Bubba McDaniel

Robert "Bubba" McDaniel (born May 3, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist who formerly fought as a Middleweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship where he went (1–2). He was a member of FX's The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen.

The Ultimate Fighter
In January 2013, it was announced that McDaniel was selected for The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen. To get into the TUF house, McDaniel defeated Ryan Bigler by TKO. During the choosing of teams, he was the third pick of coach Jon Jones for Team Jones and sixth overall.

McDaniel faced eventual winner Kelvin Gastelum in the preliminary round. Despite being favored to win, McDaniel was submitted in the second round via rear-naked choke.

McDaniel was chosen by coach Jones for the wildcard spot and faced Kevin Casey. Bubba won via corner stoppage after Casey didn't answer the bell for the third round.

McDaniel lost via early KO to Uriah Hall in the quarterfinals.

Ultimate Fighting Championship
McDaniel made his UFC debut against castmate Gilbert Smith on April 13, 2013 at The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale. He won the fight via submission in the third round.

McDaniel faced Brad Tavares on August 28, 2013 at UFC Fight Night 27. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

McDaniel was expected to face TUF 17 castmate Tor Troéng on March 15, 2014 at UFC 171. However, Troéng was forced to pull out of the bout citing an injury. McDaniel instead faced UFC newcomer Sean Strickland. He lost the bout via submission in the first round and was subsequently released from the promotion.

Bellator MMA
Previous to fighting in the UFC, McDaniel appeared on an early Bellator MMA fight card in 2009. He faced William Chris Spicer at Bellator 6 and won the fight via rear-naked choke submission in the first round.

In May 2014, McDaniel signed with Bellator MMA. He made his return on June 6, 2014, facing Matt Jones at Bellator 121. He won the fight by unanimous decision.

McDaniel faced Emiliano Sordi on October 10, 2014 at Bellator 128. He lost via guillotine choke submission in the first round.

In his second fight for the promotion, McDaniel faced Kenyon Jackson at Bellator 146 on November 20, 2015. He won the fight via TKO in the second round.

After nearly two years away from Bellator, McDaniel will compete at Light Heavyweight when he replaces Muhammed Lawal against Liam McGeary at Bellator 185 on October 20, 2017. The following week, McGeary pulled out of the fight due to an injury.

Personal life
McDaniel's two year old son, Wilder, was murdered by James Staley on October 11, 2018. Late October 2018, McDaniel was arrested for allegedly making terroristic threats against Staley, who was later found guilty of the murder of his son.

In July 2021, Bubba's wife was arrested and charged with tampering or fabricating physical evidence and abandoning or endangering a child in relation to the death of Wilder.

Kickboxing record

 * - bgcolor="#FFBBBB"
 * 2017-10-21 || Loss ||align=left|🇺🇸 Kevin Holland || XKO 38 || Dallas, United States || KO (Spinning Back Elbow) || 1 || 1:29|| 0–1
 * colspan=9 | Legend:
 * colspan=9 | Legend:
 * colspan=9 | Legend: