Who is Kris Moutinho and what is his UFC record?
Fan-favorite bantamweight prospect Sean O'Malley is set to fight Kris Moutinho on the main card at UFC 264. 'Sugar' was originally scheduled to face Louis Smolka on July 10, but the latter had to pull out of the fight due to health reasons. Louis Smolka's team later confirmed with ESPN that the reason why 'Da Last Samurai' had to withdraw from UFC 264 was a staph infection. Sean O'Malley is currently without an opponent for UFC 264 after Louis Smolka withdrew due to a staph infection, Smolkas manager told @marc_raimondi. Smolka's withdrawal was first reported by Ariel Helwani and UFC is looking for a replacement to fight OMalley, sources said. pic.twitter.com/KOEVIvPHQW  ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 29, 2021  Several UFC bantamweights stepped up to replace Louis Smolka for the event and made their interest known on social media, which is not surprising given that UFC 264 could possibly be the biggest pay-per-view of the year with Conor McGregor headlining the card. Also read: 3 fighters who have volunteered to face Sean O'Malley at UFC 264  However, in the end, the UFC went with promotional newcomer Kris Moutinho. The news was revealed by Sean O'Malley on his Twitch and was later confirmed in tweets put forth by the likes of Ariel Helwani and Marc Raimondi. Moutinho is a veteran of CFFC. Hes an action fighter, per his manager Tyson Chartier  an aggressive striker with a solid wrestling base.  Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) June 30, 2021  Ariel Helwani also reported that Ricky Simon offered to fight at 145 lbs or at catchweight, but both Sean O'Malley and the UFC wanted the bout to be at bantamweight. Born on August 9, 1992, Kris Moutinho is a 28-year-old mixed martial artist fighting out of Milford, Massachusetts. He is currently associated with Top Game Management and Regiment Training Center. Kris Moutinho made his professional MMA debut on September 23, 2016, at CES MMA 38 against Matthew Maldonado after having amassed an impressive amateur record at promotions like AFO and Cage Titans FC. The two went the distance and Mourinho came out victorious. Kris Moutinho went on to win eight and lose four bouts in CES MMA, with most of his wins coming either by decision or via knockout. His last outing was under Cage Fury Fighting Championships at CFFC 96, where he defeated Andrew Salas with an arm-triangle choke submission in the third round. Kris Moutinho is a newcomer in the UFC, and the fight against Sean O'Malley at UFC 264 will be his promotional debut. However, if his professional record is anything to go by, Kris Moutinho has all that it takes to be successful in the UFC. By taking up a fight against KO-artist Sean O'Malley on his debut, Kris Moutinho has already proved that he is not one to back away from challenging matchups. Moreover, he is known for coming back stronger from defeats. Kris Moutinho has suffered two-fight skids on two separate occasions during his days at CES, bouncing back with a winning streak each time. Edited by Utathya Ghosh