|
Known for his standup fighting skills and takedown defense, the 6’2”, 205 pound Chuck Liddell has notable wins over Randy Couture, Jeremy Horn, Vitor Belfort, Tito Ortiz, Kevin Randleman, Jeff Monson, Guy Mezger, Renato Sobral, Alistair Overeem and Murilo Bustamanta. He has also held the UFC Light Heavyweight championship. Chuck Liddell - The Early YearsHe was born Charles David Liddell on December 17th, 1969, in Santa Barbara, California. At the age of 12, he became interested in martial arts and began studying Koei-Kan karate (years later, he would receive a tattoo on his scalp which reads “Koei-Kan”). This training continued throughout high school and college. Chuck Liddell attended San Marcos High School in Santa Barbara, California and was the captain of both the wrestling and football teams. He was a four year starter on the football team. He attended college at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California. During this time, he competed as a Division I/Pacific 10 wrestler and was a four year starter. Chuck Liddell - Birth of a Fighter
In 1993, Liddell watched the first UFC pay-per-view and quickly became interested in the sport of mixed martial arts. He made it a personal goal to one day participate in the competition. While he graduated with a degree in accounting in 1995, he continued to compete in kickboxing events. During this time, he began training with former boxer John Hackleman at The Pit in Arroyo Grande, California. Liddell finished his kickboxing career with a record of 20 - 2 with 16 knockouts, and his relationship with Hackleman continues to this day. In 1998, Liddell was ready to achieve his goal of participating in a UFC event. Prior to this event, he started training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. UFC 17His UFC debut came at UFC 17: Redemption on May 15th, 1998. His opponent for the bout was Noe Hernandez, and Liddell got a decision victory after twelve minutes of competition. More UFC Fights - Chuck Liddell CareerAfter picking up a win in another organization, Liddell returned to the UFC in March of 1999 and lost to a much more experienced Jeremy Horn. Unfazed, Liddell continued to fight and won his next ten bouts, including victories over Vitor Belfort, Renato Sobral and Kevin Randleman. In 2001, he was named No Holds Barred Co-Competitor of the Year by Black Belt Magazine. UFC champion Tito Ortiz also received the honor. Considered the number one contender for the light heavyweight belt, the UFC tried to arrange a fight between Liddell and champion Tito Ortiz. While the two men had been friends and training partners, Ortiz frustrated both Liddell and the UFC by continually citing scheduling conflicts as the reason why he couldn‘t defend the title. This eventually led to a falling out between the two fighters and an end to their friendship. The UFC eventually set up an interim Light Heavyweight championship and made a match between Liddell and Randy Couture at UFC 43. While Liddell was favored to win the fight, Couture managed to control the action and score a TKO victory. Next up, Liddell ventured to Japan to compete in a cross-promotional event with the PRIDE organization. He advanced to face Quinton Jackson in the semi-finals of the 2003 Middleweight Grand Prix, but suffered a TKO loss. Liddell returned to the UFC and found that Randy Couture had captured the Light Heavyweight title by defeating Tito Ortiz. Eager to regain his title, Ortiz agreed to a match with Liddell to establish himself as the number one contender. The two clashed at UFC 47 in a bout which greatly contributed to the growing popularity of the company. After exchanging words with Ortiz following the end of the first round, Liddell came out in the second and quickly stunned him with a flurry of punches. The Iceman would go on to win by TKO. In 2005, Chuck Liddell served as a coach for the first season of Spike TV’s The Ultimate Fighter. Randy Couture was the opposing coach, and a rematch was scheduled between the two for April 16th, 2005. Members of Liddell’s team included Forrest Griffin and Diego Sanchez. At UFC 52, Liddell and Couture clashed again. This time, Liddell won by a first round KO and captured the Light Heavyweight championship. It was then time to take on Jeremy Horn, another fighter who has previously defeated The Iceman. Liddell demonstrated his much-improved technique by stifling much of Horn’s offense and going on to a fourth round TKO victory. Liddell continued to defend his title by defeating Randy Couture and Renato Sobral (for the second time each). He was scheduled to fight PRIDE’s Middleweight champion, Wanderlei Silva, but this did not materialize due to difficulties between the competing promotions. A rematch was scheduled with Ortiz for UFC 66, and the result was a third round TKO win for Liddell. Later, it was learned that Liddell had tore his MCL prior to the fight. At UFC 71, Liddell took on Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. At that time, Jackson was the only fighter to hold an unavenged win over The Iceman. While Jackson, who had mainly fought for the PRIDE promotion, was considered a heavy underdog by American fans, he went on to quickly defeat Liddell by a first round KO. Before the fight, Liddell became the first MMA fighter to be featured on the cover of ESPN The Magazine. After another attempt to match up Liddell and Wanderlei Silva fell through, The Iceman signed to face Keith Jardine at the main event of UFC 76. Much to the surprise of the crowd, Jardine went on to defeat Liddell by split decision. While many critics speculated that he might retire after two consecutive losses, Liddell seemed determined to stay in the fight game. As of this writing, he is next scheduled to finally take on “The Axe Murderer” Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79. One of the most recognizable faces in the world of MMA, Liddell has appeared in both movies and on television. His credits include Blade: The Series, Inked, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Cradle 2 the Grave, and Entourage. He has also appeared in a video for the rock group Nickelback. Liddell has two children, Trista and Cade. At one time, he was romantically linked with Playboy model and former UFC host Willa Ford. He has a brother, Sean Liddell, who has also competed in mixed martial arts events. Chuck Liddell makes his home in San Luis Obispo, California. There, he owns and operates the San Luis Obispo Kickboxing School. See also: Betting articles: |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
This site copyright 2007 MMA Wild. No unauthorized duplication. You can contact us by emailing mmawild -At- gmail *dot* com. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chuck
Liddell is a mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division
of the UFC. He has experience in kickboxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and
karate (both Kempo and Koei-Kan).