| Joe Warren | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 31, 1976 Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States |
| Residence | Denver, Colorado |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) |
| Weight | 135 lb (61 kg; 9.6 st) |
| Division | Bantamweight Featherweight |
| Style | Greco-Roman Wrestling, Boxing |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Fighting out of | Denver, Colorado |
| Team | Team Quest |
| Wrestling | NCAA Division I Wrestling |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 9 |
| Wins | 7 |
| By knockout | 2 |
| By decision | 5 |
| Losses | 2 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 1 |
| University | University of Michigan |
| Spouse | Christy Warren |
| Children | 2 |
| Notable club(s) | The New York Athletic Club |
| Notable school(s) | East Kentwood High School |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for United States | ||
| Men's Greco-Roman wrestling | ||
| Pan American Championships | ||
| Gold | 2006 Rio de Janeiro | 60 kg |
| World Championships | ||
| Gold | 2006 Guangzhou | 60 kg |
| World Cup | ||
| Gold | 2007 Antalya | 60 kg |
Joe Warren (born October 31, 1976) is an American Greco-Roman wrestler and mixed martial artist.[1] As a Greco-Roman wrestler, he won the 2006 Pan American and World Championship and was a favourite for the 2008 Olympics, but was given a two-year suspension after testing positive for THC while trying to qualify for the 2007 World Championship. He later participated in and won the 2007 World Cup.
During the end of 2008 Warren started transitioning to MMA, and on March 8, 2009, he made his professional MMA debut.
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Warren practised freestyle wrestling before switching to Greco-Roman.[2] He began his career at East Kentwood High School where he won two state championships and held the national takedown record for a number of years. He wrestled for the University of Michigan.[2]
He won the 60 kilograms (130 lb) division of men's Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2006 FILA Wrestling World Championships and was a favorite for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. However, during the 2007 US World Team Trials he tested positive for THC, a chemical found in marijuana, and was given a two-year suspension by the US Anti-Doping Association which caused him to miss the 2007 World Championship and the Olympics.[3] Warren later said the marijuana-use was for medical reasons due to personal problems he had at the time and that he did not expect the drug to be in his system for as long as it was. As such he accepted the ruling to suspend him.[2]
Other accomplishments include 6th at the 2000 World University Championship at 63 kilograms (140 lb), 9th at the 2005 FILA Wrestling World Championships, 1st at the 2006 Pan American Championship and 1st at the 2007 World Cup all at 60 kg.[4]
On December 18, 2010, it was reported that Warren will be making a return to wrestling, as he will try to qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.[5]
Joe Warren started a transition to MMA in 2008 and joined up with Team Quest where he got to train with fellow Greco-Roman wrestler and Pride Fighting Championship Champion Dan Henderson.[6] His MMA debut was on March 8, 2009, at Dream.7, where he defeated former WEC Bantamweight Champion Chase Beebe by TKO (doctor stoppage) after the first round due to a cut Beebe received over his right eye.[7] In the second round of the tournament, at Dream.9 on May 26, 2009, he was matched up with and defeated former K-1 Hero's Lightweight Grand Prix Champion, and formerly 17–1,[8] Norifumi Yamamoto in his first fight after a 512-day layoff officially due to elbow and knee injuries.[2][9] In preparation for the bout Warren trained with former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber and his Team Alpha Male after Faber called Warren and told him he knew how to defeat Yamamoto.[2] Faber had previously prepared Joseph Benavidez to fight Yamamoto in July 2008, but the fight did not happen as Yamamoto pulled out three days before the fight. Warren's fight happened as planned though, and after going the allotted 15 minutes Warren was awarded a split decision victory.[9][10]
The final two rounds of the tournament took place at Dream 11 which took place on October 6, 2009. In his scheduled semi-final bout Warren fought Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu expert Bibiano Fernandes,[11] where he quickly lost due to a controversial first-round armbar after securing a takedown.
On February 1, 2010, Warren officially announced that he signed with Bellator Fighting Championships, and that he would compete in the Featherweight tournament during Bellator's Season 2.
At Bellator 13, Warren fought in a quarter-final bout against Eric Marriott. Warren dominated the fight with his wrestling and took the fight on all three judges score cards, giving him the unanimous decision win. Warren advanced to the semi-final round where he defeated Georgi Karakhanyan via unanimous decision at Bellator 18.
On June 24, 2010, Warren won the Bellator featherweight tournament by claiming a split-decision over Patricio Freire. Joe was both dropped and caught in a rear-naked choke in the first round. He came back in rounds 2 and 3 by scoring takedowns followed by a ground-n-pound attack. The official scores were (29–28), (28–29), and (29–28). After the Fight Bellator Fighting Championships Featherweight Champion Joe Soto came into the ring and the two exchanged some words, with Warren telling Soto "you've got my belt" and Soto promising to hold onto the title.
The title fight took place on September 2, 2010 at Bellator 27 in the third season of Bellator Fighting Championships. This was Warren's first title shot. Following a dominant opening round by Soto, Warren won the fight via KO (strikes) in the opening minute of the second round.
Warren faced Marcos Galvão on April 16, 2011 at Bellator 41. In the fight Galvão negated a majority of Warren's offense for the first two rounds by showing strong takedown defense, taking down Warren multiple times, taking Warren's back, and executing good knees from the clinch. In the third round he was taken down by Warren and controlled throughout the round. At the end of the fight, Bellator color commentator, Jimmy Smith, believed Galvão won the fight 29–28. Along with Smith, many top MMA sites, (MMAJunkie, Sherdog, MMAFighting, MMASpot), all believed that Galvão won the fight by 29–28. It was then announced that Warren had won the fight via unanimous decision (30–27, 29–28, 29–28).[12]
A rematch with Patricio Freire was expected to take place at Bellator 47 on July 23, 2011, but had to be postponed due to Pitbull's unexpected injury.[13] The title bout rematch will be re-booked and take place sometime in the fall of 2011.[14]
Whether he wins or loses, Warren will enter the Bellator Season 5 bantamweight tournament. He was hoping to become the promotion's first two division champion.[15] Warren faced fellow amateur wrestling world champion, Alexis Vila, at Bellator 51, in the quarterfinal round of Bellator's season five bantamweight tournament.[16] He lost the fight via KO in the first round.
Warren and his wife have a son who was born in June 2008.[2] The couple had their second child, a girl in February 2010.[17]
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 9 matches | 7 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 2 | 1 |
| By submission | 0 | 1 |
| By decision | 5 | 0 |
| Result | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 7–2 | Alexis Vila | KO (punch) | Bellator 51 | September 24, 2011 | 1 | 1:04 | Canton, Ohio, United States | Bellator Season 5 Bantamweight Tournament Quarterfinal. (Bantamweight Debut) |
| Win | 7–1 | Marcos Galvão | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 41 | April 16, 2011 | 3 | 5:00 | Yuma, Arizona, United States | 137 lb catchweight bout. |
| Win | 6–1 | Joe Soto | KO (knee and punches) | Bellator 27 | September 2, 2010 | 2 | 0:33 | San Antonio, Texas, United States | Won Bellator Featherweight Championship. |
| Win | 5–1 | Patricio Freire | Decision (split) | Bellator 23 | June 24, 2010 | 3 | 5:00 | Louisville, Kentucky, United States | Bellator Season 2 Featherweight Tournament Final. |
| Win | 4–1 | Georgi Karakhanyan | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 18 | May 13, 2010 | 3 | 5:00 | Monroe, Louisiana, United States | Bellator Season 2 Featherweight Tournament Semifinal. |
| Win | 3–1 | Eric Marriott | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 13 | April 8, 2010 | 3 | 5:00 | Hollywood, Florida, United States | Bellator Season 2 Featherweight Tournament Quarterfinal. |
| Loss | 2–1 | Bibiano Fernandes | Submission (armbar) | Dream 11 | October 6, 2009 | 1 | 0:42 | Yokohama, Japan | Dream 2009 Featherweight Grand Prix Semifinal. |
| Win | 2–0 | Norifumi Yamamoto | Decision (split) | Dream 9 | May 26, 2009 | 2 | 5:00 | Yokohama, Japan | Dream 2009 Featherweight Grand Prix Quarterfinal. |
| Win | 1–0 | Chase Beebe | TKO (doctor stoppage) | Dream 7 | March 8, 2009 | 1 | 10:00 | Saitama, Saitama, Japan | Dream 2009 Featherweight Grand Prix Opening Round. |