Bantamweight · “Sexi Mexi”
John Castaneda
19-8-1 UFC 4-5-1
Forward Pressure
Precision Striker
Hittable
5'6"Height
71"Reach
SwitchStance
34Age
1KO wins
1Sub wins
50.0%Finish rate
13:05Avg fight
Skill profile
striking
good
1 read
grappling
good
1 read
wrestling
not yet read
cardio
not yet read
durability
not yet read
Forward Pressure
5.0 landed and 5.1 absorbed per minute — he turns fights into firefights
Precision Striker
above avg accuracy — rates 84 of 100 among UFC veterans
Hittable
absorbs 5.1 significant strikes per minute
Career rates — the raw numbers behind the chart
Sig. strikes landed / min5.0
Sig. strikes absorbed / min5.07
Striking accuracy51.9%
Striking defense54.7%
Knockdowns / 15 min0.46
Takedowns / 15 min1.26
Takedown accuracy39.3%
Takedown defense74.2%
Sub attempts / 15 min0.34
Control time14.8%
Record vs .500+ opponents2-4
Insider info
Mark Vologdin favored — picked against John Castaneda lean UFC Fight Night: Burns vs Malott · April 12, 2026
strikinggood
grapplinggood
Picked on pace and style, with the analyst also weighing a much deeper competition history in his favor.
Built leaner and longer than most at his weight, which could create stylistic problems for the opponent; he's even moved up a division on short notice before. His striking is solid across the board -- he pushes forward, throws in real volume, moves well, and fights with a somewhat unpredictable, scrambly style. His grappling stands out too, with his wrestling drawing particular praise -- he has a signature wrinkle of shooting a takedown mid-exchange, making the level change look like just another strike on the way. He scrambles well and owns a genuinely strong arm triangle, having finished a legitimately solid opponent with it before. His pace holds up against high-output opponents, and he's campaigned against a considerably tougher level of competition than the man across from him here.
Strengthdisguises takedown entries as more strikes mid-exchange
Strengthstrong arm triangle, including a finish over a legitimately solid opponent
Strengthholds pace against high-output opponents and has faced tougher competition than this opponent
Weaknessfights with a somewhat wild, unpredictable rhythm on the feet
Striking trend
Fight history
L Alatengheili 17-10-2 walk-in Decision - Split · R3 5:00 — UFC Fight Night: Rosas Jr. vs. Barcelos · September 26, 2026
55/101Sig. strikes
28/115Absorbed
0/0Takedowns
0:25Control
0Knockdowns
2Sub attempts
D Mark Vologdin 0-0 walk-in Decision - Majority · R3 5:00 — UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Malott · April 18, 2026
135/253Sig. strikes
91/217Absorbed
0/0Takedowns
1:15Control
0Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
L Chris Gutierrez 21-6-2 walk-in Decision - Split · R3 5:00 — UFC Fight Night: Machado Garry vs. Prates · April 26, 2025
41/77Sig. strikes
46/85Absorbed
1/1Takedowns
4:50Control
0Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
L Daniel Marcos 15-0 walk-in Decision - Unanimous · R3 5:00 — UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Imavov · June 8, 2024
60/123Sig. strikes
98/171Absorbed
1/5Takedowns
2:12Control
0Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
W Kyung Ho Kang 8-3 walk-in Decision - Unanimous · R3 5:00 — UFC 295: Prochazka vs. Pereira · November 11, 2023
111/179Sig. strikes
88/202Absorbed
3/8Takedowns
2:18Control
0Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
W Muin Gafurov 0-0 walk-in Decision - Unanimous · R3 5:00 — UFC Fight Night: Kara-France vs. Albazi · June 3, 2023
40/88Sig. strikes
61/157Absorbed
3/6Takedowns
4:16Control
1Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
L Daniel Santos 10-2 walk-in KO/TKO · R2 4:28 — UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Yan · October 1, 2022
57/106Sig. strikes
69/134Absorbed
3/6Takedowns
2:04Control
1Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
W Miles Johns 12-1 walk-in Submission · R3 1:38 — UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Strickland · February 5, 2022
58/147Sig. strikes
34/85Absorbed
0/1Takedowns
1:45Control
1Knockdowns
1Sub attempts
W Eddie Wineland 24-14-1 walk-in KO/TKO · R1 4:44 — UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Lewis · February 20, 2021
42/57Sig. strikes
17/66Absorbed
0/0Takedowns
0:04Control
1Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
L Nathaniel Wood 15-4 walk-in Decision - Unanimous · R3 5:00 — UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. Till · July 25, 2020
55/130Sig. strikes
131/232Absorbed
0/1Takedowns
0:11Control
0Knockdowns
0Sub attempts
Walk-in records count UFC bouts in this database. For the pre-UFC career, see the record breakdown below or the Tapology button up top.
Record breakdown
Wins by method
KO/TKO
7
Submission
6
Decision
6
Other
0
Losses by method
KO/TKO
2
Submission
0
Decision
6
Other
0
Draws: 1
Fights by organization
UFC
9
Combate Americas
9
Driller Promotions
6
KOTC
2
Dana White's Contender Series
1
RFA
1
Full career — 28 fights, every organization
| Opponent | Method | Event | Org | Rd | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | Mark Vologdin | Draw (majority) | UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Malott
April 18, 2026 |
UFC | 3 | 5:00 |
| L | Chris Gutiérrez | Decision (split) | UFC on ESPN: Machado Garry vs. Prates
April 26, 2025 |
UFC | 3 | 5:00 |
| L | Daniel Marcos | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Cannonier vs. Imavov
June 8, 2024 |
UFC | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Kang Kyung-ho | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 295
November 11, 2023 |
UFC | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Muin Gafurov | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Kara-France vs. Albazi
June 3, 2023 |
UFC | 3 | 5:00 |
| L | Daniel Santos | KO (punches and knee) | UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Yan
October 1, 2022 |
UFC | 2 | 4:28 |
| W | Miles Johns | Technical Submission (arm-triangle choke) | UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Strickland
February 5, 2022 |
UFC | 3 | 1:38 |
| W | Eddie Wineland | TKO (punches) | UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Lewis
February 20, 2021 |
UFC | 1 | 4:44 |
| L | Nathaniel Wood | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Till
July 26, 2020 |
UFC | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Marcelo Rojo | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Combate Americas 35
April 12, 2019 |
Combate Americas | 3 | 2:37 |
| L | José Alday | Decision (split) | Combate Americas 20
April 13, 2018 |
Combate Americas | 3 | 5:00 |
| L | Levy Saúl Marroquín | Decision (unanimous) | Combate Americas 18
November 11, 2017 |
Combate Americas | 3 | 3:00 |
| W | Cheyden Leialoha | Decision (unanimous) | Dana White's Contender Series 4
August 1, 2017 |
Dana White's Contender Series | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Chris Beal | TKO (punches) | Combate Americas 14
May 5, 2017 |
Combate Americas | 2 | 0:42 |
| W | Gustavo Lopez | TKO (punches) | Combate Americas 9
October 14, 2016 |
Combate Americas | 4 | 2:24 |
| W | Angel Cruz | TKO (punches) | Combate Americas 8
August 11, 2016 |
Combate Americas | 2 | 2:25 |
| W | Gabriel Solorio | Decision (split) | Combate Americas 6
April 25, 2016 |
Combate Americas | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Federico Lopez | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Combate Americas: Road to the Championship 2
December 16, 2015 |
Combate Americas | 3 | 4:49 |
| W | Justin Governale | Decision (unanimous) | Combate Americas: Road to the Championship 1
September 17, 2015 |
Combate Americas | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Joe Pearson | TKO (punches) | KOTC: Power Surge
August 22, 2015 |
KOTC | 1 | 2:47 |
| W | Pedro Velasco | Submission (rear-naked choke) | KOTC: Total Dominance
May 16, 2015 |
KOTC | 1 | 2:42 |
| L | Matt Brown | Decision (split) | RFA 19
October 10, 2014 |
RFA | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Ruddy Gray | TKO (punches) | Driller Promotions: Live MMA at 7 Clans Casino
July 26, 2014 |
Driller Promotions | 2 | 3:17 |
| L | Matt Brown | TKO (punches) | Driller Promotions: Mecca 5
May 31, 2014 |
Driller Promotions | 1 | 2:22 |
| W | Derrick Mandell | Decision (unanimous) | Driller Promotions: Caged Chaos at Canterbury Park 5
February 22, 2014 |
Driller Promotions | 3 | 5:00 |
| W | Adam Schumacher | TKO (submission to punches) | Driller Promotions: Mecca 2
November 2, 2013 |
Driller Promotions | 1 | 3:32 |
| W | Bruce Johnson | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Driller Promotions: Downtown Showdown 12
January 26, 2013 |
Driller Promotions | 1 | 2:32 |
| W | Brandon Abrego | KO (punch) | Driller Promotions: Caged Chaos at Canterbury Park 1
September 22, 2012 |
Driller Promotions | 1 | 0:36 |
Career history from the fighter's Wikipedia record table (John Castañeda) — results only, no strike stats; UFC bouts are marked and carry full stats in the fight history above.