Robert "Bobby" James Voelker (born April 26, 1979) is an American professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

competing in their

Welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

division. A professional competitor since 2006, Voelker has formerly competed for the

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) was an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 by Bjorn Rebney and operated until 2025. The promotion takes its name from ''wikt:bellator, bellātor ...

Strikeforce Strike Force may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games *Strike Force (video game), ''Strike Force'' (video game), a 1991 arcade game *''Commandos: Strike Force'', a 2006 video game *''Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce'', a 2009 video game *' ...

M-1 Global M-1 Global (Mixfight-1) or MMA-1 (Mixed martial arts-1) is a mixed martial arts promotion based in St. Petersburg, Russia which organizes between 10 and 20 competitions per year. It hosted its first major show (rather than co-promoting with oth ...

, and Titan FC.

Background

Voelker is from

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

, and attended Shawnee Mission South High School where he competed in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

as well as swimming and diving. Voelker also got into many street fights, being charged with battery when he was 18 years old and began training in

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

and

kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...

late in high school. After graduating high school, Voelker briefly attended college before dropping out and eventually transitioned into a career in professional

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Voelker compiled an undefeated amateur record of 10–0 before making his professional MMA debut in 2006. He competed in events primarily in

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

and

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, amassing a record of 20–7 before signing with Strikeforce.

Strikeforce

Voelker's debut took place on November 20, 2009 at Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears, where he faced off against WEC veteran Erik Apple, defeating Apple via TKO (punches) in the second round. His second appearance took place at Strikeforce Challengers: Lindland vs. Casey, where he faced heavy-handed up-and-coming striker "Relentless" Roger Bowling. The fight ended in a technical decision in favor of Bowling due to an unintentional eye injury to Bowling. He was next signed to face Cory Devela, who was on a two-fight slide, on July 23, 2010, at Strikeforce Challengers: del Rosario vs. Mahe. Devela easily took round one, swarming Voelker and turning the fight into a grappling match. The second and third rounds were a lot closer to call, with Devela mostly controlling Voelker in the clinch, but the split decision was awarded to Voelker, who remained in a dominant position for much of the final frames, landing shots from top position. A rematch with Bowling took place at Strikeforce Challengers: Bowling vs. Voelker. Voelker won a very one-sided fight via technical knockout in the second round due to punches. Voelker and Bowling fought for a third time at Strikeforce Challengers: Voelker vs. Bowling III to create Strikeforce's first trilogy. Once again, Voelker dominated and out struck Bowling, thus winning the fight via TKO due to a knee in the second round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In January 2013, the Strikeforce organization was closed by its parent company

Zuffa TKO Operating Company, LLC (TKO OpCo), doing business as Zuffa (), is an American sports promotion company specializing in mixed martial arts. It was founded in January 2001 in Las Vegas, Nevada, by Station Casinos executives Frank Fertitta I ...

. A list of fighters scheduled to be brought over to the Ultimate Fighting Championship was released in mid-January and Voelker was included. For his debut, Voelker faced Patrick Côté, who was making his

debut, on March 16, 2013 at

UFC 158 ''UFC 158: St-Pierre vs. Diaz'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on March 16, 2013, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Background The main event was the culmination of the rivalry between Geor ...

. Despite finishing strong and winning the third round, Voelker was unsuccessful in his debut, losing the back-and-forth fight via unanimous decision. Voelker was briefly scheduled to face James Head on August 28, 2013 at

UFC Fight Night 27 ''UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Kampmann 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 27'') was a mixed martial arts event held on August 28, 2013, at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. The event was broadcast live on Fox Sports 1. Backg ...

. However, on July 11, it was announced that Voelker was tabbed as a replacement for

Siyar Bahadurzada Siyar Bahadurzada (; born 17 April 1984) is a retired Afghan-born Dutch mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, making him the first Afghan to compete in the promotion. He currently w ...

and face

Robbie Lawler Robert Glenn Lawler (born March 20, 1982) is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed between 2001 and 2023. He is a former UFC Welterweight Champion, former EliteXC Middleweight Champion, and has formerly competed in ...

on July 27, 2013 at

UFC on Fox 8 ''UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Moraga'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 8'') was a mixed martial arts event held on July 27, 2013, at the Key Arena in Seattle, Washington. The event was broadcast live on FX and Fox. Background The main event was a UFC ...

. He lost the fight via knockout in the second round. Voelker faced

William Macário William Francisco da Silva Macário (born July 1, 1991) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently competing as a welterweight. A professional competitor since 2010, he has formerly competed for the UFC and was a contestant on The Ultimate Fi ...

on December 28, 2013 at

UFC 168 ''UFC 168: Weidman vs. Silva 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held on December 28, 2013, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was headlined by a UFC Middleweight Championship rematch between current champion ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Voelker faced

Lance Benoist Lance Benoist (born August 26, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist. He competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship in their welterweight division. Mixed Martial Arts career Early career Benoist went undefeated in his amateur career and ...

on June 7, 2014 at

UFC Fight Night 42 ''UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Khabilov'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 42'') was a mixed martial arts event held on June 7, 2014, at Tingley Coliseum in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Background The event was the first that the organization hoste ...

. He lost the back-and-forth fight via unanimous decision, and was subsequently released from the promotion.

Bellator MMA

After racking a 9–1 record on the regional circuit, Voelker signed with

in April 2019. He made his promotional debut against

Sabah Homasi Sabah Homasi (born October 19, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxer currently competing with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2009, he previously competed in the Welterweight division ...

at Bellator 250 on October 29, 2020. He lost the fight via flying knee in the second round. On May 3, 2021, it was announced that Voelker was no longer under contract with Bellator.

Return to regional circuit

After the one-off bout in Bellator, Voelker returned to Shamrock FC facing Josh Weston at Shamrock FC 332 on October 9, 2021. He won the bout via first-round knockout.

Personal life

Aside from his career as a fighter, Voelker works in construction and is also a devout

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. During his UFC tenure, Voelker studied at

Kansas City Kansas Community College Kansas City Kansas Community College (KCKCC) is a public two year community college in Wyandotte County, Kansas, United States. The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, a commission of the North Central Association and the K ...

to be a paramedic and eventually graduated.

Championships and accomplishments

*Shamrock Fighting Championships **Shamrock FC Welterweight Championship (one time)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 34–14 , Josh Weston , TKO (punches) , Shamrock FC 332 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:12 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 33–14 ,

, KO (flying knee and punches) , Bellator 250 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:20 ,

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is a village in the town of Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is located in southeastern Montville, at the mouth of the Oxoboxo River where it flows into the Thames River. The name is now applied more generally to all of the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 33–13 , Cameron VanCamp , Decision (unanimous) , Shamrock FC 317 , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 32–13 , Darrius Flowers , TKO (punches) , Shamrock FC 313 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 31–13 , Justin DeMoney , TKO (submission to punches) , Shamrock FC 306 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:45 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 30–13 , Bobby Emmons , TKO (punches) , Shamrock FC 302 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:16 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 29–13 ,

Zak Bucia Zak Bucia is a professional American mixed martial artist fighting out of San Francisco, California. A professional competitor since 2007, he has fought in Strikeforce, Titan FC, and King of the Cage. Mixed martial arts career Strikeforce Bu ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Shamrock FC 289 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 29–12 , Kyle Kurtz , TKO (punches and elbows) , Shamrock FC 276 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:55 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 28–12 , Raymond Gray , Decision (unanimous) , Shamrock Promotions: Assault , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 27–12 , Mike Estus , TKO (punches) , Shamrock Promotions: Clash , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:27 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 26–12 , Justin Gutherie , TKO (punches) , Shamrock Promotions: Heavy Artillery , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:09 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 25–12 , Cedric Marks , TKO (punches) , Shamrock Promotions: Onslaught , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:32 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 24–12 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Khabilov , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 24–11 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 24–10 ,

, KO (head kick and punches) , UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Moraga , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:24 ,

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 24–9 , Patrick Côté , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 24–8 , Roger Bowling , TKO (knee and punches) , Strikeforce Challengers: Voelker vs. Bowling III , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:16 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 23–8 , Roger Bowling , TKO (punches) , Strikeforce Challengers: Bowling vs. Voelker , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:58 ,

Fresno, California Fresno (; ) is a city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County, California, Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley (California), Central Valley region. It covers a ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 22–8 , Cory Devela , Decision (split) , Strikeforce Challengers: del Rosario vs. Mahe , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Everett, Washington Everett (; ) is the county seat and most populous city of Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is north of Seattle and is one of the main cities in the Seattle metropolitan area, metropolitan area and the Puget Sound region. Everett ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 21–8 , Roger Bowling , Technical decision (unanimous) , Strikeforce Challengers: Lindland vs. Casey , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:38 ,

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 21–7 , Erik Apple , TKO (punches) , Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:23 ,

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City (commonly known as KCK) is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 20–7 , Brendan Seguin , Decision (unanimous) , Titan FC 14 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 20–6 , Thomas Aaron , TKO (punches) , Extreme Fight Production , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:47 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 19–6 , Dominic Brown , TKO (punches) , Titan FC 13 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:33 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 18–6 , CJ Fernandes , TKO (punches) , X-Treme Fight 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:41 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–6 ,

Jacob Volkmann Jacob Joseph Volkmann (born September 5, 1980) is an American former mixed martial artist that competed in the Welterweight division. A professional MMA competitor from 2007 to 2016, Volkmann has formerly competed for the UFC, Bellator, and the ...

, Decision (unanimous) , VFC 25: Primetime , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Council Bluffs, Iowa Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The population was 62,799 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the state's List of cities in Iowa, te ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 17–5 , Amir Rahnavardi , Decision (unanimous) , M-1 Challenge 8: USA , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16–5 , Dominic Brown , TKO (punches) , VFC 24: Revolution , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 15–5 , Ryan Braun , TKO (punches) , MCC 14: Pride or Fate , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:17 ,

Urbandale, Iowa Urbandale is a city in Polk and Dallas counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 45,580. It is part of the Des Moines– West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Urbandale was incorporat ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–5 ,

Kevin Burns Kevin Burns (June 18, 1955September 27, 2020) was an American television and film producer, director, and screenwriter. His work can be seen on A&E, National Geographic Channel, E!, Animal Planet, AMC, Bravo, WE tv, Travel Channel, Lifetime, ...

, KO (punch) , VFC 23: Validation , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:30 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–4 , Nathan Looker , TKO (submission to punches) , World Cage Fighting Championships , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:34 ,

Independence, Missouri Independence is a city in and one of two county seats of Jackson County, Missouri, United States. It is a satellite city of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the largest suburb on the Missouri side of the Kansas City metropolitan area. In 2020 Unite ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–4 , Joey Gorczynski , Decision (split) , Titan FC 11 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, N/A ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–3 , Matt Delanoit , TKO (submission to strikes) , MCC 11: Night of Champions , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:43 ,

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–3 , Leonardo Pecanha , Submission (armbar) , Titan FC 8 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:58 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–2 , Danny Anderson , Decision (unanimous) , VFC 19: Inferno , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–2 , Warren Walker , TKO (punches) , Titan FC 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:04 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 , Victor Moreno , TKO (punches) , MCC 7: Valentine's Massacure , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 , Ken Jackson , TKO (punches) , Titan FC 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:08 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Ted Worthington , Decision (unanimous) , MCC 6: Hard Hitters , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Jody Lithicum , TKO (submission to punches) , World Series of Rumble , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:43 ,

Junction City, Kansas Junction City is a city in and the county seat of Geary County, Kansas, Geary County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 22,932. Fort Riley, a major United States Army, U.S. ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Clayton Marrs , Decision (unanimous) , Freestyle Cage Fighting , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–2 , Jack Hodge , TKO (submission to punches) , Titan FC 5 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:51 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 4–2 , Justin Wilcox , Decision (unanimous) , Extreme Challenge 68 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Hayward, Wisconsin Hayward is a city in Sawyer County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 2,533 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city was formally organized in 1883. It is near the Namekagon River and is surrounded ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Brian Green , TKO (punches) , Titan FC 4 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:38 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Johnathan Richmond , TKO (punches) , Titan FC 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:58 ,

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeastern Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2020 cen ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–1 , Victor Moreno , TKO (punches) , MCC 2: Midwest Xplosion , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:08 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Kyle Bradley , KO (punch) , Titan FC 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:47 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Demi Deeds , TKO (punches) , Midwest Cage Championships 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:11 ,

, United States ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Voelker, Bobby 1979 births American male mixed martial artists Living people Welterweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists from Kansas Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters