Time
    5:00
  7. Win

    vs Bobbi Jo Dalziel

    PFL 7 (2019) · Oct 11, 2019 · Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

    Method
    Submission (armbar)
    Round
    1
    Time
    3:32
  8. Win

    vs Morgan Frier

    PFL 4 (2019) · Jul 11, 2019 · Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States

    Method
    Submission (keylock)
    Round
    1
    Time
    3:35
  9. Win

    vs Larissa Pacheco

    PFL 1 (2019) · May 9, 2019 · Uniondale, New York, United States

    Method
    Decision (unanimous)
    Round
    3
    Time
    5:00
  10. Win

    vs Moriel Charneski

    PFL 11 (2018) · Dec 31, 2018 · New York City, New York, United States

    Method
    TKO (punches)
    Round
    1
    Time
    3:39
  11. Win

    vs Jozette Cotton

    PFL 6 (2018) · Aug 16, 2018 · Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States

    Method
    TKO (punches)
    Round
    3
    Time
    1:24
  12. Win

    vs Brittney Elkin

    PFL 2 (2018) · Jun 21, 2018 · Chicago, Illinois, United States

    Method
    Submission (armbar)
    Round
    1
    Time
    3:18

Analysis

Kayla Harrison, a two-time Olympic judo champion turned MMA fighter, competes in the UFC women’s bantamweight division. She entered the sport through American judo and has carried a rare mastery of ground fighting into MMA.

Career

Born Kayla Jean Harrison on July 2, 1990, in Middletown, Ohio, she trained in judo under Jimmy Pedro and became the first American woman to win Olympic judo gold, in 2012 in London, then defended her title in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, in the under-78-kilogram division. She also won the 2010 world title in Tokyo and earned her sixth-degree black belt in 2016, becoming the youngest American to reach that rank. After the Rio Games, she turned to professional MMA and trains at American Top Team, while keeping Jimmy Pedro as her coach for the judo side of her game. This move from the mat to the cage fits a personal path built on a work ethic forged in her teenage years, which Harrison regularly cites as the foundation of her success in a sport very different from where she started.

UFC Career

Kayla Harrison first built her career in the PFL, where she established herself as one of the best fighters across all weight classes, before joining the UFC at bantamweight. She beat Holly Holm by submission, a rear-naked choke, at UFC 300 in April 2024, then Ketlen Vieira by unanimous decision at UFC 307 in October 2024. On June 7, 2025, she faced Julianna Peña at UFC 316 and won by submission with an armbar, a kimura, becoming UFC women’s bantamweight world champion. That title run capped a successful transition between two Olympic and professional disciplines, with Harrison becoming one of the rare athletes to have dominated both world judo and a major professional MMA division.

Fighting Style

Judo remains the technical foundation of Kayla Harrison’s game, a discipline in which she dominated the world stage for nearly a decade. On the ground, she imposes her grappling and submission skills, especially armbars, to finish opponents. Her ability to bring a fight to the ground and stay in a dominant position offsets more limited experience in standup striking, a profile that contrasts with pure strikers in the division such as Raquel Pennington or a well-rounded technician like Zhang Weili at strawweight. Harrison’s opponents know that an extended exchange in the clinch or on the ground almost always tips in her favor, which pushes them to favor distance and movement, a tactical constraint that shapes most of her fights before the first strike is even thrown.

Record

  • MMA record: 19 wins, 1 loss
  • Wins by KO or TKO: 6
  • Wins by submission: 8
  • Wins by decision: 5
  • Title: UFC women’s bantamweight world champion since June 2025
  • Judo honors: Olympic champion in 2012 and 2016, world champion in 2010

Fighter Profile

  • Full name: Kayla Jean Harrison
  • Born: July 2, 1990, in Middletown, Ohio, USA
  • Nationality: American
  • Height: 5’8″ (173 cm)
  • Weight: 134 lbs (61 kg)
  • Reach: 5’6″ (168 cm)
  • Division: Women’s Bantamweight
  • Team: American Top Team
  • Coach: Jimmy Pedro
  • Base: Judo and grappling

Sources

Data updated on September 28, 2026. Record and measurements cross-checked against official results and Wikipedia. Text written by the MMA Official editorial team.

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