Nathan Marquardt

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Nathan Marquardt

Statistics
Nickname	The Great
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg)
Nationality	American
Born	April 20, 1979
Fighting out of	Denver, Colorado
Town of birth	Lander, Wyoming
Fighting style	Gaidojutsu
Mixed martial arts record
Wins	25
By knockout	4
By submission	14
Losses	6
Draws	2

Nathan Joel Marquardt (born April 20, 1979 in Lander, Wyoming) is an American mixed martial artist. He is a seven-time Middleweight King of Pancrase Champion, and currently fights at middleweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

1 Background and training
2 Career
- 2.1 Almeida incident
- 2.2 Transition to the UFC
3 Personal life
4 Other accomplishments
5 Mixed martial arts record
6 References
7 See also
8 External links

[edit] Background and training

Marquardt began his training in the martial arts as a teenager, studying the disciplines of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, kickboxing, and Kenpo under instructor Alistair McNiven. Additionally, he took lessons in wrestling, and eventually began training under Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor Ricardo Murgel at age 18.^[1] Active in sports throughout high school, he contends that he didn't become involved in the martial arts until he saw footage of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.^[2] Although he is perhaps best known for his association with Greg Jackson's Gaidojutsu mixed martial arts team, Marquardt has also trained with Sanae Kikuta and the GRABAKA Dojo in Japan^[3] as well as American kickboxer and mixed martial artist Duane "Bang" Ludwig in Colorado.^[4]

Marquardt runs an academy, High Altitude Martial Arts, located in Aurora, Colorado.

[edit] Career

Marquardt began his professional mixed martial arts career in 1999, amassing victories in various promotions before entering the Bas Rutten Invitational 4 tournament, which was organized in such a manner that the tournament winner was to be offered a contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Despite winning the tournament, Marquardt was offered no such contract.^[5] Instead, he signed with Japan's Pancrase organization, which had fostered such fighters as Ken Shamrock and Bas Rutten. In his first Pancrase fight, Marquardt lost via submission to Genki Sudo.

Invited back to Pancrase for a middleweight elimination tournament, Marquardt defeated Daiju Takase, Kiuma Kunioku, and Shonie Carter to become the first Middleweight King of Pancrase. Marquardt defended this title twice before being defeated by Kunioku in December 2001. A final encounter between the two fighters in December 2002 saw Marquardt defeat Kunioku once again to recapture the King of Pancrase championship, which he held for nearly a year.

[edit] Almeida incident

On November 30, 2003, Marquardt was involved in a brief altercation with middleweight opponent Ricardo Almeida in a Pancrase title fight. Marquardt, who was caught in a guillotine choke, tapped out; the referee, however, was unable to immediately separate the fighters, and the choke remained applied around Marquardt's neck. After he was freed, Marquardt threw a strike at Almeida's face, prompting both corners to storm into the ring – including Renzo Gracie, who was cornering Almeida.^[6] The confrontation eventually came to an end, and Marquardt approached Almeida after the bout to congratulate him. After Almeida vacated his title in July 2004, Marquardt proceeded to regain the championship in a victory over Kazuo Misaki at Pancrase: Brave 10.

[edit] Transition to the UFC

On May 1, 2005, Marquardt defeated Izuru Takeuchi, winning the Pancrase Middleweight Championship for a seventh time – the only fighter to ever accomplish such a feat.^[7] It was then announced that Marquardt would be making his debut with the UFC in August, live on Spike TV, headlining the inaugural Ultimate Fight Night card in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Although his debut ended in success – Marquardt earned a decision victory over UFC veteran Ivan Salaverry – post-fight drug testing controversy led to Marquardt's suspension by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Marquardt tested positive for high levels of nandrolone, which led the commission to file for his suspension. Marquardt maintains that he only used over-the-counter supplements in preparation for his fight – a claim which seems to have been affirmed by a follow-up drug test that found Marquardt to be free of illegal substances. Regardless, Marquardt's suspension was lifted in January 2006.^[8]

With the drug testing controversy resolved, Marquardt was set to make his return to the UFC at UFC 58, fighting a mixed martial arts veteran in Joe Doerksen. The fight proved to be a successful endeavor for Marquardt, as he won a unanimous decision over Doerksen. In the post-fight interview, Marquardt stated his goals of capturing the UFC Middleweight Championship, and his intention to fight then-champion Rich Franklin.

Marquardt then fought Crafton Wallace – a replacement for Marquardt's original opponent, Thales Leites – on the undercard of Ortiz vs. Shamrock 3: The Final Chapter on October 10, 2006, winning by rear naked choke in the second round. Due to his commitment to the UFC, Marquardt relinquished his title as the Middleweight King of Pancrase that same month.^[9]

More recently, at UFC Fight Night 8, Marquardt notched a dominant three-round decision victory over ADCC champion grappler Dean Lister that saw two judges score the bout 30-25 for Marquardt.^[10] Marquardt is currently scheduled to be the next challenger for Anderson Silva's UFC Middleweight Championship title, on July 7, 2007.^[11]

[edit] Personal life

Marquardt is married to wife Tessa.^[12]

[edit] Other accomplishments

1999 World Vale Tudo Federation Champion
1999 I.M.A. Rumble In The Rockies Champion
1999 Bas Rutten Invitational 4 Lightweight Champion
2000 Ring of Fire Middleweight Champion
2002 Pancrase Spirit Tour Champion
Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Ricardo Murgel
2nd Degree Black Belt in Pancrase Mixed Martial Arts/Jiu-Jitsu^[13]

[edit] Mixed martial arts record

33 Bouts: 25 Wins (4 KOs, 14 submission, 7 decisions), 6 Losses, 2 Draws
Date	Result	Opponent	Event	Method	Round	Time	Notes
01/25/2007	Win	Dean Lister	UFC Fight Night 8	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
10/10/2006	Win	Crafton Wallace	UFC: Ortiz vs. Shamrock 3	Submission (rear naked choke)	2	1:14
03/04/2006	Win	Joe Doerksen	UFC 58	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
08/06/2005	Win	Ivan Salaverry	UFC Ultimate Fight Night	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
05/01/2005	Win	Izuru Takeuchi	Pancrase: Spiral 4	Technical sub. (rear naked choke)	3	2:19	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
11/07/2004	Win	Kazuo Misaki	Pancrase: Brave 10	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
06/22/2004	Draw	Eiji Ishikawa	Pancrase: Brave 6	Draw	3	5:00
11/30/2003	Loss	Ricardo Almeida	Pancrase: Hybrid 10	Submission (guillotine choke)	1	4:53	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
10/04/2003	Win	Yuji Hisamatsu	Pancrase: Hybrid 8	Decision (unanimous)	2	5:00
09/06/2003	Win	Steve Gomm	IFC: Global Domination	Submission (punches)	1	3:28
07/27/2003	Loss	Keiichiro Yamamiya	Pancrase: 2003 Neo-Blood	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
03/08/2003	Win	Izuru Takeuchi	Pancrase: Hybrid 3	Knockout (punches)	1	1:29	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
12/21/2002	Win	Kiuma Kunioku	Pancrase: Spirit 9	Knockout (flying knee)	3	4:36	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
10/29/2002	Loss	Izuru Takeuchi	Pancrase: Spirit 7	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
07/28/2002	Win	Seiki Ryo	Pancrase: 2002 Neo-Blood	Technical submission (armbar)	1	1:37
03/25/2002	Win	Kazuo Misaki	Pancrase: Spirit 3	Technical knockout (arm injury)	1	0:29
12/01/2001	Loss	Kiuma Kunioku	Pancrase: Proof 7	Decision (majority)	3	5:00	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
10/30/2001	Win	Yuji Hoshino	Pancrase: Proof 6	Submission (triangle choke)	3	2:13	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
07/18/2001	Loss	Gil Castillo	IFC: Warriors Challenge 14	Decision (unanimous)	5	5:00
05/13/2001	Win	Masaya Kojima	Pancrase: Proof 3	Submission (armbar)	1	1:45
03/31/2001	Win	Hikaru Sato	Pancrase: Proof 2	Submission (rear naked choke)	1	1:53
12/04/2000	Draw	Kiuma Kunioku	Pancrase: Trans 7	Draw	1	20:00	King of Pancrase (MW) bout
09/24/2000	Win	Shonie Carter	Pancrase: 2000 Anniversary Show	Decision (unanimous)	2	3:00	King of Pancrase (MW) bout; becomes first MW KOP
09/24/2000	Win	Kiuma Kunioku	Pancrase: 2000 Anniversary Show	Decision (unanimous)	1	10:00
06/26/2000	Win	Daiju Takase	Pancrase: Trans 4	Knockout (knee)	2	1:30
03/18/2000	Win	Anthony Washington	Ring of Fire 1	Submission (strikes)	N/A	N/A
12/18/1999	Loss	Genki Sudo	Pancrase: Breakthrough 11	Submission (armbar)	1	13:31
08/14/1999	Win	David Harris	Bas Rutten Invitational 4	Submission (rear naked choke)	1	15:01
08/14/1999	Win	Josh Groves	Bas Rutten Invitational 4	Submission (triangle choke)	1	1:49
08/14/1999	Win	Yves Edwards	Bas Rutten Invitational 4	Submission (heel hook)	1	3:04
06/07/1999	Win	Jose Garcia	Rumble in the Rockies	Submission	1	3:32
06/07/1999	Win	Josh Medina	Rumble in the Rockies	Submission (choke)	1	0:27
04/17/1999	Win	Mike Lee	WVF: Durango	Submission	2	2:13