Gabriel G. "Gabe" Ruediger (born August 29, 1977) is a former American

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 ...

, who competed in the

Lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing (sport), rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) boxing weight classes, weight class in the spor ...

division for the UFC, WEC and Tachi Palace Fights. He is a former WEC Lightweight Champion, and former TPF Lightweight Champion.

Mixed martial arts career

Ruediger is a retired

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 ...

fighter from Rancho Cucamonga. He started training in

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ), also , is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tī'' in Okinawan) un ...

when he was seven years old and eventually moved on to

kung fu Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...

. He was a student at Nevada Union High School. He appeared in a video as

Paris Hilton Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an American media personality, businesswoman, and socialite. Hilton was born in New York City and raised there partially; shuttling between Los Angeles and New York City; she is a great-grandda ...

's personal trainer. Ruediger is a former WEC Lightweight Champion. In the WEC, he maintained a 9 fight winning streak before being defeated by Hermes Franca. Ruediger made his UFC debut at UFC 63, losing to The Ultimate Fighter 2 contestant Melvin Guillard via body punch in the second round.

The Ultimate Fighter

Ruediger was one of three fighters on The Ultimate Fighter 5 who had previously fought inside the UFC's Octagon (the others being Joe Lauzon and Matt Wiman). Only Lauzon, of the three, had a victory in the UFC. In episode 5, Team Pulver selected Corey Hill to fight Ruediger. The episode showed Ruediger eating

ice cream cake ''Ice Cream Cake'' is the debut Korean extended play by the South Korean girl group Red Velvet. It was released digitally on March 17, 2015, and physically on March 18 by SM Entertainment and distributed by Dreamus, marking the group's first p ...

after learning of his upcoming fight, shortly before the weigh ins. He was then struggling to make the weight requirement, and let himself be dragged to and from the

sauna A sauna (, ) is a room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a sauna is used to meas ...

room, but getting out before it could actually work. Ultimately, Penn and Maynard gave up and walked off as Ruediger literally begged for them to pick him back up. After displaying what could be signs of extreme exhaustion, an ambulance carried him off to the hospital. He took direct criticism from his own coaches and teammates for "taking short cuts" and displaying a lack of dedication, due to his request for a colonic to lose weight (a procedure where they input plastic tubes up your rectum to flush fecal matter out of your system) and his overall poor work ethic. The next day, Dana White dismissed Ruediger from the competition and he was ordered to leave the house. Ruediger later stated that he saw The Ultimate Fighter show as a "marketing tool" and that audience members should "take what you see on TV with a grain of salt."

Post UFC

In a March 2007 interview Ruediger says that he would be fighting "very soon" in a "large organization". In an article by Loretta Hunt at The Fight Network, it was revealed that FEG officials had a verbal commitment from Ruediger to fight

Katsuhiko Nagata is a Japanese Amateur wrestling, wrestler and mixed martial arts, who won the silver medal in the 69 kg Wrestling at the 2000 Summer Olympics, Greco-Roman wrestling event at the 2000 Summer Olympics. He is also the brother of Professional ...

for their June 2 K-1 Dynamite!! USA supercard in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Many unsubstantiated rumours appeared on the Internet regarding his failure to obtain a license to fight in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, asserting that his failure to make weight on The Ultimate Fighter was the reason. These were refuted in an interview with Armando Garcia, the executive director of the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC). According to Garcia, because Ruediger was a late replacement on the K-1 Dynamite card doctors with the CSAC did not have sufficient time to review his medical information, and could not issue him a license in time for the

K-1 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993 by karateka Kazuyoshi Ishii. Originally under the ownership of the Fighting and Entertainment Group (FEG), K-1 was considered to be the largest Kickboxing organization in the worl ...

fight. He was then cleared for a license, fighting 5 times in the state of

since his reinstatement .

Return to the UFC

After Terry Etim injured himself in preparation for his bout against Joe Lauzon at

UFC 118 ''UFC 118: Edgar vs. Penn 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 28, 2010 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The third UFC Fan Expo coincided with the event. This event was t ...

, Ruediger signed a four fight deal with the UFC, and stepped in as Etim's replacement. The fight was selected to be shown on the Spike TV broadcast. Ruediger lost the fight early in the first round via armbar submission. Ruediger was expected to face Paul Kelly on November 20, 2010 at UFC 123. However, Ruediger was forced out of the bout with a groin injury. Ruediger faced Paul Taylor on February 5, 2011 at UFC 126. Ruediger was defeated via second round KO and subsequently released from the promotion.

Post UFC

Ruediger faced Scott "KO" Catlin on March 16, 2012 at

BAMMA BAMMA (British Association of Mixed Martial Arts) was a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United Kingdom. It premiered on June 27, 2009, and was shown on the television channel Bravo. BAMMA events were shown live on ITV4 in the UK and I ...

BadBeat 5 and lost via TKO from punches 36 seconds into the second round. Gabe fought

SiriusXM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merge ...

radio host Jason Ellis in a celebrity

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 ...

match at Ellismania 8 "Shave my Friends Tonight" in Las Vegas on July 14, 2012. Gabe was KO'd by Ellis in the 2nd round. Ruediger contested that Ellis had cheated by using different wraps, gloves, and headgear and stated that if they wore the same gear, Ellis would not have won the fight. Gabe then requested a rematch with Ellis and the two fought at Ellismania 9. Gabe lost the decision 29-28, and was generally dominated by Ellis.

Championships and accomplishments

* Tachi Palace Fights **TPF Lightweight Championship (One time) *

World Extreme Cagefighting World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion founded in 2001. It was purchased by Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), in 2006. In its final incarnation, it was mad ...

** WEC Lightweight Championship (One time) ***Two successful title defenses **Tied ( Jamie Varner; Hermes França) for most consecutive successful defenses in the Lightweight division **Tied ( Jamie Varner; Hermes França) for most successful defenses in the Lightweight division

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 18–8 , Scott Catlin , Submission (armbar) , Bamma USA: Bad Beat 9 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:13 , Commerce, California, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–8 , Scott Catlin , TKO (punches) , Bamma USA: Bad Beat 5 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:36 ,

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orang ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–7 , Paul Taylor , KO (head kick and punches) , UFC 126 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:42 ,

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, 17–6 , Joe Lauzon , Submission (armbar) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:01 ,

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 17–5 , Lenny Lovato , TKO (punches) , TPF 5: Stars and Strikes , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:25 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16–5 , Dominique Robinson , Submission (rear-naked choke) , TPF 3: Champions Collide , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:49 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 15–5 , Wander Braga , Submission (guillotine choke) , Call to Arms: Called Out Fights , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:58 ,

Ontario, California Ontario is a city in southwestern San Bernardino County, California, United States, east of downtown Los Angeles and west of downtown San Bernardino, the county seat. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire metropolitan area, it lies ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–5 , Adam Lehman , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Fight Circuit MMA: Victorious , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:19 , Adelanto, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–5 , Darren Crisp , Submission (guillotine choke) , PFC 13: Validation , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:03 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–5 , Max Son , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Gladiator Challenge: Warriors , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:24 , Pauma Valley, California, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–5 , Justin Wilcox , Decision (unanimous) , JG and TKT Promotions: Fighting 4 Kidz , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–4 ,

Akbarh Arreola Akbarh Omar Arreola Jiménez (born January 14, 1983) is a Mexican mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He also had competed in the Welterweight division. Mixed martial arts career ...

, Submission (kimura) , MMA Xtreme 15 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:03 ,

Mexico City, Mexico Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, , - , Win , align=center, 11–3 , George Kassimatis , Submission (guillotine choke) , Ringside Ticket , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:51 , Highland, California, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–3 , Melvin Guillard , TKO (punch to the body) , UFC 63: Hughes vs. Penn , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:01 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 ,

Savant Young Savant Young (born June 19, 1976) is an American retired mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1998 until 2013, he competed for the WEC, Bellator, Shooto, Affliction, the Tokyo Sabres of the IFL, King of the Cage, and Tachi ...

, Submission (armbar) , PF 1: The Beginning , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:29 ,

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–2 , Hermes França , KO (punches) , WEC 19: Undisputed , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:36 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 , Sam Wells , Decision (unanimous) , WEC 17: Halloween Fury 4 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Bobir Hasanov , Submission (armbar) , KOTC 61: Flash Point , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:23 , San Jacinto, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Jason Maxwell , Submission (rear-naked choke) , WEC 14: Vengeance , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:28 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Olaf Alfonso , Submission (rear-naked choke) , WEC 12 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:05 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Steve Ramerez , Submission (triangle choke) ,

WEC 11 WEC 11: Evolution was a mixed martial arts event promoted by World Extreme Cagefighting on August 20, 2004 at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, California. The main event saw Shonie Carter take on Jason Biswell. Results ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:24 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Cory Reeves , TKO (punches) , IFC: Battleground Tahoe , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:40 , Lake Tahoe, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Carlos Cordero , TKO (punches) , WEC 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:57 , Lemoore, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Phat Houng , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Pit Fighting Championship , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:10 , N/A , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 , Josh Gardner , TKO (punches) , Gladiator Challenge 14 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:41 ,

Porterville, California Porterville is a city at the base of Southern Sierra Nevada mountains on the eastern side of San Joaquin Valley, in Tulare County, California, United States. It is part of the Visalia-Porterville metropolitan statistical area. Serving as the ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Sam Wells , KO (punch) , WEC 5: Halloween Havoc , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:27 , Lemoore, California, United States ,

References

External links

Gabe's personal site

Post-TUF 5 Interview
* *
NOKAUT Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruediger, Gabe American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing wushu Mixed martial artists utilizing judo Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu American wushu practitioners American male judoka American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu World Extreme Cagefighting champions 1977 births Living people People from Topanga, California Sportspeople from Rancho Cucamonga, California People from Van Nuys, Los Angeles Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters