Chris Gruetzemacher (born June 16, 1986) is an 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 of the

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

(UFC). A professional competitor since 2008, he has also competed for

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 *' ...

, the

World Series of Fighting The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) promot ...

, and was a competitor on The Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber.

Background

Gruetzemachers' mother Julia is from Chile, and her family was granted political asylum to United States with the help of United Churches after his grandfather, who was an assembly man in Chile, was arrested and tortured for three years after an uprising against

Salvador Allende Salvador Guillermo Allende Gossens (26 June 1908 – 11 September 1973) was a Chilean socialist politician who served as the 28th president of Chile from 1970 until Death of Salvador Allende, his death in 1973 Chilean coup d'état, 1973. As a ...

changed the regime in Chile. Gruetzemacher was born in

Page, Arizona Page is a city in Coconino County, Arizona, United States, near the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 7,247. History Page was founded in 1957 as a housing community for workers and their f ...

, United States, and at the age of five, his father (Army veteran Jim Gruetzemacher), was shot and murdered in Arizona, this evoked his primal instinct for self-protection where he started wrestling. Gruetzemacher was a former student at Thunderbird High School where he started his wrestler training. He started training BJJ and

Muay Thai Muay Thai or Muaythai (, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, the Art of Eight Limbs or the Science of Eight Limbs, is a Thai martial art and full-contact combat sport that uses stand-up striking, sweeps, and various clinch fighting, cl ...

in 2007 to get in shape and slowly progressing to compete in MMA. He chose his professional as a fighter after decided to invest his time as an athlete in combat sport and to be part of something great in his life. He worked with the former Thailand national fight team member and multiple Muay Thai world champion, Master Kru Paul, in North Carolina to sharpen his stand up game prior finding his new training base at 2 Knuckle Sports. A typical training day for Gruetzemacher involves strength and conditioning in the morning, grappling in the evening and works on this stand up game in the later of the day after teaches two BJJ classes at 2 Knuckle Sports MMA Academy.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Gruetzemacher started his professional debut in 2008 and fought most of his fights in Arizona, United States. He was the former fighter for

and

(WSOF). He amassed a record of 12–1 with 11 winning streak where he won back to back wins over UFC veterans Roli Delgado (who was 9 inches taller than Gruetzemacher) and

John Gunderson John Gunderson (born May 1, 1980) is an American former mixed martial artist who used to fight with the UFC. He was once a top-ten lightweight outside the UFC. Gunderson is also an International Fight League veteran who fought out of Ken Shamroc ...

prior signed by UFC. Gruetzemacher took 21 months hiatus from his torn ACL injury before he stepped back to cage where he was selected as one of the contestants for UFC The Ultimate fighter 22.

The Ultimate Fighter

Gruetzemacher was selected to be one of the contestants for the UFC TV MMA competition series The Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber, ( The Ultimate Fighter 22), fighters from Europe coached under

Conor McGregor Conor Anthony McGregor (born 14 July 1988) is an Irish professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. He is a former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) UFC Featherweight Championship, Featherweight and UFC Lightweight Championship, Li ...

vs fighters from United States coached under

Urijah Faber Urijah Christopher Faber ( ; born May 14, 1979) is an American former mixed martial artist and actor. He competed in the bantamweight and featherweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is the founder of Team Alpha Male ...

. Gruetzemacher was coached under team

. He faced Austin Springer on the Elimination fight and won the fight via TKO on round two. On the Opening Round he was up against Sascha Sharma and won the fight via unanimous decision. He moved on to the Quarterfinals and faced

Artem Lobov Artem Lobov (; born August 11, 1986) is an Irish-Russian former professional mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxer . He previously competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and has most recently co ...

and suffered a defeat via TKO. In The Ultimate Fighter 22 episode 7 Gruetzemacher had a verbal confrontation after a heavy drinking session, betting shots on the billiard games, in the house between Gruetzemacher and

Julian Erosa Julian Ricardo Dulican Erosa (born July 31, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Erosa is also a former CageSport Featherweight and Lightweight Champ ...

where Erosa commented Gruetzemacher's fights were the most boring in the house. The confrontation escalated and got more heated where Erosa challenged Gruetzemacher to act on his aggregation. Gruetzemacher splashes beer and water in Erosa's face. The confrontation eventually scaled down after some posturing and yelling and cooler heads prevailed with no physical fight was committed.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Gruetzemacher made his promotional debut on December 11, 2015, at The Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber Finale in

Las Vegas 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, against Abner Lloveras. He won the fight via unanimous decision. He next faced

Chas Skelly Chas Skelly (born May 11, 1985) is an American retired mixed martial artist who competed in the featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional since 2009, he has also competed for Bellator MMA and Legacy Fighting Ch ...

at UFC Fight Night: Bermudez vs. Korean Zombie on February 4, 2017. He lost the fight via submission on round two. Gruetzemacher was expected to face Martin Bravo on August 5, 2017, at UFC Fight Night: Pettis vs. Moreno. He was pulled from the fight and replaced by Humberto Bandenay. Gruetzemacher faced

Davi Ramos Davi Ramos (born November 5, 1986) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and Brazilian jiu jitsu practitioner who competes in the Lightweight division of Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA). He is ranked #9 in the ACA Lightweight rank ...

on December 9, 2017, at

UFC Fight Night 123 ''UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 123'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on December 9, 2017, at Save Mart Center in Fresno, California. Background ...

. He lost the fight via submission in the third round. Gruetzemacher faced

Joe Lauzon Joe Lauzon (born May 22, 1984) is a semi-retired American professional mixed martial artist who competed in the UFC's Lightweight division. Described as a well-rounded fighter, he has the most post-fight bonus awards in UFC Lightweight history ...

on April 7, 2018, at

UFC 223 ''UFC 223: Khabib vs. Iaquinta '' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on April 7, 2018, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Background A UFC Lightweight Championship bout between ...

. He won the fight after Lauzon's corner stopped the fight after the second round. This win earned him a '' Performance of the Night'' bonus. Gruetzemacher was expected to face

Beneil Dariush Beneil Khobier Dariush (born May 6, 1989) 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 ...

on November 10, 2018, at

UFC Fight Night 139 The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

. However, on October 18, 2018, it was reported that Gruetzemacher withdrew from the event and was replaced by newcomer Thiago Moises. Gruetzemacher was expected to face Jesus Pinedo on March 23, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 148. However, on March 13, 2019, it was reported that Gruetzemacher was pulled from the bout due to injury and was replaced by

John Makdessi John Makdessi (born May 3, 1985) is a Canadian professional mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division and competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Makdessi was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on May 3, ...

. Gruetzemacher faced

Alexander Hernandez Alexander Xavier Hernandez (born October 1, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Hernandez began wrestling at the age of 13 and started train ...

on October 31, 2020, at

UFC Fight Night 181 ''UFC Fight Night: Hall vs. Silva'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 181'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 39'' and ''UFC Vegas 12'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 31, 2020 at the UFC Ap ...

. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Gruetzemacher faced Rafa García on July 31, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 28. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Gruetzemacher faced Claudio Puelles on December 4, 2021, at

UFC on ESPN 31 ''UFC on ESPN: Font vs. Aldo'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 31'' and ''UFC Vegas 44'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on December 4, 2021, at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, Neva ...

. He lost the fight via a kneebar in round three.

Championships and accomplishments

** Performance of the Night (One time) vs.

**UFC.com Awards ***2018: Ranked #2 Upset of the Year

Personal life

Former UFC and WEC fighter and current

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) ** ...

fighter,

Benson Henderson Benson Henderson (born November 16, 1983) is an American former professional mixed martial artist, who most recently competed in the Lightweight division for Bellator MMA. He is a former UFC Lightweight Champion and WEC Lightweight Champion. H ...

and Gruetzemacher are teammates, and they are longtime training partners. Since most of his teammates and teachers could not pronounce his last name "Gruetzemacher" correctly (pronounced : Gritz-mock-er) when he was young, they just called him "Gritz" (which is how the beginning of this last name is pronounced) and this is how his nickname 'Gritz" was coined. Gruetzemacher cut his signature "caveman" long hair and donated it to Wigs for Kids, a charity for children who suffer from cancer, in 2017.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 15–5 , Claudio Puelles , Submission (kneebar) , UFC on ESPN: Font vs. Aldo , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:25 ,

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 , , - , Win , align=center, 15–4 , Rafa García , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on ESPN: Hall vs. Strickland , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–4 ,

, KO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Hall vs. Silva , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:46 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–3 ,

, TKO (corner stoppage) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–3 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:50 ,

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 , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–2 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Bermudez vs. Korean Zombie , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:01 ,

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–1 , Abner Lloveras , Decision (unanimous) , The Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber Finale , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

WSOF 9 World Series of Fighting 9: Carl vs. Palhares was a mixed martial arts event held in Paradise, Nevada, United States. Background This event was headlined by reigning World Series of Fighting#Champions, Welterweight Champion Steve Carl making t ...

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

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–1 , Roli Delgado , TKO (elbows) , ShoFight 20 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:24 ,

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–1 , Frank Gomez , TKO (punches) , WMMA 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:25 ,

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 , Randy Campbell , KO (punch) , Duel for Domination: MMA Extravaganza , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:07 ,

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Jeff Fletcher , TKO (punches) , Rage in the Cage 153 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:41 ,

Chandler, Arizona Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the List of municipalities in Arizona, fourth-most populous city in Arizona ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Gabe Rivas , Submission (armbar) , Rage in the Cage 152 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:25 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Ryan Diaz , TKO (doctor stoppage) , Strikeforce Challengers: Riggs vs. Taylor , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Nadeem Al-Hassan , TKO (punches) , Rage in the Cage 140 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:51 ,

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Eric Regan , Decision (unanimous) , Rage in the Cage 139 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Oscar Rodriguez , Submission (armbar) , World Fighting Federation 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:45 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Josh Gaskins , Decision (split) , AG: Extreme Beat Down , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Joe Cronin , Submission (guillotine choke) , Rage in the Cage 122 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:25 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Shawn Scott , Submission (armbar) , Evolution MMA , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:42 ,

, United States , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gruetzemacher, Chris 1986 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Featherweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu American male Muay Thai practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People from Page, Arizona Mixed martial artists from Arizona Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters