Matt Hughes (fighter)
From OTMWiki
| Matt Hughes | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Nickname | |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg) |
| Born | October 13, 1973 |
| Fighting out of | Hillsboro, Illinois |
| Town of birth | Hillsboro, Illinois |
| Fighting style | Wrestling |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Wins | 39 [1] |
| By knockout | 13 |
| By submission | 18 |
| Losses | 4 |
| Draws | 0 |
| No contests | 0 |
Matthew Allen Hughes (born October 13, 1973) is a professional mixed martial arts fighter and the current Welterweight (170 lb. / 77 kg) champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. With only one loss since his first title victory in 2001, Hughes is one of the UFC's most dominant champions. He trains as part of the Miletich Fighting Systems team.
Hughes is known for his grappling skills, ground-and-pound, and his practice of picking up opponents, carrying them across the ring, and slamming them to the mat with their head strategically placed against the fence. Hughes is also a devout Christian. He has a twin brother named Mark Hughes who wrestled and defeated Matt in Junior High School. Mark also trains with the Miletich Fighting Systems team.
Matt is good friends with UFC Middleweight champion Rich Franklin.
Contents |
Fighting history
Hughes won his first UFC Welterweight title at UFC 34: High Voltage on November 2, 2001 knocking out Carlos Newton with a devastating slam. He successfully defended the championship belt several times afterward, defeating Hayato Sakurai, Carlos Newton (in a rematch), Gil Castillo, Sean Sherk, and Frank Trigg. He held onto that title until UFC 46, when he was submitted by Hawaiian Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist B.J. Penn via rear naked choke. The title was vacated upon a contract dispute between B.J. Penn and the UFC. Hughes regained the title by submitting Canadian contender Georges St. Pierre via armbar in the final seconds of a close first round at UFC 50 in a match to fill the vacant position of UFC welterweight champion.
After regaining his title, Hughes successfully retained it in a rematch with Frank Trigg, winning again by submission via rear naked choke. Hughes's next fight took place at UFC 56, slated to fight Judo practitioner Karo Parisyan. However, Parysian suffered a quadricep injury, and pulled out of the fight, upon which Joe "Diesel Riggs, voluteered to fight in Parisyan's place. Hughes defeated Joe Riggs in the first round by submission via a kimura armlock. The match was originally scheduled as a title bout, but Riggs could not meet the 170 pound Welterweight weight limit, making it a non-title, three round fight.
The Ultimate Fighter
In 2005, Hughes participated as a coach opposite Rich Franklin in the second season of the Spike TV reality television series, The Ultimate Fighter. Hughes' aggressive and confrontational personality was on display throughout the season; he notably objected to what he called "showboating" from eventual Heavyweight Ultimate Fighter winner Rashad Evans.
Recent history
Hughes fought UFC legend Royce Gracie in a non title fight at the hugely anticipated UFC 60 on May 27, 2006. Hughes surprised critics with his willingness to fight on the ground — where Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu expert Gracie was considered superior — and dominated the fight, evading his opponent's submission attempts and applied a fully-extended straight armbar to Gracie's left arm after 4 minutes. Gracie eventually escaped the hold, but in doing so exposed his back, allowing Hughes to gain a back mount. Hughes then hit Gracie with a series of uncontested strikes, forcing referee John McCarthy to stop the fight for a TKO after 4 minutes and 39 seconds. In an interview by Grappling Magazine, Hughes alleged that he voluntarly released Gracie from his arm-bar as he did not want to break Gracie's arm and believed that Gracie would not submit. Therefore, he tried to obtain a TKO.
Hughes is also scheduled for a rematch with Georges St. Pierre in a title defense at a later date, rumored to be September at UFC 63.
MMA record
| 39-4-0 (wins-losses-draws) [2] [1] | ||||||
| Date | Result | Opponent | Event | Method | Round | Time |
| 5/27/2006 | Win | Royce Gracie | UFC 60 - Hughes vs. Gracie | TKO (Strikes) | 1 | 4:39 |
| 11/19/2005 | Win | Joe Riggs | UFC 56 - Full Force | Submission (Kimura) | 1 | 3:28 |
| 4/16/2005 | Win | Frank Trigg | UFC 52 - Couture vs Liddell 2 | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | 1 | 4:05 |
| 10/22/2004 | Win | Georges St. Pierre | UFC 50 - The War of '04 | Submission (Armbar) | 1 | 4:59 |
| 6/19/2004 | Win | Renato Verissimo | UFC 48 - Payback | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 5:00 |
| 1/31/2004 | Loss | B.J. Penn | UFC 46 - Supernatural | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | 1 | 4:39 |
| 11/21/2003 | Win | Frank Trigg | UFC 45 - Revolution | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | 1 | 3:54 |
| 4/25/2003 | Win | Sean Sherk | UFC 42 - Sudden Impact | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 5:00 |
| 11/22/2002 | Win | Gil Castillo | UFC 40 - Vendetta | TKO (Cut) | 1 | 5:00 |
| 7/13/2002 | Win | Carlos Newton | UFC 38 - Brawl at the Hall | TKO (Strikes) | 4 | 3:27 |
| 3/22/2002 | Win | Hayato Sakurai | UFC 36 - Worlds Collide | TKO (Strikes) | 4 | 3:01 |
| 11/2/2001 | Win | Carlos Newton | UFC 34 - High Voltage | KO (Slam) | 2 | 1:27 |
| 9/8/2001 | Win | Steve Gomm | EC 43-Extreme Challenge 43 | TKO | 2 | 3:18 |
| 8/11/2001 | Win | Hiromitsu Kanehara | Rings-10th Anniversary | Decision (Majority) | 3 | 5:00 |
| 7/13/2001 | Win | Chatt Lavender | EC 41-Extreme Challenge 41 | Submission (Side Choke) | 3 | 2:31 |
| 6/16/2001 | Win | Scott Johnson | EC 40-Extreme Challenge 40 | KO | 1 | 3:24 |
| 5/11/2001 | Win | John Cronk | Gladiators 14 | Submission (Strikes) | N/A | N/A |
| 3/31/2001 | Win | Bruce Nelson | FCC 4-Freestyle Combat Challenge 4 | Submission (Strikes) | 1 | 3:01 |
| 3/17/2001 | Win | Brett Al-azzawi | Rings USA-Battle of Champions | Submission (Armbar) | 1 | 3:27 |
| 2/8/2001 | Loss | Jose Landi-Jons | Shidokan Jitsu-Warriors War 1 | KO (Knee to the Head) | 1 | 4:45 |
| 12/16/2000 | Loss | Dennis Hallman | UFC 29 - Defense of the Belts | Submission (Armbar) | 1 | 0:20 |
| 11/12/2000 | Win | Maynard Marcum | Rings Australia-Free Fight Battle | Submission (Keylock) | 1 | 6:29 |
| 9/30/2000 | Win | Robbie Newman | Rings USA-Rising Stars Final | Submission (Arm Triangle Choke) | 1 | 1:40 |
| 8/23/2000 | Win | Chris Haseman | Rings-Millennium Combine 3 | Decision (Unanimous) | 2 | 5:00 |
| 6/29/2000 | Win | Joe Guist | EC 35-Extreme Challenge 35 | Submission (Armbar) | 1 | 2:45 |
| 6/9/2000 | Win | Marcelo Aguiar | UFC 26 - Ultimate Field of Dreams | TKO (Cut) | 1 | 4:34 |
| 5/21/2000 | Win | Shawn Peters | EC 32-Extreme Challenge 32 | Submission (Choke) | 1 | 2:52 |
| 5/13/2000 | Win | Alexandre Barros | WEF 9-World Class | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 5:00 |
| 4/15/2000 | Win | Eric DaVila | SB 17-SuperBrawl 17 | Submission (Keylock) | 2 | 3:24 |
| 1/15/2000 | Win | Jorge Pereira | WEF 8-Goin' Platinum | TKO (Doctor Stoppage) | 1 | 6:00 |
| 11/20/1999 | Win | Daniel Vianna | IE-Independent Event | TKO (Slam) | 1 | ? |
| 11/13/1999 | Win | LaVerne Clark | EC 29-Extreme Challenge 29 | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | 2 | 1:35 |
| 11/13/1999 | Win | Tom Schmitz | EC 29-Extreme Challenge 29 | Submission (Eye Injury) | 1 | 0:48 |
| 11/13/1999 | Win | Joe Doerksen | EC 29-Extreme Challenge 29 | Submission (Strikes) | 2 | 0:25 |
| 9/24/1999 | Win | Valeri Ignatov | UFC 22 - There Can Be Only One Champion | Decision | 3 | 5:00 |
| 5/29/1999 | Win | Akihiro Gono | Shooto-10th Anniversary Event | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 5:00 |
| 4/24/1999 | Win | Erick Snyder | JKD-Challenge 4 | TKO (Slam) | N/A | N/A |
| 4/2/1999 | Win | Joe Stern | EC 23-Extreme Challenge 23 | Submission | 1 | 2:30 |
| 12/11/1998 | Win | Ryan Stout | ES-Extreme Shootfighting | TKO (Towel Thrown In) | 2 | 5:00 |
| 10/17/1998 | Loss | Dennis Hallman | EC 21-Extreme Challenge 21 | TKO (Guillotine Choke) | 1 | 0:17 |
| 10/17/1998 | Win | Dave Menne | EC 21-Extreme Challenge 21 | Decision | 1 | 15:00 |
| 10/17/1998 | Win | Victor Hunsaker | EC 21-Extreme Challenge 21 | TKO (Strikes) | 1 | 1:39 |
| 4/25/1998 | Win | Craig Quick | JKD-Challenge 1 | Submission (Strikes) | N/A | N/A |
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.1 1.2 Hughes' Sherdog profile records two less wins than his UFC profile. The record listed here represents the one given on his Sherdog profile.
- ↑ Sherdog Fight Finder - Matt Hughes' Mixed Martial Arts Statistics Retrieved on 2006-06-02
