Waldo Cortes-Acosta

Waldo Cortes-Acosta, known as "Salsa Boy," is a Dominican mixed martial artist who competes in the heavyweight division of the UFC.

Born in Fundación, Barahona Province, in the Dominican Republic, Cortes-Acosta's route into combat sports was unconventional. He initially pursued a career in professional baseball before turning to boxing and mixed martial arts in his mid-twenties. He made his professional MMA debut in 2018 and built his reputation on the regional circuit, winning an amateur title with RUF before capturing the LFA heavyweight championship with a third-round TKO of Thomas Petersen. He earned his UFC contract with a first-round TKO win on Dana White's Contender Series.

Cortes-Acosta trains out of Ultimate Kombat Training Center under coach Javier Torres, where he has developed into a well-rounded heavyweight, holding a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu to complement his striking base.

Standing 6-foot-4 with a 78-inch reach, Cortes-Acosta is a physically imposing striker who uses his length, footwork and one-punch power to control distance and end fights in dramatic fashion; a majority of his professional wins have come by knockout or TKO. That blend of size, athleticism and finishing instinct has made him one of the more dangerous heavyweights on the

Stats last updated: September 19, 2026