Shane Young


Shane Young is a New Zealander mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Featherweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Young is affiliated with the Maori tribe Ngāti Kahungunu.

Background

Young was born in Napier, New Zealand, He trains at Auckland's City Kickboxing gym where he is the teammate of UFC fighter Israel Adesanya, Dan Hooker and Kai Kara-France. Young is of half European and half Māori descent and he uses fighting as the platform to inspire New Zealand mixed-blood Māori to accept their Māori roots and to be sporting stars.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Young started his professional MMA career in 2012 and amassed a record of 11-3 before being signed by the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Young made his UFC debut on 18 November 2017 against Alexander Volkanovski replacing Humberto Bandenay on a seven-day notice at. The bout proceeded at a catchweight of 150 pounds. Young lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Young was scheduled to face Rolando Dy on 23 June 2018 at. He won the fight via technical knockout in round two. This win earned him the Fight of the Night award.
Young contemplated stepping away from fighting after his bout with Dy for the remainder of 2018 to tackle his depression after achieving the success and the fame at of earning $50,000, where prior to the bout he had to borrow $40 to get to the airport for his flight to Singapore for the fight, and his mental health issues surrounding the break-up of his marriage where he spent most of the time with his family while seeking to reconnect with his Māori culture, which helped him to return to a healthy state of mind.
Young returned to fighting and he faced Austin Arnett on 10 February 2019 at UFC 234. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Young was a builder and foreman prior to competing in MMA professionally.

Mixed martial arts record