Henry Briones

Jose Enrique "Bure" Briones is a Mexican mixed martial artist whose path to the UFC was anything but conventional. Born in Tijuana, he spent his formative years playing inline hockey and later pursued professional hockey in Oklahoma before returning to Mexico to study law. He did not discover MMA until age 26, joining Entram Gym and building a respectable 15-4-1 record in Mexican promotions before being selected into the UFC's Latin America developmental program. After training at Jackson's MMA, he competed on The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America 1 in 2014, setting the stage for his Octagon debut.

Briones made an immediate impression, submitting Guido Cannetti via rear-naked choke in round two of his UFC 180 debut in Mexico City and earning a Fight of the Night bonus for his aggressive finishing. That victory proved to be the highlight of his promotional career. Facing elite competition like Cody Garbrandt at UFC 189, he demonstrated he belonged in the mix but lacked the refinement to break through. His fighting style centers on opportunistic grappling and submission instincts, with the majority of his offense landing standing (84 percent of significant strikes). However, his defensive metrics revealed vulnerabilities: roughly 47-48 percent of significant strikes and takedowns landed against him, signaling he absorbed heavy punishment when opponents pressed their advantage.

The latter half of Briones' UFC tenure was marked by decline. A four-fight losing streak from 2016 to 2018 included decision defeats to Frankie Saenz and Rani Yahya (via first-round kimura submission), culminating in his release from the promotion in November 2019. At 42 years old and training out of Entram Gym in Tijuana and Alliance MMA in San Diego, Briones remains an active athlete, but his time as a major-promotion competitor has passed. His legacy rests on an unconventional personal narrative and early-career submission prowess rather than sustained excellence at the highest level.