Chris Cariaso

Chris Vincent Cariaso (born May 27, 1981) is a retired Filipino-American mixed martial artist who competed as a Flyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Personal
Cariaso is of Filipino descent.

Mixed martial arts career
Since turning professional in 2006, Cariaso has competed in several organizations, obtaining wins in large MMA promotions such as Strikeforce and EliteXC, with all of his fights taking place in his native Northern California.

ISCF - International Sport Combat Federation
Cariaso won the ISCF Bantamweight Title on October 24, 2009, when he defeated Rolando Velasco by TKO at 3:17 of round 2 due to strikes.

World Extreme Cagefighting
Cariaso made his WEC debut against Rafael Rebello on June 20, 2010, at WEC 49. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Cariaso next faced Renan Barão on December 16, 2010, at WEC 53. He lost via submission in the first round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship
On October 28, 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.

In his first UFC fight, Cariaso faced Will Campuzano on January 22, 2011, at UFC Fight Night 23. He won the fight via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).

Cariaso was expected to face Norifumi Yamamoto on May 28, 2011, at UFC 130. However, Yamamoto was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced by Michael McDonald. Cariaso lost a hard fought split decision to McDonald in a closely contested fight.

Cariaso faced UFC newcomer Vaughan Lee on November 5, 2011, at UFC 138. He won the fight via split decision.

Cariaso faced Takeya Mizugaki on February 26, 2012, at UFC 144. Cariaso defeated Mizugaki via unanimous decision.

Cariaso decided to drop to the flyweight division where he faced Josh Ferguson at UFC on Fuel TV: Munoz vs. Weidman. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Cariaso fought John Moraga on December 29, 2012, at UFC 155. He was submitted in the third round with a guillotine choke.

Cariaso faced Jussier Formiga on May 18, 2013, at UFC on FX 8. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Cariaso next faced Iliarde Santos on October 9, 2013, at UFC Fight Night 29. He won the fight via TKO in the second round.

Cariaso was expected to face Kyoji Horiguchi on February 1, 2014, at UFC 169. However, Horoguchi pulled out of the bout citing injury and was replaced by WEC veteran Danny Martinez. Cariaso won the fight via unanimous decision.

Cariaso faced Louis Smolka on May 10, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 40. He won the fight via split decision.

A rescheduled bout with Kyoji Horiguchi was expected to take place on September 20, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 52. However, on July 15, 2014, it was announced that Cariaso would receive a title shot against UFC Flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson in the co-main event of UFC 177. On August 12, the Johnson/Cariaso bout was moved to the main event of UFC 178. Cariaso lost the bout via submission due to a kimura in the second round.

Cariaso faced Henry Cejudo on March 14, 2015, at UFC 185. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Cariaso faced Sergio Pettis on October 3, 2015, at UFC 192. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

On February 2, 2016, Cariaso announced that he is retiring from active competition.