Nick Denis

Nick Denis (born October 11, 1983) is a retired Canadian professional mixed martial artist. A World Victory Road, Aggression Fighting Championship, King of the Cage and UFC veteran, Denis is best known for being a former KOTC Canada Bantamweight Champion, semi-finalist in the Sengoku Featherweight Tournament and his Knockout of the Night victory in his debut fight in the UFC.

Early career
Denis made his MMA debut in his native Canada in October 2006. He debuted for the King of the Cage Canada promotion and quickly became their Bantamweight champion.

In 2009, Denis made his international MMA debut for the World Victory Road promotion. He fought in the Sengoku Featherweight Grandprix, making it to the semifinal round.

More recently, he fought against Bellator veteran Nick Mamalis who he defeated via KO (suplex and chokeslam) in the second round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship
In early December 2011, it was announced that Denis had signed a multi-fight deal with the UFC.

In his UFC debut, Denis faced Joseph Sandoval on January 20, 2012 at UFC on FX: Guillard vs. Miller. He was successful, defeating Sandoval with a series of standing elbows.

Nick was expected to face Johnny Bedford at UFC on Fox 3 on May 5, 2012. However, Bedford was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced by Roland Delorme. He lost to Delorme by rear-naked choke at 4:59 of an action-packed first round where both fighters were rocked until Delorme rallied and submitted Denis.

In November 2012, Nick announced his retirement from the sport of MMA in a post on his blog, citing research of Chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Denis is frequently quoted and his research is the subject of many discussions on media outlets including MMA Live, The New York Daily News and The Joe Rogan Experience.

Personal life
Denis studied at the University of Ottawa, earning a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry. Nick also invested part of his "Knockout of the Night" win bonus in purchasing land, owning a large part of land in North Stormont, Ontario, Canada. A fan of board games, Denis has recently designed an algorithm for efficiently playing SeaFall.

Championships and accomplishments

 * King of the Cage
 * KOTC Canada Bantamweight Championship (One time)
 * One successful title defense
 * Ultimate Fighting Championship
 * Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. Joseph Sandoval