5 Things You Might Not Know About Uros Medic

Uros Medic appears to have built a solid foundation but still looks like someone who has yet to find his way in the often-cutthroat world of mixed martial arts.

“The Doctor” will attempt to strengthen his foothold in the Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight division when he faces Punahele Soriano in a three-round UFC Fight Night 249 showcase this Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Medic, 31, has compiled a 4-2 record through six assignments inside the Octagon. He last saw action at UFC on ESPN 55, where he needed a little more than two minutes to put away former King of the Cage champion Tim Means with punches in their April 27 confrontation.

As Medic moves ever closer to his looming battle with Soriano at 170 pounds, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He traveled a long road.

Medic was born on April 25, 1993 in Novi Sad, Serbia—a city of roughly 400,000 people located some 6,100 miles from Ultimate Fighting Championship headquarters in Las Vegas.

2. He encountered minimal resistance while climbing the ladder.

The Serbian kickboxer made his professional mixed martial arts debut at the age of 23 when he stopped Rob Rivera on a first-round technical knockout under the Alaska Fighting Championship banner in June 2016. Medic won his first five bouts before he nailed down a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series, as he disposed of Mikey Gonzalez with punches in the first round of their 2020 encounter.

3. No one can question the company he keeps.

Medic fine tunes his skills at the Kings MMA camp in Huntington Beach, California. There, he trains under Rafael Cordeiro, a man who once oversaw the development of some of the sport’s greatest competitors, from Anderson Silva and Wanderlei Silva to Cristiane “Cris Cyborg” Justino and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.

4. A live-by-the-sword-die-by-the-sword approach marked his rise.

All 12 of Medic’s fights have ended inside the distance, including his two setbacks¬—a first-round rear-naked choke submission loss to Jalin Turner at UFC 266 on Sept. 25, 2021 and a second-round neck crank submission defeat to Myktybek Orolbai at UFC Fight Night 232 on Nov. 18, 2023.

5. His business travels have been limited.

Medic has never fought outside of the continental United States. He has suited up six times in Nevada, five times in Alaska and once in Utah.