Rinya Nakamura

Hybrid

Japan

Fighting Lacerda in March
BantamweightUFC
January 15, 2026
Nakamura will take on Luan Lacerda at a UFC event in Las Vegas on March 14, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Nakamura will head into the bout looking to build momentum off his recent victory over Nathan Fletcher in March. The 30-year-old Japanese fighter will have to overcome a disadvantage in reach compared to the older Brazilian. With a long background in wrestling, Nakamura will be no stranger to the ground game here, though his perfect 6-0 professional record in KO/TKO finishes shows he is more than capable of taking his opponent out with his striking as well.
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Ends UFC Vegas 108 prelims with bang
BantamweightUFC
August 3, 2025
Nakamura defeated Nathan Fletcher via TKO (body kick, strikes) at 1:02 of Round 1 at UFC Vegas 108 on Saturday.
ANALYSIS
Nakamura typically comes in with a wrestling-heavy approach, but it was his body kicks that earned him the victory here as a favorite upwards of (-420). He landed a big kick to the ribs of Fletcher early, but it was a follow-up liver shot that changed the tide of the fight. Fletcher crumbled, and Nakamura rushed in to land the finishing blows. The Road to the UFC Bantamweight Champion, Nakamura has now one three of four official UFC bouts. This victory helped him bounce back from his first career loss to Muin Gafurov back in January.
Next fighter scheduled
BantamweightUFC
June 24, 2025
Nakamura is scheduled to fight Nathan Fletcher in a bantamweight fight at UFC Vegas 108 on Aug. 2, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Nakamura is coming off his first career loss after being defeated by Muin Gafurov via unanimous decision at UFC 311. Hybrid will look to bounce back against a his new challenger, Nathan Fletcher, who is also coming off his first UFC defeat. Considered as one of the top prospects, Rinya will have to step up in a big way if he wants to live up to the expectation.
Suffers first career defeat
BantamweightUFC
January 18, 2025
Nakamura lost to Muin Gafurov via unanimous decision (27-30, 27-30, 27-30) at UFC 311 on Saturday in Los Angeles.
ANALYSIS
Unanimously viewed as one of the top prospects in the sport entering the evening, Nakamura suffered his first career defeat, and it happened in overwhelming fashion. Entering as a north of a -700 favorite, Nakamura stood around for the better part of 15 minutes and did nothing. He attempted just a single takedown (it failed), and his lone offensive thrust was a token guillotine choke attempt midway through Round 3. Set to turn 30 years of age in March, Nakamura needs to bounce back in a major way his next time out.
Added to UFC 311
BantamweightUFC
October 9, 2024
Nakamura will take on Muin Gafurov in a bantamweight matchup at UFC 311 on January 18, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Since getting his opportunity via Road to the UFC and cruising with a POTN-winning effort, Nakamura has cruised to a 3-0 record with the company and 9-0 record overall. Instead of giving him a step up in opponent, the UFC will hand him an Gafurov, who is coming off a win but is 1-2 with the company overall (1-3 if you count his Contender Series defeat). Both men have an identical height and reach on paper, but just about every other striking and grappling statistic lies in favor of Nakamura, who will likely find himself a sizable betting favorite.
Leans on wrestling in victory
BantamweightUFC
February 17, 2024
Nakamura defeated Carlos Vera via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) at UFC 298 on Saturday in Anaheim.
ANALYSIS
Nakamura won this fight going away. He landed all three of his takedown attempts and was credited with 13:03 worth of control time -- a ridiculous number for a 15-minute bout. That said, it would have been nice to see Nakamura fight with some urgency and earn the finish given he entered as upwards of a -1300 favorite. The result here was never in doubt. When facing lower-level opponents, it's more about making a statement than anything else, and this felt like a missed opportunity for the 28-year-old. That said, Nakamura remains one of the most promising fighters in the sport today. The UFC is going to have to give him a bump up in competition his next time out.