Joe Lauzon
Active 2006–present · rated in 1 edition · peak overall 79.0
Scouting report
Joe Lauzon came out of The Ultimate Fighter 5, where he was on BJ Penn's team, beat Brian Geraghty and Cole Miller, and lost a semifinal to Manvel Gamburyan. He won the finale in June 2007 with a triangle choke of Brandon Melendez. He holds a BJJ black belt under Danny Savery and fights out of Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Across 27 UFC fights he went 15-12 and collected 15 post-fight bonuses.
Peak ratings
Joe Lauzon: a submission hunter who earned 15 bonuses
Lauzon debuted at UFC 63 on September 23, 2006 and knocked out Jens Pulver in 48 seconds as a 7-to-1 underdog. The bonus total is made up of seven Fight of the Night awards, six Submission of the Night awards, one Knockout of the Night and one Performance of the Night. He is listed as semi-retired since May 2022, after two cancelled fights with Donald Cerrone that year. His brother Dan Lauzon also fights.
Lauzon, attribute by attribute
Boxing. 78. Pulver was knocked out with punches in 48 seconds, and Diego Sanchez was stopped by punches at 1:26 of round one at UFC 200.
Kickboxing. 74. Anthony Pettis knocked him out with a head kick and punches in round one at UFC 144 in Saitama.
Wrestling. 76. He beat Mac Danzig on a unanimous decision on UFC on Fox 9 in December 2013 after losing two in a row.
BJJ. 88, his best. He finished Melvin Guillard with a rear-naked choke in 47 seconds at UFC 136, and Curt Warburton with a kimura.
Strength. 76. Jim Miller beat him on a unanimous decision at UFC 155 and a split decision at UFC on Fox 21.
Durability. 80. He beat Michael Chiesa on a doctor's stoppage at 2:14 of round two in September 2014, and Al Iaquinta stopped him at UFC 183.
Cardio. 82. He fought through three rounds with Marcin Held in Phoenix in January 2017 and won a split decision.
Fight IQ. 82. Jamie Varner was submitted with a triangle in round three of UFC on Fox 4, a fight that won both Fight of the Night and Submission of the Night.
BJJ at 88 and a finish from anywhere
Grappling is where he wins. Beyond the TUF finale triangle, he submitted Jason Reinhardt, Jeremy Stephens with an armbar, Gabe Ruediger with an armbar in 2:01 and Varner with a triangle. Six Submission of the Night awards back that up. Draft him for a fight where the ground is open.
Kickboxing at 74 and a long finish to the career
Pettis, Iaquinta, Clay Guida and Chris Gruetzemacher all stopped him. His last UFC win was a first-round TKO of Jonathan Pearce in Boston in October 2019, after an 18-month layoff. The Cerrone fight in May 2022 was cancelled when Cerrone fell ill on the day, and the June rebooking fell through when Lauzon's knee dislocated. A striker in another slot is the cover.
Keep exploring
Closest lightweight profiles to Joe Lauzon, measured by how near their peak attribute ratings sit across all eight categories.
- Paddy Pimblettbest bjj 88 · weakest wrestling 78
- Jim Millerbest cardio 88 · weakest kickboxing 76
- Kenny Florianbest bjj 86 · weakest strength 74
- Joel Alvarezbest bjj 88 · weakest wrestling 74
- Lightweight division guide: how the whole division rates and who to draft from it.
- Grappling vs striking in the draft: a guide that fits Joe Lauzon's strongest attribute, BJJ.
Draft Joe Lauzon into your build
Joe Lauzon enters the pool on any spin landing on lightweight between 2010 and 2013. Spin, draft eight attributes, then simulate 25 fights.
Ratings shown are my own estimates, made with AI assistance and informed by how Joe Lauzon is regarded by the MMA community. They are unofficial and do not constitute an assessment of Joe Lauzon's real-world abilities. How the ratings are made. See the disclaimer below. Ratings and write-ups by Haaris A. Last reviewed 2026-09-30; spot an error? Tell us. Read our editorial standards.