Alexey Kunchenko

Alexey Andreevich Kunchenko (Алексей Андреевич Кунченко; born May 02, 1984) is a Russian former mixed martial artist (MMA) who competed in the welterweight division. He is a former M-1 Global welterweight champion and competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Professional Fighters League (PFL).

Early career
Kunchenko started his professional MMA career since 2013 and fought primary in Russia under various promoters, notably M-1 Global. He was the M-1 Global welterweight champion and amassed a record of 18-0 prior to being signed to the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship


Kunchenko made his UFC debut on August 4, 2018 against Thiago Alves at UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Oleinik. He won the fight by unanimous decision.

His next fight came on December 1, 2018 at UFC Fight Night: dos Santos vs. Tuivasa against Yushin Okami. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Kunchenko was scheduled to face Laureano Staropoli on August 10, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 156. However, it was announced on July 29, 2019 that Staropoli was forced to pull out of the fight due to a broken nose and was replaced by Gilbert Burns. Kunchenko lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Kunchenko faced Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos on March 14, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 170. He lost the fight via a controversial unanimous decision.

Professional Fighters League
On February 18, 2021, Kunchenko announced on his Instagram that he had signed a 5 fight contract with PFL for their 2021 season, and would be competing in the organization's welterweight division.

Kunchenko was set to face fellow UFC vet Gleison Tibau on April 29, 2021 at PFL 2 as the start of the 2021 PFL Welterweight tournament. On March 25, it was announced that Kunchenko pulled out of the bout.

Kunchenko faced Sadibou Sy at PFL 5 on June 17, 2021. He lost the bout via unanimous decision.

Post PFL
Kunchenko faced Magomedsaygid Alibekov on December 3, 2022 at RCC 13, losing the bout via split decision.

Kunchenko faced Gleison Tibau on February 11, 2023 at RCC, winning the bout via unanimous decision.

Kunchenko faced Shamil Musaev on July 28, 2023 at RCC 16, getting finished in the first round after a spinning back kick to the body and ground and pound. After the bout, Kunchenko announced his retirement.

Mixed martial arts

 * M-1 Global
 * M-1 Global Welterweight Champion (Four times)

Professional kickboxing record

 * - style="background:#fbb;"
 * 2011-02-26 || Loss ||align=left|🇷🇺 Alexander Stetsurenko || Ice Storm 3 (81 kg) || Nefteyugansk, Russia || Decision (Unanimous) || 3 || 3:00


 * - style="background:#fbb;"
 * 2009-10-17 || Loss||align=left|🇨🇿 Jiří Žák || Souboj Titánů || Plzeň, Czech Republic || Decision (Majority) || 3 || 3:00


 * - bgcolor="#fbb"
 * 2009-02-19 || Loss||align=left|🇧🇾 Dmitry Shakuta || Tatneft Arena European Cup 2009, First Round (80 kg) || Kazan, Russia || Ext.R Decision (Unanimous) || 4 || 3:00
 * colspan=9 | Legend:
 * colspan=9 | Legend: