Brandon Halsey
| Brandon Halsey | |
|---|---|
| Born |
September 16, 1986 San Diego, California, United States |
| Other names | Bull |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st) |
| Division |
Middleweight Light Heavyweight |
| Reach | 72.0 in (183 cm) |
| Fighting out of | Huntington Beach, California, United States |
| Team | HB Ultimate Training Center |
| Trainer |
Kickboxing: Tiki Ghosn[1] Wrestling/Jiu-Jitsu: Paul Herrera[1] |
| Wrestling | NCAA Division I Wrestling |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 10 |
| Wins | 9 |
| By knockout | 2 |
| By submission | 4 |
| By decision | 3 |
| Losses | 1 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Brandon Halsey (born September 16, 1986) is an American professional mixed martial artist and the former Bellator Middleweight Champion. A professional competitor since 2012, Halsey has also formerly competed for King of the Cage.
Background
Originally from San Diego, California, Halsey began his career in combat sports from a young age as a wrestler and judoka.[1] Halsey's father wrestled at UCLA and Halsey has two brothers who also competed at NCAA Division I colleges. Halsey attended Rancho Buena Vista High School where he competed in wrestling and excelled. He currently holds the best overall high school record in school history with 150-16 and 80 pins, and also won a California high school state championship. Halsey also competed in football as a linebacker and won First-Team All-San Diego County honors. Halsey originally attended Fresno State University before transferring to California State University at Bakersfield his sophomore year when Fresno State dropped their wrestling program. After having an injury-plagued two years at Fresno State, Halsey excelled at CSUB fininshing 7th at the NCAA Division 1 National Championships, earning NCAA Division 1 All-American honors. [2]
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Halsey made his professional debut against Chris Golz. He won the bout via submission in the first round.
In his second fight Halsey faced Shonie Carter, a UFC veteran with over eighty fights. Halsey won the bout via unanimous decision.
Bellator MMA
After winning his first two fights, Halsey was signed by Bellator Fighting Championships and made his debut against Rocky Ramirez at Bellator 92 on March 7, 2013. Halsey won by technical submission after choking Ramirez unconscious with an arm-triangle choke in the third round.
Halsey fought Joe Yager at Bellator 96 on June 19, 2013 and won the bout via split decision.
Halsey faced UFC veteran Hector Ramirez at Bellator 106 on November 2, 2013. Halsey won the bout via TKO in the first round after using his superior wrestling to take the fight to the ground and transitioning immediately to the back, unloading with punches to the head until he earned the victory.[3]
Season Ten Middleweight Tournament winner
In March 2014, Halsey entered into the Bellator Season Ten Middleweight tournament when Dan Cramer versus Jeremy Kimball was cancelled.[4] He fought Joe Pacheco at Bellator 116 on April 11, 2014. He won the bout via unanimous decision. Halsey was scheduled to face Brett Cooper in the finals at Bellator 119 on May 9, 2014.[5] The bout, however, was delayed due to an injury sustained by Cooper.[6] The Cooper fight took place at Bellator 122 on July 25, 2014.[7] Halsey won the bout via submission in the first round.
Middleweight Champion
Halsey faced Alexander Shlemenko for the Bellator Middleweight Championship on September 26, 2014 at Bellator 126. Halsey won the bout via technical submission in the first round to become the new Bellator Middleweight Champion.[8]
Halsey was expected to make his first title defense against Kendall Grove on May 15, 2015 at Bellator 137.[9] However, Halsey failed to make weight and was subsequently stripped of the middleweight championship with the bout being a championship fight for Grove only.[10] Halsey won the fight via TKO in the fourth round.
Halsey next faced Rafael Carvalho for the vacant Bellator Middleweight Championship on October 23, 2015 at Bellator 144.[11] After dominating the opening round with his grappling, Halsey lost via TKO in the second after absorbing a kick to the liver.[12]
Personal life
Halsey and his wife Amber gave birth to their first child, daughter Savannah Rose, in June 2015.[13]
Championships and accomplishments
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 10 matches | 9 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 2 | 1 |
| By submission | 4 | 0 |
| By decision | 3 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 9–1 | Rafael Carvalho | TKO (body kick) | Bellator 144 | October 23, 2015 | 2 | 1:42 | Uncasville, Connecticut, United States | For the vacant Bellator Middleweight Championship. |
| Win | 9–0 | Kendall Grove | TKO (punches) | Bellator 137 | May 15, 2015 | 4 | 2:25 | Temecula, California, United States | Catchweight (188 lbs) bout; Halsey was stripped of title after failing to make weight. Title at stake for Grove only. |
| Win | 8–0 | Alexander Shlemenko | Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) | Bellator 126 | September 26, 2014 | 1 | 0:35 | Phoenix, Arizona, United States | Won the Bellator Middleweight Championship. |
| Win | 7–0 | Brett Cooper | Submission (armbar) | Bellator 122 | July 25, 2014 | 1 | 2:09 | Temecula, California, United States | Bellator Season Ten Middleweight Tournament Final. |
| Win | 6–0 | Joe Pacheco | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 116 | April 11, 2014 | 3 | 5:00 | Temecula, California, United States | Middleweight debut. Bellator Season Ten Middleweight Tournament Semifinal. |
| Win | 5–0 | Hector Ramirez | TKO (punches) | Bellator 106 | November 2, 2013 | 1 | 0:52 | Long Beach, California, United States | |
| Win | 4–0 | Joe Yager | Decision (split) | Bellator 96 | June 19, 2013 | 3 | 5:00 | Thackerville, Oklahoma, United States | |
| Win | 3–0 | Rocky Ramirez | Technical Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Bellator 92 | March 7, 2013 | 3 | 0:50 | Temecula, California, United States | |
| Win | 2–0 | Shonie Carter | Decision (unanimous) | KOTC: Reckless Abandon | February 2, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Highland, California, United States | |
| Win | 1–0 | Chris Golz | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Respect in the Cage | January 21, 2012 | 1 | 1:46 | Pomona, California, United States |
See also
References
- 1 2 3 Aaron Robbins (October 8, 2014). "Brandon Halsey: New Bellator Champion". lastwordonsports.com.
- ↑ "CSUB Wrestling Bio 2009 - Brandon Halsey". gorunners.com.
- ↑ "Bellator 106 prelim results: Souza, Halsey stay perfect, Guymon taps Miller". mmajunkie.com. November 2, 2013.
- ↑ "Bellator 115 Card Finalized with 10 Bouts; Doug Marshall Out of Middleweight Tourney".
- ↑ "Cooper-Halsey, Weichel-Green Tournament Finals Top Bellator 119 Card in Ontario". sherdog.com. Retrieved April 19, 2014.
- ↑ "Cooper-Halsey, Shamhalaev-‘Guerreiro’ Scratched From Friday’s Bellator 119". sherdog.com. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ↑ "Bellator 122 to Feature Middleweight, Welterweight Tourney Finals on July 25". sherdog.com. Retrieved June 21, 2014.
- ↑ "Alexander Shlemenko to defend 185-pound title against Brandon Halsey at Bellator 126". sherdog.com. August 13, 2014.
- ↑ Staff (2015-03-03). "Bellator middleweight champ Brandon Halsey meets Kendall Grove at Bellator 137 on May 15". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-03-03.
- ↑ Mike Sloan (2015-05-14). "Bellator 137 Weigh-in Results: Brandon Halsey Misses Weight, Stripped of Title". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2015-05-14.
- ↑ John Morgan (August 28, 2015). "Brandon Halsey vs. Rafael Carvalho set for vacant middleweight title at Bellator 144". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
- ↑ Matt Erickson (2015-10-23). "Bellator 144 results: Rafael Carvalho kick stuns Brandon Halsey to win 185 title". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-10-23.
- ↑ "Best father's day gift ever...". twitter.com. June 21, 2015.