Zoila Gurgel

Zoila Gurgel
Born Zoila Frausto
December 10, 1983 (1983-12-10) (age 28)
Fresno, California, United States
Other names Warrior Princess
Nationality American
Height 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Weight 125 lb (57 kg; 8.9 st)
Division Women's 115-125 lbs
Women's 135 lbs (pre-May 2010)
Style Muay Thai
Taekwondo
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of Madera, California
Team The JG MMA and Fitness Academy[1]
Rank white belt in BJJ
black belt in Taekwondo
Mixed martial arts record
Total 12
Wins 11
By knockout 1
By submission 2
By decision 8
Losses 1
By submission 1
Other information
Notable relatives Jorge Gurgel, husband
Stephanie Frausto, sister
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Zoila L. Gurgel (née Frausto, born December 10, 1983) is an American professional female mixed martial artist. Her nickname comes from the popular 1990s TV series Xena: Warrior Princess. She is the current Bellator Women's Champion at 115 pounds.

Gurgel is currently the #5-ranked pound-for-pound female MMA fighter in the world by MMARising.com[2] and the #2-ranked 125-pound female fighter according to the Unified Women's MMA Rankings.[3]

Contents

Early life

Zoila's father is a third-degree black belt in tae kwon do.[4] Her sister, Stephanie, is also a professional MMA fighter.[5] She graduated from Madera High School in 2002 and attended Fresno City College.

Mixed martial arts career

Gurgel debuted in mixed martial arts on February 13, 2009 and faced Karina Hallinan at WarGods: Valentine's Eve Massacre. She defeated Hallinan by Split Decision.[6]

She next faced Sarah Boyd on June 27, 2009 at Disturbing The Peace in Fresno, California. Gurgel won the fight by Unanimous Decision.[7]

On July 25, 2009, Gurgel fought Leeann Jenkins at Pure Combat 9 - Home Turf. She won the fight by Unanimous Decision.[8]

Gurgel faced Elisha Helsper at Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Evangelista on November 6, 2009 and won the fight by Unanimous Decision.[9]

She next faced Jessica Rakoczy at Tachi Palace Fights 3 - Champions Collide on February 4, 2010.[10] Gurgel won the fight by armbar submission in the first round.[11]

Gurgel faced Miesha Tate on March 26, 2010 at Strikeforce Challengers: Johnson vs. Mahe.[12] She lost the fight by armbar submission in the second round.[13]

On May 16, 2010, Gurgel dropped down to 125 pounds to face Michelle Ould at TWC 8 - Meltdown in Porterville, California.[14] She defeated Ould by verbal submission after Ould suffered an ankle injury in the second round.[15]

Bellator Fighting Championships

Gurgel faced Rosi Sexton at Bellator 23 on June 24.[16] She defeated Sexton by knockout exactly two minutes into the first round.[17]

She entered the Bellator Season Three 115-pound women's tournament at Bellator 25 and faced Jessica Penne in the opening round.[18] Gurgel won the fight via unanimous decision.[19]

Gurgel faced Jessica Aguilar in the second round of the Bellator tournament at Bellator 31.[20] She won the fight via controversial split decision and went on to face Megumi Fujii in the tournament final at Bellator 34 on October 28, 2010.[21] Gurgel once again won via controversial split decision, handing Fujii her first professional defeat and becoming the inaugural 115-pound women's champion.[22]

In her first fight after marriage, Gurgel faced Karina Hallinan at Bellator 35 in a non-title match on March 5, 2011 in Lemoore, California. She won the fight via unanimous decision but suffered a right hand fracture.[23]

Gurgel agreed to rematch Jessica Aguilar in a non-title bout at a Bellator event in late October.[24] However, Aguilar withdrew from the planned fight while recovering from foot surgery and Gurgel was booked to face Carina Damm at Bellator 57 on November 12, 2011.[25] Gurgel withdrew from the bout on October 20 after suffering a torn ACL in training and is expected to be sidelined for six to eight months.[26]

Personal life

Frausto married fellow MMA fighter Jorge Gurgel on February 19, 2011.[27]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

Result Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 11–1 Karina Hallinan Decision (unanimous) Bellator 35 02011-03-05 March 5, 2011 3 5:00 Lemoore, California, United States Non-title bout; 125 lb bout
Win 10–1 Megumi Fujii Decision (split) Bellator 34 02010-10-28 October 28, 2010 5 5:00 Hollywood, Florida, United States Bellator Season 3 Women's 115 lb Tournament Final; Won inaugural Bellator Women's 115 lb Championship
Win 9–1 Jessica Aguilar Decision (split) Bellator 31 02010-09-30 September 30, 2010 3 5:00 Lake Charles, Louisiana, United States Bellator Season 3 Women's 115 lb Tournament Semifinal
Win 8–1 Jessica Penne Decision (unanimous) Bellator 25 02010-08-19 August 19, 2010 3 5:00 Chicago, Illinois, United States Bellator Season 3 Women's 115 lb Tournament Quarterfinal
Win 7–1 Rosi Sexton KO (knee and punches) Bellator 23 02010-06-24 June 24, 2010 1 2:00 Louisville, Kentucky, United States 121 lb catchweight bout.
Win 6–1 Michelle Ould Verbal Submission (leg strikes) The Warriors Cage 8: Meltdown 02010-05-16 May 16, 2010 2 2:42 Porterville, California, United States
Loss 5–1 Miesha Tate Submission (armbar) Strikeforce Challengers: Johnson vs. Mahe 02010-03-26 March 26, 2010 2 4:09 Fresno, California, United States
Win 5–0 Jessica Rakoczy Submission (armbar) Tachi Palace Fights 3: Champions Collide 02010-02-04 February 4, 2010 2 1:17 Lemoore, California, United States
Win 4–0 Elisha Helsper Decision (unanimous) Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Evangelista 02009-11-06 November 6, 2009 3 5:00 Fresno, California, United States
Win 3–0 Leann Jenkins Decision (unanimous) PureCombat 9: Home Turf 02009-07-25 July 25, 2009 3 5:00 Visalia, California, United States
Win 2–0 Sarah Boyd Decision (unanimous) Disturbing The Peace 02009-06-27 June 27, 2009 3 5:00 Fresno, California, United States
Win 1–0 Karina Hallinan Decision (split) Wargods/Ken Shamrock Productions: The Valentine's Eve Massacre 02009-02-13 February 13, 2009 3 3:00 Fresno, California, United States

See also

References

  1. ^ "Zoila Frausto calls out Lisa Ward; May get chance to avenge sister’s loss in Bellator women’s tournament". ProMMANow.com. 2010-06-28. http://prommanow.com/index.php/2010/06/28/zoila-frausto-calls-out-lisa-ward-may-get-chance-to-avenge-sisters-loss-in-bellator-womens-tournament/. Retrieved 2010-07-07. 
  2. ^ "Women's MMA Pound-For-Pound Rankings". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/rankings/womens-pound-for-pound-top-15/. Retrieved November 1, 2011. 
  3. ^ "Unified Women's Mixed Martial Arts Rankings". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/rankings/unified-womens-mixed-martial-arts-rankings/. Retrieved November 1, 2011. 
  4. ^ "Fight Path: Strikeforce's scrappy soccer vet Zoila Frausto fueled by Miesha Tate trash-talk". MMAjunkie.com. 2010-03-19. http://mmajunkie.com/news/18365/fight-path-strikeforces-scrappy-soccer-vet-zoila-frausto-fueled-by-miesha-tate-trash-talk.mma. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  5. ^ "Stephanie Frausto – A Warrior’s Welcome". FighterGirls.com. 2010-01-09. http://www.fightergirls.com/news.asp?ID=445. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  6. ^ "Shamrock, Abbott Grab Quick Wins at Wargods". Sherdog.com. 2009-03-14. http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/Shamrock-Abbott-Grab-Quick-Wins-at-Wargods-16212. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  7. ^ ""Disturbing The Peace" Results". FUNews.com. 2009-06-27. http://www.funews.net/page5. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  8. ^ "Ruiz Slays ‘The Giant’ at Pure Combat 9". Sherdog.com. 2009-07-26. http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/Ruiz-Slays-The-Giant-at-Pure-Combat-9-18733. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  9. ^ "Evangelista Outpoints Gurgel in Strikeforce ‘Challengers’". Sherdog.com. 2009-11-06. http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/Evangelista-Outpoints-Gurgel-in-Strikeforce-Challengers-20777. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  10. ^ ""Tachi Palace Fights 3: Champions Collide" official weigh-ins results (Updated)". MMAjunkie.com. 2010-02-03. http://mmajunkie.com/news/17801/tachi-palace-fights-3-champions-collide-official-weigh-ins-results.mma. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  11. ^ "Escovedo, De Jesus Win Gold; Ruiz Outpoints Ramirez at Tachi". Sherdog.com. 2010-02-05. http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/Escovedo-De-Jesus-Win-Gold-Ruiz-Outpoints-Ramirez-at-Tachi-22481. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  12. ^ "Showtime Sports - Mixed Martial Arts Events". Showtime.com. http://sports.sho.com/browse/events.html?sport=mma. Retrieved 2010-02-09. 
  13. ^ "Strikeforce Challengers 7 Live Results". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/articles/2010/03/26/strikeforce-challengers-7-live-results/. Retrieved 2010-03-26. 
  14. ^ "Michelle Ould vs Zoila Frausto Set For May 16th". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/news/2010/03/31/michelle-ould-vs-zoila-frausto-set-for-may-16th/. Retrieved 2010-04-01. 
  15. ^ "Frausto Sisters Victorious At TWC: "Meltdown"". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/articles/2010/05/16/frausto-sisters-victorious-at-twc-meltdown/. Retrieved 2010-05-16. 
  16. ^ "Sexton vs Frausto A Possibility For Bellator 23". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/news/2010/06/01/sexton-vs-frausto-a-possibility-for-bellator-23/. Retrieved 2010-06-01. 
  17. ^ "Zoila Frausto Knocks Out Rosi Sexton". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/articles/2010/06/24/zoila-frausto-knocks-out-rosi-sexton/. Retrieved 2010-06-24. 
  18. ^ "Grabowski vs. Barrett headlines Bellator 25, Frausto vs. Pene, Daly vs. Ward added". MMAjunkie.com. http://mmajunkie.com/news/19856/grabowski-vs-barrett-headlines-bellator-25-frausto-vs-pene-daly-vs-ward-added.mma. Retrieved 2010-07-08. 
  19. ^ "Zoila Frausto Defeats Jessica Pene At Bellator 25". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/articles/2010/08/19/zoila-frausto-defeats-jessica-pene-at-bellator-25/. Retrieved 2010-08-19. 
  20. ^ "Fujii vs Ward, Aguilar vs Frausto Set For Bellator 31". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/news/2010/09/07/fujii-vs-ward-aguilar-vs-frausto-set-for-bellator-31/. Retrieved 2010-09-07. 
  21. ^ "Fujii, Frausto Advance To Bellator Women's Final". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/articles/2010/09/30/fujii-frausto-advance-to-bellator-womens-final/. Retrieved 2010-09-30. 
  22. ^ "Zoila Frausto Wins Bellator Women's Championship". MMARising.com. http://www.mmarising.com/articles/2010/10/28/zoila-frausto-wins-bellator-womens-championship/. Retrieved 2010-10-28. 
  23. ^ "Frausto possible right hand fracture". Sherdog.com. 2011-03-07. http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/7-Fighters-Suspended-Following-Bellator-35-30688. Retrieved 2011-03-07. 
  24. ^ "Zoila Gurgel vs Jessica Aguilar 2 Targeted For Late October". MMARising.com. 2011-08-31. http://www.mmarising.com/news/2011/08/31/zoila-gurgel-vs-jessica-aguilar-2-targeted-for-late-october/. Retrieved 2011-08-31. 
  25. ^ "Zoila Gurgel Now Set To Face Carina Damm At Bellator 57". MMARising.com. 2011-09-22. http://www.mmarising.com/news/2011/09/22/zoila-gurgel-now-set-to-face-carina-damm-at-bellator-57/. Retrieved 2011-09-22. 
  26. ^ "Zoila Gurgel Suffers Torn ACL In Training, Out Until 2012". MMARising.com. 2011-10-20. http://www.mmarising.com/news/2011/10/20/zoila-gurgel-suffers-torn-acl-in-training-out-until-2012/. Retrieved 2011-10-20. 
  27. ^ "Jorge Gurgel weds long-time girlfriend Zoila Frausto". FiveOuncesOfPain.com. 2011-02-20. http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2011/02/20/jorge-gurgel-weds-long-time-girlfriend-zoila-frausto/. Retrieved 2011-02-21. 

External links

New championship 1st Bellator 115 lbs Women's Championship
October 28, 2010 - present
Current holder