Melinda Fábián

Melinda Fábián
Born	(1987-06-25) June 25, 1987 Tatabánya, Hungarian People's Republic (now Hungary)
Nationality	Hungarian
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Weight	125 lb (57 kg; 8.9 st)
Division	Flyweight (2015, 2016–present) Bantamweight (2016)
Reach	66 in (168 cm)
Style	Kenpo Karate, Boxing, Kickboxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Fighting out of	Budapest, Hungary
Team	Budapest Top Team Ares Independent Jiu Jitsu Hungary
Trainer	Striking: Ferenc Peszlen Grappling: Dávid Keszler Wrestling: István Veréb
Rank	2nd dan Black belt in Kempo Karate   Brown belt in Shotokan Karate   Blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Milton Bastos
Years active	2015–present (MMA)
Mixed martial arts record
Total	11
Wins	5
By knockout	1
By submission	4
Losses	4
By submission	2
By decision	2
Draws	2
Other information
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Melinda Fábián (born June, 25 1987) is a Hungarian mixed martial artist. She was the first Hungarian to compete in the UFC.

Background

Born in 1987, Melinda Fábián first started fighting martial arts at the age of 12, starting to shotokan karate at Vértesszőlős where she reached the brown belt. She then made her way to Stockholm, where, besides karate, she became acquainted with Muay Thai. She returned home in 2006 and started her favorite martial art, which she liked as a kenpo karate the Kurayfat campsite. A year later, she had already won a silver medal at the World Championships in Home Affairs as a blue belt. And in 2013, at the World Championships, also home to the podium, she was the winner of the full contact and knockdown rules, with a black belt at her waist. Melinda loves Kenpo karate so much that she runs her own club, Sakura Doyo. After finding great success at the campsite, Melinda set out on mixed martial arts, which was less well known in Hungary at the time. In this style, ground combat plays the same role as standing, so wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu are at the forefront, as evidenced in Melinda's victories.

Personal life

Fábián had a date and relationship with her Head Coach Ferenc "Rendes" Peszlen.

Mixed martial career

Early career

The blonde lady first entered the cage at HFC 09 in 2015 as the only Hungarian female warrior in a quad tournament in front of a domestic audience. In the opening match, he had a straight-up victory in the first round, but she got exactly the same technique from her more experienced American opponent in the final. Nevertheless, according to Melinda, her lack of routine was the only drawback with the other fighters. In the next 3 games, she ended with one draw, one win (Ezekiel choke) and one with a split scoring defeat.

The defeat was followed by a two-match winning streak (brace, ankle strain), both knocking in the first round. (Interestingly, although Melinda is basically the strength of the stand-up fight, she has achieved all her victories by forcing and has never been knocked out.) Unfortunately, after two quick wins, a defeat slipped, but that did not stop her from winning. The Hungarian girl was to get the big chance of her life from UFC and finally show herself outside the old continent.

The Ultimate Fighter

She has been invited to The Ultimate Fighter UFC reality show, which has not become a former champion, and often gets a UFC contract at the end of the show. And the stake in the 26th TUF season was nothing but the winner becoming the champion of the newly introduced women's weight (57kg) division. Melinda – who even sold her car to buy a plane ticket overseas – joined Eddie Alvarez in the selection. (Eddie Alvarez is a former lightweight champion of Bellator and the UFC.)

Unfortunately, Melinda had an injury during the show, which put her mark on her training and preparation for the game. In the show, every warrior has a homemade video in which Melinda introduces Budapest, her apartment and talks about her team the Budapest Top Team. Her opponent, Rachael Ostovich, is a Hawaiian-born girl with a warrior background, with a balance of 3–3 (Melinda's 4–3–1). At the start of the match, the Hungarian girl worked well in stand-up combat but was unable to defend Rachael's grounding and gave up her back with an unfortunate move and the American took the opportunity and pulled in the back throttle after some submission attempts and some ground-and-pound and victory.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Fábián faced DeAnna Bennett on December 1, 2017 at The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion#The Ultimate Fighter 26 Finale. The fight ended as a majority draw and Bennett was subsequently released from the promotion.

Her second fight came on June 23, 2018, at UFC Fight Night: Cerrone vs. Edwards against Ji Yeon Kim. She lost the fight via split decision.

On August 11, 2018, it was reported that Fábián was released by UFC.

Post UFC career

Fábián faced Karla Benitez on October 22, 2019, at The Cage Fighting Komarno 7. She won the fight via knockout.

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown

11 matches	5 wins	4 losses
By knockout	1	0
By submission	4	2
By decision	0	2
Draws	2

Res.	Record	Opponent	Method	Event	Date	Round	Time	Location	Notes
Win	5–4–2	Karla Benitez	KO (head kick)	Cage Fighting Komarno 7	October 2, 2019	3	4:59	Győr, Hungary
Loss	4–4–2	Kim Ji-yeon	Decision (split)	UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Edwards	June 23, 2018	3	5:00	Kallang, Singapore
Draw	4–3–2	DeAnna Bennett	Draw (Majority)	The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion Finale	December 1, 2017	3	5:00	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Fábián was deducted one point in round 2 due to grabbing the fence.
Loss	4–3–1	Judith Ruis	Submission (guillotine choke)	Aggrelin 16: MIA Cage Fight	February 2, 2017	1	4:30	Munich, Germany
Win	4–2–1	Monic Bilicsi	Submission (straight ankle lock)	Aggrelin 15	December 18, 2016	1	0:14	Nurnberg, Germany
Win	3–2–1	Tímea Nyistor	Submission (armbar)	Cage Fighting Komárno 1	November 5, 2016	1	0:38	Komárno, Slovakia	Return to Flyweight.
Loss	2–2–1	Lucie Pudilová	Decision (split)	GCF 34: Back in The Fight 5	March 25, 2016	5	5:00	Příbram, Czech Republic	For the GCF Bantamweight Championship.
Win	2–1–1	Paulina Borkowska	Submission (rear naked choke)	PLMMA 62: AFC 6	March 25, 2016	2	2:32	Wyszków, Poland
Draw	1–1–1	Eava Siikonen	Draw (majority)	Carelia Fight 11	January 9, 2016	3	5:00	Imatra, Finland	Bantamweight debut.
Loss	1–1	Katlyn Chookagian	Submission (armbar)	PMMAL Hungarian FC 9	May 9, 2015	1	4:33	Budapest, Hungary
Win	1–0	Barbora Poláková	Submission (armbar)	PMMAL Hungarian FC 9	May 9, 2015	1	3:34	Budapest, Hungary	Flyweight debut.

Exhibition record breakdown
1 match	0 wins	1 loss
By submission	0	1

Res.	Record	Opponent	Method	Event	Date	Round	Time	Location	Notes
Loss	0–1	Rachael Ostovich	Submission (rear naked choke)	The Ultimate Fighter: A New World Champion	November 15, 2017 (air date)	1	4:22	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	TUF 26 preliminary round