Bilal Hasan Next Fight Status After UFC Shanghai Knockout Debut
Bilal Hasan does not have a confirmed next fight after knocking out Nilson Rojas in his UFC debut, but the undefeated flyweight already pointed to a preferred opponent. The 25-year-old stopped Rojas with a right hand at 2:28 of Round 2 on August 29 at UFC Fight Night: Nurmagomedov vs. Song in Shanghai, then called out Andre Lima.
Hasan is 10-0 as a professional, with one no contest, and 1-0 inside the Octagon. Eight of those wins have come by knockout, one by submission, and one by decision.
Lima submitted Namsrai Batbayar earlier on the same Shanghai card. After the Rojas finish, Hasan addressed the Brazilian directly.
“Andre Lima, I don’t know how to say this in Portuguese, but in Spanish, ‘Eres muerto, vamos,’” Hasan said.
The UFC has not booked that matchup, and Hasan remains unranked in the official flyweight top 15 after one promotional appearance. Joshua Van holds the 125-pound title, with Alexandre Pantoja listed as the No. 1 contender and a championship rematch already scheduled for UFC 331 on September 19.
Hasan’s full name is Bilal Alakai Hasan. He fights as “The IndoNinja,” a nickname tied to his Indonesian heritage.
He was born on July 16, 2001, in Oahu, Hawaii, and is 25 years old. UFC lists his place of birth as the United States, and he fights out of Everett, Washington, while training at Charlie’s Combat Club.
Hasan is 5-foot-7, competes at 125 pounds, and has a 70-inch reach. He fights from a switch stance and also trains with UFC Hall of Famer Demetrious Johnson, making the regular drive from Everett to work with the former flyweight champion.
Both of Hasan’s parents were born in Jakarta, Indonesia, and later immigrated to Hawaii before the family moved to Washington when he was 10 or 11. Hasan has described himself as Indonesian-American and has said he represents Indonesia with pride even though he was born in the United States.
“That’s something I’ve always wanted to tap into, is my Indonesian roots,” Hasan said. “Of course, both my parents are Indonesian. I’ve always felt like, I don’t want to say like a fraud, but I was born in America. I’m not fully ingrained with my culture, so I’ve always tried to tap into my audience.”
Their first names have not been made public in reliable reporting. Hasan has repeatedly identified them as the reason he started martial arts and the reason he refuses to settle for an average career.
“I started Taekwondo at five years old because my parents wanted me to build confidence, discipline, and channel my energy,” Hasan said on his UFC profile. He later added wrestling, boxing, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts because he wanted to become a complete fighter.
When UFC asked who his heroes are outside the cage, Hasan’s answer was brief. “My parents. Their sacrifices and support made this journey possible.”
After his Contender Series knockout, he returned to that theme. “They worked so hard,” Hasan said. “They didn’t work this hard for me to just be average. So, I’m striving for greatness and can’t wait to get my contract from Daddy Dana.”
Hasan is a third-degree taekwondo black belt and a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He won gold in the junior male flyweight division at the 2017 Pan American Championships and competed for Team USA as a junior.
He attended Kamiak High School in Mukilteo, Washington, and earned a bachelor’s degree in health studies from the University of Washington Bothell. Before fighting full time, he worked as a physical therapy clinic receptionist, security guard, busser, and martial arts instructor.
He has been with his girlfriend for nine years after meeting her on the U.S. national taekwondo team. Outside the cage, he plays drums, sings, dances, and posts song covers on Instagram.
Hasan turned professional in December 2022 and won a split decision over Xhelal Lleshi at CFFC 116. That remains the only time he has gone the distance.
A July 29, 2023 bout against Sonny Suranjin at COGA Combat Games 75 was ruled a no contest after seven seconds. He then ran off a finish streak that made him one of the most hyped unsigned flyweights in the sport.
He captured the Cage Fury Fighting Championships flyweight title by submitting Jose Leon with a rear-naked choke in Round 2 at CFFC 136 on September 27, 2024. Hasan then made three successful defenses, stopping Brian Hauser, Jason Eastman, and Renaldy Manse.
The Eastman win, a fourth-round technical knockout by front kick to the body and punches at CFFC 143 on June 6, 2025, was one of the rare times he was taken past the halfway point. He also scored a spinning-wheel-kick knockout of Jacob Romano in February 2024.
Hasan was offered a spot on Season 33 of The Ultimate Fighter after a February 2025 fight and declined it. He told the Home of Fight podcast that the filming timeline did not work and that his team wanted more experience first.
That patience led to Dana White’s Contender Series on August 11 in Las Vegas. Hasan, a -5000 favorite, the biggest in show history, stopped India’s Mridul Saikia by TKO at 0:45 of Round 1.
He moonwalked after the finish and was awarded a UFC contract alongside Joseph Kropschot, Thomas Pagliarulo, and Anthony Wint. White told him, “I’m excited about you. I’m excited to see your future, and I’m really pumped for your first fight in UFC. Welcome!”
The Shanghai offer arrived almost immediately. “Quite literally probably like two hours after I got the knockout,” Hasan told MMA Junkie. “I was back at the hotel eating some malasadas; they’re delicious Hawaiian donuts. I was eating those, and then one of my coaches, Ryan Diaz, was like, ‘Hey, they want you to fight at UFC Shanghai.’ And I was like, ‘All right, let’s run it!’”
Eighteen days later, he opened the main card against Rojas, who entered 9-0. Hasan walked out to Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” on what would have been Jackson’s 68th birthday, then ended the fight with one right hand and collected a $100,000 Performance of the Night bonus.
The walkout was personal. Hasan has been performing Jackson’s moves for his father since he was eight years old in Hawaii.
“It felt so right. As soon as I heard the music, I told the guys, ‘Give me 30 seconds. Let me do my thing. Don’t rush me.’ Once I heard it, I was just right back at home. I’ve been performing like Michael Jackson since I was 8 in front of my dad on this little platform on my living room in Hawaii. Ever since then, I’ve loved being the center of attention, I love the pressure, I love the spotlight – and once I heard Michael Jackson playing, I shed a couple tears. It felt so surreal, but I felt so at home.”
The knockout itself surprised him in a different way. “Every time I get a finish like that, I’m like, ‘Damn – that’s all it took?’ I try to put 110 percent into a technique and it doesn’t work. Then when I just throw a technique without even trying, I get the finish. I think I’ve just got to do that a lot more.”
Hasan is the second UFC fighter of Indonesian heritage, following Jeka Saragih, who signed through Road to UFC in 2023. He has said he wants to grow MMA in Indonesia and become one of the most watchable fighters in the sport.
“I want a beautiful career of highlight finishes, highlight walkouts, highlight fight performances,” Hasan said. “I want (to be) the best package the UFC’s ever seen, and I feel like I’m doing that here right now.”
That ambition still sits a long way from the flyweight title. Van and Pantoja occupy the top of the division, and Hasan has one UFC win.
A Lima fight would be a logical step if the UFC wants another highlight at 125 pounds. Until matchmakers make it official, Hasan’s next fight remains open after the most complete two-week stretch of his career.