Dustin Anthony Jacoby (born April 4, 1988) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former kickboxer. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). In kickboxing, he has competed for GLORY, and in MMA, he has also competed for Bellator, World Series of Fighting, and Titan FC. He has fought as both a Light Heavyweight and a Middleweight. On November 1, 2018, he was ranked as the #8 middleweight kickboxer in the world by Combat Press.
Background Jacoby was born in Fort Morgan, Colorado. He has a twin brother, Darren, who is a former professional mixed martial artist. The brothers began training in taekwondo at the age of four, both picking up wrestling a year later. Dustin trained taekwondo for four years but continued to wrestle until the family moved to Illinois when the brothers were 12.
In Illinois Jacoby started playing basketball, claiming all-state honors while attending Triopia High School. Also playing football in the high school, Dustin had many Division I scholarship offers for both sports, but due to a severe knee injury sustained during his senior year, many of the offers were withdrawn. Subsequently, Jacoby selected Culver-Stockton College, where he played football two years as a quarterback while studying business management before transferring to Quincy University.
Kickboxing career GLORY World Series Jacoby was a last-minute replacement for professional boxer Manuel Quezada at the Road to GLORY USA Light Heavyweight (209 lbs.) Tournament in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He had never competed in a professional kickboxing match before the tournament. He pulled off a major upset, knocking out International Sport Karate Association Heavyweight Champion Randy Blake, fellow mixed martial artist Roy Boughton and 19–0 prospect Brian Collette en route to winning the Tournament Championship. He earned a check for $20,000 and a one-year contract with Glory World Series.
He lost to Michael Duut by TKO after being knocked down three time in round one at GLORY 5: London in London, England, on March 23, 2013.GLORY 5 London Finalized Fight Card, This Saturday March 23GLORY 5 London Live ResultsResults and Recap: Glory 5
Jacoby fought at GLORY 9: New York: 2013 95kg Slam in New York City, New York, on June 22, 2013.Full GLORY 9 New York Poster, More Participants RevealedGLORY 9 New York Gets Ghita vs. Guidon, Valtellini vs. AmbangFull Glory 9 NYC Fight Card So Far Rematching Brian Collette in the quarter-finals, he took a close majority decision win. He then faced Danyo Ilunga in the semis and put up a good fight early, but fell behind in rounds two and three as he was hacked at with leg kicks and lost a unanimous decision.Glory 9 Results and Recap: Tyrone Spong Wins Light Heavyweight Tournament GLORY 9 Results and Review: Tyrone Spong Wins Light Heavyweight Tournament, Ghita Dominates Guidon GLORY 9 New York Live Results and Updates
He was set to fight Makoto Uehara at GLORY 12: New York: Lightweight World Championship Tournament in New York City on November 23, 2013,4 more fights confirmed for Glory 12 in New York but the fight was switched to GLORY 13: Tokyo: Welterweight World Championship Tournament in Tokyo, Japan, on December 21, 2013.The GLORY 13 Card is Super Stacked So Far4 more bouts confirmed for Glory 13 including main event between Daniel Ghita and Errol Zimmerman He lost to Uehara by split decision.GLORY SuperFight Series Tokyo and GLORY 13 SpoilersGlory 13 Results and Recap Glory 13 Tokyo results and gifs: Rico Verhoeven, Daniel Ghita, and Nieky Holzken win big in JapanGLORY 13 Results: Verhoeven, Ghita and Holzken pick up victories
He was set to face Robert Thomas in the semifinals of the GLORY 14: Zagreb in Zagreb, Croatia, on March 8, 2014,A Look at GLORY 14 So Far but Thomas withdrew for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Alex Pereira.GLORY 14 Zagreb
Mixed martial arts career Early career During a college offseason, Jacoby took an amateur mixed martial arts bout and got hooked to the sport immediately. After the college he started training at Finney's HIT Squad and turned professional after racking up an amateur record of 9-1.
Ultimate Fighting Championship Jacoby was expected to make his UFC debut against Brad Tavares on October 29, 2011, at UFC 137, replacing an injured Tim Credeur. However, Tavares himself was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced by fellow newcomer Clifford Starks. Jacoby lost the fight via unanimous decision.
In his second UFC outing, Jacoby was submitted by Chris Camozzi via guillotine choke on January 28, 2012, at UFC on Fox 2. He was later released from the UFC, following an 0–2 run in the promotion.
Post-UFC career Jacoby bounced back from his UFC stint with a pair of victories on the regional circuit. He knocked out Billy Johnson in 45 seconds at an Indiana-based Hoosier Fight Club event on June 2, 2012, followed by a doctor stoppage win over Tim Williams for the Cage Fury FC middleweight title.
World Series of Fighting Jacoby made his WSOF debut at its inaugural event on November 3, 2012, losing to fellow UFC veteran David Branch via unanimous decision.
Bellator MMA Jacoby stepped in as a replacement for an injured Marcus Sursa to face Muhammed Lawal on September 5, 2014, at Bellator 123. He lost the fight via technical knockout in the second round.
Jacoby faced John Salter on January 16, 2015, at Bellator 132. He lost the fight via submission in the second round.
After the loss to Salter, Jacoby decided to concentrate on his kickboxing career. He eventually returned to MMA in 2019 to participate in Sparta Combat League heavyweight tournament, which consisted of boxing, kickboxing and MMA bouts. Jacoby went on to win the tournament by beating Cody East in the final bout.
Dana White’s Contender Series On August 4, 2020, Jacoby headlined Dana White's Contender Series Season 4 opening week against Ty Flores. He won the fight via unanimous decision and was subsequently awarded a UFC contract.
Return to the UFC Jacoby faced Justin Ledet on October 31, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 181. He won the fight via TKO in the first round.
Jacoby faced Maxim Grishin on February 27, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 186. At the weigh-ins, Maxim Grishin weighed in at 210.5 pounds, four and a half pounds over the light heavyweight non-title fight limit of 206 pounds. His bout proceeded at a catchweight and Grishin was fined 30% of his individual purse, which went Dustin. Despite being knocked down twice, Jacoby won a close bout via unanimous decision.
Jacoby faced Ion Cuțelaba, replacing injured Devin Clark, on May 1, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 23. Cuțelaba dominated the first round, however Jacoby came back in the second and third rounds with the fight ending in a split draw. Prior to the bout, Jacoby signed a new four-fight contract with the UFC.
Jacoby was scheduled to face Askar Mozharov on August 28, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 30. However, Mazharov was removed from the event for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Darren Stewart. Jacoby won the fight via technical knockout in round one.
Replacing Aleksa Camur, Jacoby faced John Allan on short notice on November 6, 2021, at UFC 268. Jacoby won the bout via unanimous decision.
Jacoby faced Michał Oleksiejczuk on March 5, 2022, at UFC 272. He won the fight via unanimous decision.
Jacoby faced Da Un Jung on July 16, 2022, at UFC on ABC 3. He won the fight via knockout in the first round. This win earned Jacoby his first Performance of the Night bonus award.
Jacoby faced Khalil Rountree Jr. on October 29, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 213. He lost the fight via split decision. 14 out of 16 media outlets scored the fight for Jacoby.
Jacoby faced Azamat Murzakanov on April 15, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 44. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.
Jacoby faced Kennedy Nzechukwu on August 5, 2023, at UFC Fight Night 225. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. This win earned Jacoby his second Performance of the Night bonus.
Jacoby faced Alonzo Menifield on December 16, 2023, at UFC 296. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Jacoby faced Dominick Reyes on June 8, 2024, at UFC on ESPN 57. He lost the fight by technical knockout in the first round.
Jacoby faced Vitor Petrino on December 14, 2024 at UFC on ESPN 63. He won the fight by knockout via a straight, right punch in the third round. This fight earned him another Performance of the Night award.
Jacoby faced Bruno Lopes on May 31, 2025 at UFC on ESPN 68. He won the fight by knockout in the first round.
Jacoby was scheduled to face Jimmy Crute on February 1, 2026 at UFC 325. However, Crute withdrew due to a ruptured ACL, so the bout was cancelled.
Replacing Uran Satybaldiev who withdrew for undisclosed reasons, Jacoby competed against Julius Walker on February 7, 2026 at UFC Fight Night 266. He won the fight via technical knockout in round two.
Jacoby was scheduled to face Uran Satybaldiev on July 25, 2026 at UFC Fight Night 282. However, Satybaldiev withdrew for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by undefeated promotional newcomer Muhammad Said. Jacoby lost the fight by technical knockout via a head kick and punches in the second round.
Championships and accomplishments Kickboxing 2013 Road to Glory USA 95kg Tournament Winner 2015 Glory Middleweight (-85 kg/187.4 lb) Qualification Tournament Winner 2016 Glory Middleweight (-85 kg/187.4 lb) Contender Tournament Winner
Mixed martial arts Cage Fury Fighting Championships CFFC Middleweight Championship (One time) Ultimate Fighting Championship Performance of the Night (Three times) Tied (Khalil Rountree Jr. & Magomed Ankalaev) for third most knockouts in UFC Light Heavyweight division history (7)
Mixed martial arts record
|Loss |align=center| |Muhammad Saidov |TKO (head kick and punches) |UFC Fight Night: Ankalaev vs. Guskov | |align=center|2 |align=center|4:49 |Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
|Win |align=center|22–9–1 |Julius Walker |TKO (punches) |UFC Fight Night: Bautista vs. Oliveira | |align=center|2 |align=center|1:42 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Win |align=center|21–9–1 |Bruno Lopes |KO (punches) |UFC on ESPN: Gamrot vs. Klein | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:50 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Win |align=center|20–9–1 |Vitor Petrino |KO (punch) |UFC on ESPN: Covington vs. Buckley | |align=center|3 |align=center|3:44 |Tampa, Florida, United States
|Loss |align=center|19–9–1 |Dominick Reyes |KO (punches) |UFC on ESPN: Cannonier vs. Imavov | |align=center|1 |align=center|2:00 |Louisville, Kentucky, United States
|Loss |align=center|19–8–1 |Alonzo Menifield |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 296 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Win |align=center|19–7–1 |Kennedy Nzechukwu |TKO (punches) |UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Font | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:22 |Nashville, Tennessee, United States
|Loss |align=center|18–7–1 |Azamat Murzakanov |Decision (unanimous) |UFC on ESPN: Holloway vs. Allen | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Kansas City, Missouri, United States
|Loss |align=center|18–6–1 |Khalil Rountree Jr. |Decision (split) |UFC Fight Night: Kattar vs. Allen | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Win |align=center|18–5–1 |Jung Da-un |KO (punch) |UFC on ABC: Ortega vs. Rodríguez | |align=center|1 |align=center|3:13 |Elmont, New York, United States
|Win |align=center|17–5–1 |Michał Oleksiejczuk |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 272 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Win |align=center|16–5–1 |John Allan |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 268 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |New York City, New York, United States
|Win |align=center|15–5–1 |Darren Stewart |TKO (punches) |UFC on ESPN: Barboza vs. Chikadze | |align=center|1 |align=center|3:04 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Draw |align=center| |Ion Cuțelaba |Draw (split) |UFC on ESPN: Reyes vs. Procházka | |align=center|3