Karl James Noons was born on December 7,1982 and is a retired American professional mixed martial artist, as well as a former professional boxer and kickboxer.
45 Facts About KJ Noons
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KJ Noons is the former EliteXC Lightweight Champion and runner up for the StrikeForce title.
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KJ Noons's father Karl was a professional kickboxer and was a top contender during the time he fought.
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At the age of five, KJ Noons started training in martial arts.
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KJ Noons competed as an amateur fighter and became the first student in the state of Hawaii to earn a junior black belt under Ed Parker at the age of 11.
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At age 17, KJ Noons won the ISKA Super Middleweight International Championship as an amateur in Sanshou.
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In 2005, KJ Noons won the PRIDE Fighting Championship's "Best Striker" auditions.
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KJ Noons chose not to fight for PRIDE Fighting Championships because the promoters wanted to feature him in bouts against the top lightweights in the world, such as PRIDE's reigning Lightweight Champion, Takanori Gomi, and top contender, Joachim Hansen.
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KJ Noons felt he was not ready to compete at the highest level that early in his career and chose a more conservative route.
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In 2006, KJ Noons signed a deal with promoter Gary Shaw that allowed him to participate in both boxing and mixed martial arts.
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KJ Noons rebounded from his loss to Bennett with a KO win over James Edson Berto at EliteXC's first ShoXC event.
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KJ Noons then faced Nick Diaz for the promotion's first ever lightweight championship at EliteXC: Renegade.
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KJ Noons dominated the fight using his outstanding boxing and striking against the Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert.
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Midway through the first round, Diaz was finally successful with a take down, but KJ Noons got back to his feet instantly.
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KJ Noons would keep the fight standing and dropped Diaz with a straight right punch around the 2:07 mark of the round.
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KJ Noons was then declared the winner of the fight by way of TKO due to cuts, and would become the new EliteXC Lightweight Champion.
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On June 14,2008, KJ Noons was successful in his first and only title defense with a TKO win over Yves Edwards in Hawaii at EliteXC: Return of the King.
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About two months later, KJ Noons would be stripped of the title for refusing to rematch with Diaz.
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On December 2,2009, KJ Noons signed with mixed martial arts promotion, Strikeforce.
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In March 2010, KJ Noons made his Japanese debut as he represented Strikeforce at DREAM 13.
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KJ Noons was the aggressor for the duration of the fight, and was visibly frustrated with Amade's uncharacteristically tentative fighting style throughout the fight, which seemed to be based on a counter punching technique.
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KJ Noons was set to make his Strikeforce debut against undefeated prospect Billy Evangelista at Strikeforce: Miami, but the fight was withdrawn after Evangelista suffered an undisclosed injury during training.
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KJ Noons would go on to win a closely contested fight by split decision.
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KJ Noons next faced Jorge Gurgel on August 21,2010, at Strikeforce: Houston.
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At the weigh-ins, the day before the bout with Gurgel, KJ Noons weighed in at 156.25 pounds, a quarter of a pound over the maximum weight limit.
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Right at the opening bell for round two, KJ Noons landed a right hand followed by a left hook that dropped Gurgel to the canvas .
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KJ Noons looked to the referee expecting a stoppage and received no response.
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Replay showed that the knee KJ Noons threw did not land, although KJ Noons's foot tapped Gurgel on the chin as it followed through.
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KJ Noons was declared the winner by TKO at 0:19 of round two.
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KJ Noons moved up one weight class to fight Nick Diaz in a grudge rematch for the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship on October 9,2010.
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KJ Noons lost by unanimous decision, giving KJ Noons his third career loss and first loss by decision, and beginning a losing streak for years to come.
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KJ Noons-Masvidal was set as a lightweight title eliminator, which would grant the winner of the bout a title shot against reigning Strikeforce Lightweight Champion, Gilbert Melendez.
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KJ Noons then faced Billy Evangelista at Strikeforce: Melendez vs Masvidal in December 2011.
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KJ Noons next faced Josh Thomson in the co-main event at Strikeforce: Tate vs Rousey in March 2012.
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KJ Noons returned to face Ryan Couture at the final Strikeforce event, Strikeforce: Marquardt vs Saffiedine, on January 12,2013.
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KJ Noons won via unanimous decision, earning his first win under the UFC banner.
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KJ Noons faced Sam Stout in a welterweight bout on April 16,2014, at The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale.
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KJ Noons won the fight via knockout in the first round, earning him his first Performance of the Night bonus award.
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KJ Noons next faced Daron Cruickshank on December 12,2014, at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale.
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KJ Noons was expected to face Yan Cabral at UFC Fight Night 67.
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KJ Noons lost the fight via submission in the first round.
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KJ Noons faced Josh Burkman on February 6,2016, at UFC Fight Night 82.
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KJ Noons was released by the company on April 14,2016.
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In 2010 KJ Noons participated in a PETA ad campaign speaking out against animal cruelty and encouraging people to report animal abuse to authorities.
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KJ Noons made his film debut in the 2014 comedy Mantervention playing himself.