Josh Sampo, former PVHS wrestler, inks his name on a contract to fight with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. (Courtesy photo)
Josh Sampo, former Pahranagat Valley High wrestler and two-time Nevada state champion, has signed with the UFC.
His next fight is scheduled at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas Nov. 30 at the Finale of the Ultimate Fighter 18, against Ryan Benoit, in a preliminary Bantamweight bout (135 pounds) to the main event between Gary Maynard and Nate Diaz.
Sampo was the World Flyweight Champion (125 pounds) in the Continental Fighting Alliance, and spent some time with the Legacy Fighting Championship.
A 2002 graduate of PVHS, he went on to graduate from Linwood University in St. Charles, Missouri, where he was a member of their two-time NAIA national championship teams, and a three-time NAIA All-American. He has been working recently on his Masters degree in Science and Chemistry at Linwood.
An article earlier this month in MMA Weekly noted Sampo (10-2), “is fresh off a defense of his CFA flyweight championship, and has won his last four bouts. He said after his latest defense, it was time ‘to take a step up. I want to go to a big show and fight the toughest names out there. We definitely want to make it to the UFC, but I look at it as a job promotion. I’ve got to work hard, be recognized and have them make that decision to bring me up.’”
