David Zawada

David Zawada (born 1 August 1990) is a German mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight division. A professional since 2010, he has formerly competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki (KSW), and Respect FC where he is the former Welterweight Champion.

Background
Zawada trains at UFD Gym in Düsseldorf where he trains alongside Roberto Soldić, Erko Jun, Antun Racic and his brother, Martin Zawada.

Early career
Zawada participated in various regional MMA promotions, notable in KSW primarily in the Europe. He was the formal welterweight Respect Fighting Championship and Shooto Kings champion. He amassed a record of 16–3 prior signed by Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

Ultimate Fighting Championship
Zawada made his UFC debut on July 22, 2018, against Danny Roberts, replacing injured Alan Jouban at UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Smith. He lost the fight via split decision. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.

His next faced Li Jingliang on November 24, 2018, replacing Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos at UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs. Ngannou 2. He lost the fight via technical knockout in round three.

Zawada faced Abubakar Nurmagomedov on November 9, 2019 at UFC on ESPN+ 21. He won the fight via a submission in round one. This fight earned him the Performance of the Night award.

Zawada was scheduled to face Anthony Rocco Martin on April 25, 2020. However, on April 9, the promotion indicated that the pairing was scrapped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Zawada was expected to face Mounir Lazzez on October 18, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 180. However, on October 6, 2020 it was reported that Lazzez tested positive for COVID-19 and was removed from the bout. It is unclear at the stage if a replacement would be sought by the UFC officials.

Zawada faced Ramazan Emeev on January 16, 2021 at UFC on ABC 1. He lost a close fight by split decision.

Zawada was scheduled to face Sergey Khandozhko on September 4, 2021 at UFC Fight Night 191. However, the week before the event, Khandozhko was pulled from the contest for unknown reasons and replaced by Alex Morono. Zawada lost the fight via unanimous decision.

On February 10, 2022, it was announced that Zawada was no longer on the UFC roster.

Professional Fighters League
Zawada made his first appearance after his UFC release against Erhan Kartal on June 4, 2022 at Oktagon 33. He won the bout via doctor stoppage after the first round.

Zawada faced Carlos Leal on April 14, 2023 at PFL 3. He lost the bout in the first round via TKO stoppage.

Zawada faced Magomed Magomedkerimov on June 23, 2023 at PFL 6. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round.

Oktagon MMA
Zawada returned to Oktagon MMA on February 10, 2024 at Oktagon 53, defeating Hojat Khajevand in his Middleweight debut via heel hook at the end of the third round after being down on the scorecards for the bout.

Mixed martial arts

 * Ultimate Fighting Championship
 * Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Abubakar Nurmagomedov
 * Fight of the Night (One time) vs. Danny Roberts
 * MMAJunkie.com
 * 2019 November Submission of the Month vs. Abubakar Nurmagomedov
 * Respect Fighting Championship 
 * 2016 Respect FC welterweight champion
 * Shooto Kings
 * 2016 Shooto Kings welterweight champion

Personal life
Zawada older brother, Martin Zawada, is also a MMA fighter for the Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki promotion.