Andy Murad is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the " United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, ...

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

currently competing in the

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 the ...

division of

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media conglomerate Paramount Glob ...

. A professional competitor since 2003, he has also formerly competed for

King of the Cage King of the Cage (KOTC) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Southern California, United States. History KOTC was founded in 1998 by Terry Trebilcock. KOTC features mostly amateur as well as up and coming MMA stars and former mainstr ...

Background

Born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

, Murad moved to

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the f ...

at a young age. Murad competing in

high school wrestling Scholastic wrestling, also known in the United States as folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practiced at the high school and middle school levels in the United States. This wrestling style is essentially collegiate wrestling wit ...

before picking up

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting ( ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

under the tutelage of

Dean Lister Dean Richard Lister (born February 13, 1976) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional from 2000 until 2015, he fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, PRIDE Fighting Championships, and California-based promotion King of ...

. Murad then began competing in

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterise ...

before making the transition to

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...

.https://thefightvoice.com/2014/11/11/hometown-proud-andy-the-tooth-fairy-murad/

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Murad made his professional debut with

in the summer of 2003, winning via first-round TKO. He then compiled a record of 6-0 before being signed by

Bellator Bellator, warrior in Latin, may refer to: * Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States * Bishop Bellator of Sufetula (5th century) Taxonomy * ''Bellator'' (fish), a fish genus in the family Triglidae (sea robins) * ...

Bellator MMA

Murad made his promotional debut at

Bellator 99 2013 in Bellator MMA was the eighth installment of the Bellator MMA, which began on January 17, 2013 and ended on April 4, 2013. Mixed martial arts tournaments were held in five weight classes and all of the champions, except the heavyweight c ...

against Gavin Sterritt on September 13, 2013 in a Catchweight bout of 173 lbs. Murad was handed his first professional defeat via split decision. Murad then faced

Ricky Rainey Ricky Rainey (born June 29, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 2011, Rainey has previously competed for Bellator MMA, Bellator and in the UFC's Welterweight (MMA), Welterweight division. Mixed martial arts ...

in a Catchweight of 180 lbs. at

Bellator 116 2014 in Bellator MMA was the tenth season for Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion. It began on February 28, 2014 and aired on Spike TV. The season included tournaments for the Heavyweight, Welterweight, Featherweight, Light Heavyweight, ...

on April 16, 2014. He lost via first-round TKO. After taking winning his next two fights outside of the promotion and capturing the Gladiator Challenge Middleweight Championship, Murad made his Bellator return at

Bellator 131 2014 in Bellator MMA was the tenth season for Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion. It began on February 28, 2014 and aired on Spike TV. The season included tournaments for the Heavyweight, Welterweight, Featherweight, Light Heavyweight, ...

against Bubba Pugh on November 15, 2014. He won via split decision. Murad won his next four fights (three submission and one TKO) before returning at Bellator 160 on August 26, 2016 against

Johnny Cisneros Johnny Cisneros (born February 5, 1980) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the welterweight division. A professional competitor since 2010, he has also competed for King of the Cage and Bellator MMA. Mixed martial arts career Ea ...

in a Catchweight of 175 lbs. He won via unanimous decision.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 16-3 ,

Ed Ruth Edward Lee Ruth (born October 21, 1990) is an American former professional mixed martial artist and freestyle and folkstyle wrestler. He competed in the Middleweight division of Bellator MMA. As a folkstyle wrestler, he was a three-time NCAA D ...

, TKO (punches) , Bellator 201 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:59 ,

Temecula Temecula (; es, Temécula, ; Luiseño: ''Temeekunga'') is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The city had a population of 110,003 as of the 2020 census and was incorporated on December 1, 1989. The city is a t ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16-2 , Idrees Wasi , Submission (choke) , Gladiator Challenge: Fight Fest , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:28 ,

El Cajon, California El Cajon ( , ; Spanish: El Cajón, meaning "the box") is a city in San Diego County, California, United States, east of downtown San Diego. The city takes its name from Rancho El Cajón, which was in turn named for the box-like shape of the ...

, United States , Middleweight bout. , - , Win , align=center, 15-2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Bellator 160 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most ...

, United States , Catchweight (175 lbs) bout. , - , Win , align=center, 14-2 , Jamiah Williamson , Submission (keylock) , Gladiator Challenge: Freedom Strikes , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:14 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13-2 , Chad Herrick , Decision (unanimous) , KOP 49 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

, United States , Return to

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruis ...

. , - , Win , align=center, 12-2 , Marquise Spears , Submission (front choke) , Gladiator Challenge: MMA Smackdown , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:12 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11-2 , Matt McOmie , TKO (punches) , Gladiator Challenge: Champions , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:21 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10-2 , Roman Bellow , Submission (triangle choke) , Gladiator Challenge: Warrior's , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:36 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9-2 , Bubba Pugh , Decision (split) ,

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San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8-2 , Brandon Collins , Decision (unanimous) , Gladiator Challenge: Battle Ready , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , Won Gladiator Challenge Middleweight Championship. , - , Win , align=center, 7-2 , Daniel McWilliams , TKO (punches) , Gladiator Challenge: Backlash , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:47 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6-2 ,

, TKO (punches) , Bellator CXVI , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:11 ,

Temecula, California Temecula (; es, Temécula, ; Luiseño: ''Temeekunga'') is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The city had a population of 110,003 as of the 2020 census and was incorporated on December 1, 1989. The city is a ...

, United States , Catchweight (180 lbs) bout. , - , Loss , align=center, 6-1 , Gavin Sterritt , Decision (split) , Bellator XCIX , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , Catchweight (173 lbs) bout. , - , Win , align=center, 6-0 , Justin Carr , Submission (reverse triangle choke) , Xplode Fight Series: Devastation , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:35 ,

Valley Center, California Valley Center is a census-designated place (CDP) in northern San Diego County, California. The population was 9,277 at the 2010 census. History Valley Center was the site of the capture of the largest California Grizzly Bear in history. In 1866, ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5-0 , Tsuyoshi Holder , Decision (split) , Xplode Fight Series: Vengeance , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4-0 , Mark McCaw , TKO (punches) , NFC: Native Fighting Championship 11 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:15 ,

Campo, California Campo (Spanish for "Field") is an unincorporated community in the Mountain Empire area of southeastern San Diego County, California, United States. The population was 2,684 at the 2010 census. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bu ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3-0 , Mike Lemaire , Decision (unanimous) , KOTC: Legends , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Winterhaven, California Winterhaven (formerly, Karmack) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Imperial County, California. Winterhaven is east of Pilot Knob, The population was 394 at the 2010 census, down from 529 at the 2000 census. It is part of the El Centro, CA M ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2-0 , Ray Lizama , Decision (majority) , KOTC 39: Hitmaster , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

San Jacinto, California San Jacinto ( ; ; Spanish for " St. Hyacinth") is a city in Riverside County, California. It is located at the north end of the San Jacinto Valley, with Hemet to its south and Beaumont, California, to its north. The mountains associated with t ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1-0 , Saldana Clemente , TKO (punches) , KOTC 27: Aftermath , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:25 ,

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References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Murad, Andy American male mixed martial artists Welterweight mixed martial artists Middleweight mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Mixed martial artists from Michigan Living people American Muay Thai practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Year of birth missing (living people)