# Louis Smolka
**Louis Smolka** (born 1991) is an American mixed martial artist from Hawaii who competes at bantamweight and is best known for his time in the [Ultimate Fighting Championship](https://www.edgepedia.org/ultimate-fighting-championship) (UFC), where he fought from 2014 to 2022 under the nickname "Da Last Samurai". His professional record is 17 wins and 9 losses, with 8 wins by knockout or technical knockout and 7 by submission.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1991; fights out of Kapolei, Hawaii[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai) |
| Pro record | 17-9-0; 8 KO/TKO wins, 7 submission wins, 2 decision wins[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) |
| UFC record | 8-8-0; debut January 15, 2014, last fight May 14, 2022[3](https://www.fightmatrix.com/fighter-profile/Louis%20Smolka/66107/) |
| Divisions | Flyweight (125 lb) in his first UFC run, bantamweight (135 lb) after his 2018 return[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai) |
| Pre-UFC title | PXC Flyweight World Champion, won at PXC 41 in November 2013[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai) |
| Physical | 5'9" (175 cm), reach 68.5" (174 cm), orthodox stance[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai) • [4](https://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/history/_/id/3087023/louis-smolka) |
| Team | Team Oyama[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai) |
## Early career in Hawaii and the Pacific
Smolka began training in martial arts at age five, starting with karate, and holds a junior brown belt in Kempo Karate and a brown belt in Judo.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) He compiled a 2-1 amateur record, winning the X-1 World Events 135 lb amateur championship, before turning professional on April 28, 2012.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) • [3](https://www.fightmatrix.com/fighter-profile/Louis%20Smolka/66107/)
His early professional career ran through Pacific-based promotions, including King of the Cage and Pacific Xtreme Combat (PXC). At PXC 41 on November 9, 2013, he defeated Ale Cali by second-round technical knockout to win the PXC Flyweight Championship in a five-round main event.[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai) That title run, together with a 5-0 professional start, carried him into the UFC.[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai)
## First UFC run at flyweight
Smolka's octagon debut came on January 15, 2014 at UFC Fight Night, where he won a three-round unanimous decision over Alptekin Ozkilic.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) He lost his next bout to Chris Cariaso by split decision in May 2014, then ran off four consecutive wins, a streak that included a knockout of Richie Vaculik in 18 seconds, a rear-naked-choke submission of Paddy Holohan in Dublin, a decision over Neil Seery, and a second-round stoppage of Ben Nguyen at UFC Fight Night 91 in July 2016.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) • [5](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/bouts/255575-ufc-fight-night-91-ben-ben-10-nguyen-vs-louis-da-last-samurai-smolka) The Nguyen bout earned both men a [Performance](https://www.edgepedia.org/performance) of the Night bonus and was ranked by Tapology as the #35 greatest flyweight fight of all time.[5](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/bouts/255575-ufc-fight-night-91-ben-ben-10-nguyen-vs-louis-da-last-samurai-smolka)
**The losing skid and release.** The streak ended on October 1, 2016, when [Brandon Moreno](https://www.edgepedia.org/brandon-moreno), a short-notice debutant, submitted Smolka with a first-round guillotine choke.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) Three more unanimous-decision losses followed, to [Ray Borg](https://www.edgepedia.org/ray-borg), Tim Elliott, and Matheus Nicolau, and the UFC released him after the four-fight skid.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) • [6](https://www.ufc.com/news/louis-smolka-forges-ahead-prelims-morales-ufc-vegas-44) At his peak in this period, FightMatrix's quarterly rankings placed him as high as #7 at flyweight on July 1, 2016.[3](https://www.fightmatrix.com/fighter-profile/Louis%20Smolka/66107/)
## Return as a bantamweight
After three wins on the regional circuit, Smolka returned to the UFC in 2018, moving up to bantamweight.[6](https://www.ufc.com/news/louis-smolka-forges-ahead-prelims-morales-ufc-vegas-44) In his second stint he won three of five bouts: an armbar submission of Sumudaerji in November 2018, a first-round stoppage of Ryan MacDonald in September 2019, and a second-round technical knockout of Jose Quinonez in December 2020.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) The losses in this stretch came by submission to Matt Schnell and Casey Kenney and by knockout.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) A scheduled fight against Sean O'Malley at [UFC 264](https://www.edgepedia.org/ufc-264) in July 2021 was canceled after Smolka withdrew with a staph infection.[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai)
His final UFC appearance was on May 14, 2022 at UFC Fight Night: Blachowicz vs. Rakic, where Davey Grant knocked him out with punches 49 seconds into the third round.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) • [7](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/bouts/644262-ufc-fight-night-louis-da-last-samurai-smolka-vs-dangerous-davey-grant) He has not fought since, and the UFC lists his status as not fighting.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka)
## Fighting style and UFC statistics
Smolka was a high-volume, finish-oriented fighter. Across his UFC career he landed 747 of 1,575 significant strikes attempted, an average of 4.67 significant strikes landed per minute against 4.11 absorbed, with 54 percent significant-strike defense and 32 percent takedown defense. His wins came by knockout 47 percent of the time and by submission 41 percent, and he recorded four first-round finishes.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) His seven submission wins comprised a guillotine, a Brabo choke, two armbars, and three rear-naked chokes, and he named the D'arce choke as his favorite grappling technique.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka)
## Career details
Tapology records career disclosed earnings of $355,400.[2](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai) Before fighting full time, Smolka worked as a mascot for [Papa John's](https://www.edgepedia.org/papa-johns) and as a dishwasher for a sushi restaurant, and he left community college in his sophomore year to pursue fighting.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka) He has cited BJ Penn, Fedor Emelianenko, Jose Aldo, and the Hawaii fighters Russell Doane and Ron Jhun among his heroes.[1](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka)
## References
1. [Louis Smolka, UFC athlete profile](https://www.ufc.com/athlete/louis-smolka)
2. [Louis Smolka ("Da Last Samurai") fighter page, Tapology](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/fighters/38968-louis-smolka-da-last-samurai)
3. [Louis Smolka fighter profile, FightMatrix](https://www.fightmatrix.com/fighter-profile/Louis%20Smolka/66107/)
4. [Louis Smolka MMA fight history, ESPN](https://www.espn.com/mma/fighter/history/_/id/3087023/louis-smolka)
5. [Ben Nguyen vs. Louis Smolka, UFC Fight Night 91, Tapology](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/bouts/255575-ufc-fight-night-91-ben-ben-10-nguyen-vs-louis-da-last-samurai-smolka)
6. [Louis Smolka Forges Ahead, UFC.com](https://www.ufc.com/news/louis-smolka-forges-ahead-prelims-morales-ufc-vegas-44)
7. [Louis Smolka vs. Davey Grant, UFC Fight Night, Tapology](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/bouts/644262-ufc-fight-night-louis-da-last-samurai-smolka-vs-dangerous-davey-grant)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Individual sports and outdoor recreation › Combat sports and professional wrestling › Mixed martial arts › Featherweight and bantamweight fighters › Bantamweight fighters*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license