Ricco Rodriguez

Ricco Rodriguez competed in the heavyweight division and was a former champion under the UFC. He is also a former ADCC World Champion and Mundials World Champion. He also became King of the Cage Openweight Super Fight Champion.

Rodriguez was born on August 19, 1977 in San Jose, California. Later on, he was raised in the projects in New Jersey. He often got into street fights because of his Puerto Rican ancestry. During high school, he joined the wrestling team and also trained in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu before finally moving to mixed martial arts.

By 1997, he won a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Championship and in 1998, he took a gold medal during the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship. In 1999, he started his career in mixed martial arts. Aside from mixed martial arts, he is also a professional boxer who made his debut in the sport in 2006.

He also appeared in several television shows. Rodriguez was also affiliated with other promotions including World Extreme Cagefighting, BAMMA, International Fight League, Bellator and Pride Fighting Championship.

Nicknamed “Suave”, this heavyweight fighter stands 6 feet and 3 inches and has a 77-inch reach. He boasts of a 3rd degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and a mixed martial arts record of 77 fights with 53 wins, 23 losses, and 1 no contest. These wins include 14 by knockout, 27 by submission, and 12 by decision. His professional boxing record on the other hand includes 2 fights with 1 win and 1 loss.