Waldo Cortes-Acosta

Salsa Boy

Dominican Republic

Out
Injury Undisclosed
Est. Return 1/11/2025
Won't fight at UFC Vegas 98
HeavyweightUFC
Out
September 27, 2024
Cortes-Acosta (undisclosed) has been ruled out of UFC Vegas 98 on Oct. 12, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
It's unclear why Cortes-Acosta has decided to back down from the fight, but this means Chris Bennett will have to face a new opponent in Junior Tafa. It's unclear when Cortes-Acosta will be able to step on the octagon again, but it wouldn't be shocking if he doesn't fight again until 2025.
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Will take on Barrett
HeavyweightUFC
Out
August 12, 2024
Cortes-Acosta is set to face Chris Barnett in a heavyweight fight on Oct. 12, Nolan King of MMAJunkie.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Cortes-Acosta doesn't have ideal power for the heavyweight division, but he's a competent striker, and as he showed in his most recent win over Robelis Despagigne, has a high fight IQ. He has won his last three fights in the heavyweight division.
Pulls upset of Robelis Despaigne
HeavyweightUFC
Out
May 11, 2024
Cortes-Acosta defeated Robelis Despaigne via uanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in St. Louis.
ANALYSIS
Full marks to Waldo for going about things in a smart, calculated way as opposed to playing to the crowd and engaging Despaigne in the brawl he was seeking. Knowing full well his opponent has elite power but a questionable gas tank and zero secondary skills, Cortes-Acosta landed one takedown in each round, earning no less than 2:33 worth of control time in any one single frame. The grounding served to tire out the massive Cuban, allowing Waldo to push towards the finish line and earn a decision. Cortes-Acosta doesn't have ideal power for the heavyweight division, but he's a competent striker, and as he showed here, has a high fight IQ. That's often enough on most nights.
Scheduled against Despaigne
HeavyweightUFC
Out
March 19, 2024
Cortes-Acosta is scheduled to fight Robelis Despaigne in a heavyweight fight at UFC St. Louis on May 11, per Nolan King of MMAJunkie.com.
ANALYSIS
Having defeated Lukasz Brzeski and Andrei Arlovski in his last two fights, Cortes-Acosta will look to improve his winning streak to three. He faces a relatively inexperienced but confident heavyweight who defeated Josh Parisian in 18 seconds at UFC 299 before scheduling the aforementioned fight just 10 days after his TKO finish.
Takes decision from Andrei Arlovski
HeavyweightUFC
Out
January 13, 2024
Cortes-Acosta defeated Andrei Arlovski via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
Yes, it was a clear-cut win, but this was a fairly uninspiring performance from Cortes-Acosta given he entered as a -700 favorite against an opponent who was closing in on his 45th birthday. The fact Waldo taunted and showboated against the highly-respected Arlovski doesn't serve to help his cause any. In what was a 15-minute kickboxing match, Cortes-Acosta closed with a 58-50 edge in total strikes landed. He definitely connected on the more meaningful blows, but the fact he wasn't able to put Arlovski away isn't a great sign. The 4-1 record in his UFC bouts looks great on the surface, but those wins have come against Arlovski, Lukasz Brzeski, Chase Sherman and Jared Vanderaa. Waldo has yet to face even an average opponent.
Will face Arlovski
HeavyweightUFC
Out
September 24, 2023
Cortes-Acosta is set to face Andrei Arlovski in a heavyweight bout at UFC Vegas 83 on Jan. 13, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Cortes-Acosta is coming off an easy win over Lukasz Brzeski via KO (punches) in his most recent bout, and that was just his fourth fight with the company. The 32-year-old Cortes-Acosta has a 3-1 record at the UFC level, and while the level of competition he's matched up against has been subpar, it remains to be seen if he'll be able to handle an experienced veteran such as Arlovski.