Niklas Stolze

Niklas Stolze is a German mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. A professional since 2014, he most notably competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Background

Stolze began his career in Combat Jiu-Jitsu at the age of 15, then switched to kickboxing two years later through his coach Sascha Poppendieck. But the goal was always MMA, deciding in 2014 to pursue a career as an MMA professional. On top of MMA, Stolze also completed training as a welder.
He is the first East German to be signed to the UFC.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Stolze spent most of his pre-UFC career fighting on the European regional scene, compiling a 12–3 record, with two of his losses coming the way of unanimous decision at BAMMA, losing to Terry Brazier at BAMMA 27 and Chris Stringer at BAMMA 30.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Stolze made his UFC debut, as a replacement for Shavkat Rakhmonov, against Ramazan Emeev on July 26, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Till. Stolze lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Stolze was scheduled to face Mounir Lazzez on July 31, 2021, at UFC on ESPN: Hall vs. Strickland. However, Lazzez pulled out just a few days before the event due to visa issues and was replaced by Jared Gooden.
He lost the fight via knockout in round one.
Stolze faced Benoît Saint-Denis on June 4, 2022, at UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Rozenstruik. Stolze lost the bout after getting submitted in the second round.
On June 9, 2022, it was announced that Stolze was released from the UFC.

Oktagon MMA

Stolze faced Andrej Kalašnik on November 18, 2023, at Oktagon 49, winning the bout via first-round knockout.
In his sophomore performance, Stolze faced Máté Kertész on Marc 23, 2024 at Oktagon 55, being submitted in the second round via rear-naked choke.
Stolze faced Matouš Kohout on September 7, 2024, at Oktagon 60, winning the bout via flying knee TKO in the first round.