Cung Le (; born May 25, 1972) is an American actor, former 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 ...

Sanshou Sanda (), formerly Sanshou (), is the official China, Chinese kickboxing full-contact combat sport. In Chinese language, Chinese Language, "Sanda" originally referred to independent and separate training and combat techniques in contrast to "Ta ...

fighter and kickboxer. Le is perhaps best known in mixed martial arts for competing in

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 *' ...

, holding a record of 7–1 with the organization before its demise. He defeated

Frank Shamrock Frank Shamrock (born Frank Alisio Juarez III; December 8, 1972) is an American former professional mixed martial artist. Shamrock was the first to hold the UFC Middleweight Championship (later renamed the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship) ...

to become the second Strikeforce Middleweight Champion before vacating the title to further pursue his acting career. He competed as a

middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...

in 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), holding a record of 2–2 with the organization. In kickboxing and sanshou, he is a former International Kickboxing Federation Light Heavyweight World Champion, having a professional kickboxing record of 17–0 before moving to mixed martial arts. As an actor, Le has appeared in films such as ''

Tekken is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting games developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment (formerly Namco). The franchise also includes film and print adaptations. The main games in the series follow the events ...

'', ''

Pandorum ''Pandorum'' is a 2009 science fiction horror film directed by Christian Alvart, produced by Robert Kulzer, Jeremy Bolt and Paul W. S. Anderson (the latter two through their Impact Pictures banner), and starring Dennis Quaid and Ben Foste ...

'', '' Fighting'', ''

Bodyguards and Assassins ''Bodyguards and Assassins'' is a 2009 Hong Kong historical action film directed by Teddy Chan, featuring an all-star cast including Donnie Yen, Wang Xueqi, Tony Leung Ka-fai, Nicholas Tse, Hu Jun, Chris Lee, Eric Tsang, Fan Bingbing, Z ...

'' (all in 2009), ''

The Man with the Iron Fists ''The Man with the Iron Fists'' is a 2012 American martial arts film directed by RZA and written by RZA and Eli Roth. The film stars RZA, Russell Crowe, Cung Le, Lucy Liu, Byron Mann, Rick Yune, Dave Bautista, and Jamie Chung. Set in 19th cent ...

'' (2012), '' Puncture Wounds'' (2014), and '' Savage Dog'' (2017). He had a lead role in the martial arts film '' Dragon Eyes'' (2012), co-starring

Jean-Claude Van Damme Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (, ; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (, ), is a Belgian martial artist and actor. Born and raised in Brussels, his father enrolled him in a Shotokan karate schoo ...

and produced by

Joel Silver Joel Silver (born July 14, 1952) is an American film producer. Life and career Silver was born and raised in South Orange, New Jersey, the son of a writer and a public relations executive. His family is Jewish. He attended Columbia High School ...

Background

Cung Lê was born in Saigon, South Vietnam (now Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam). In 1975, three days before the

Fall of Saigon The fall of Saigon, known in Vietnam as Reunification Day (), was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by North Vietnam on 30 April 1975. As part of the 1975 spring offensive, this decisive event led to the collapse of the So ...

, Cung Le and his mother Anne left Vietnam by helicopter. Le's father stayed in Vietnam and was caught as a prisoner. After a few months in a refugee camp in the Philippines, Le ended up in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, where early discrimination and bullying inspired him to learn

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

. His mother enrolled him in

Tae Kwon Do Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In a ...

classes at the age of 10. Le began

Wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

competitively at age 14. After being inspired to box by

Sylvester Stallone Sylvester Gardenzio "Sly" Stallone (; born July 6, 1946) is an American actor and filmmaker. In a Sylvester Stallone filmography, film career spanning more than fifty years, Stallone has received List of awards and nominations received by Syl ...

´s ''

Rocky ''Rocky'' is a 1976 American independent film, independent sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the Rocky (film series), ''Rocky'' franchise and also star ...

'', Le graduated and earned

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors in Wrestling his junior year at San Jose High School. He went on to wrestle for West Valley College in

Saratoga, California Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Located in Silicon Valley, in the southern Bay Area, it had a population of 31,051 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Saratoga is known for its wineries, restaurant ...

, and won the California Junior College State Championship in the 158 lb weight class in 1990 also earning junior college All-American honors. Le also is practiced in a variety of martial arts such as

Vovinam Vovinam (short for ''Võ Việt Nam'', meaning "Vietnamese Martial Arts"), officially known as Việt Võ Đạo (越武道, meaning "Vietnamese Way of Martial Arts") is a Vietnamese martial art founded in 1938 by Nguyễn Lộc. It is based o ...

Judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

Kuntao Kuntao or kuntau (, ) is a Min Nan, Hokkien term for the martial arts of the Chinese community of Southeast Asia, specifically the Malay Archipelago. It is most commonly practiced in and associated with Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and S ...

, Sambo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Sanda - which became his main focus. . Le held a professional Kickboxing record of 17–0 and is a three-time world champion in Kickboxing.

Sanshou and kickboxing career

Le has won three US Open International Martial Arts Championships (1994, 1995, 1996). In 1998 he won the Shidokan tournament championship. He has also won four US National Championships (Orlando, FL, 1994, Dallas, TX, 1995, Baltimore, MD, 1997). He earned three bronze medals in his amateur Sanshou world competition compiling an overall amateur record of 18–3. He has been a three-time captain of the United States teams that competed and was the U.S. team captain at the

World Wushu Championships The World Wushu Championships (WWC) is an international sports championship hosted by the International Wushu Federation (IWUF) for the sports of wushu taolu and sanda (sanshou). The tournament has been held biennially since 1991 and is the p ...

in 1997 (Italy) and 1999 (Hong Kong). On December 15, 2001, he defeated

Shonie Carter Shonie Carter (born May 3, 1972), is an American former mixed martial artist. He is a former WEC Welterweight Champion, a UFC veteran, and a contestant on '' The Ultimate Fighter 4'' reality show. He has also competed in Pancrase, Shooto, Ki ...

by unanimous decision in San Jose, California, to win the IKF International Kickboxing Federation Pro Light Heavyweight Sanda World Title.The Official Cung Le Website
. Cungle.com. Retrieved on 2010-08-27. In May 2003, Le entered into

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 ...

competitions where he garnered a 3–0 career record, including one knockout.

Mixed martial arts career

Strikeforce

Le made his mixed martial arts debut at '' Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Gracie'' on March 10, 2006, at the HP Pavilion at San Jose, knocking out kickboxing rival Mike Altman at 3:51 of the first round. Le first met Altman in San Jose, in 1999, in a kickboxing bout where he defeated Altman via a body shot in the third round. Three months later he faced KOTC veteran Brian Warren, knocking him out at 4:19 of the first round. Le had also faced Warren in a K-1 Sanshou bout where he won by decision. At '' Strikeforce: Triple Threat'' on December 8, 2006, Le defeated UFC veteran Jason Von Flue in 0:43 of round one, when the fight had to be stopped due to a cut from a kick. Le went on to fight Tony Fryklund. Le beat Fryklund via TKO due to strikes late in the third round. Soon after, Le fought Sammy Morgan at '' Strikeforce: Four Men Enter, One Man Survives'' where he won the bout via TKO. On March 29, 2008, at '' Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Le'', Le defeated long time MMA veteran

in a fight co-promoted by Strikeforce and

EliteXC Elite Xtreme Combat, also known as EliteXC, was a United States–based mixed martial arts (MMA) organization owned and operated by ProElite. It was founded as a partnership between Showtime Networks and ProElite and officially announced on Decem ...

at the HP Pavilion in San Jose. Le won via TKO when Shamrock's right arm (ulna) was broken after a series of kicks, making him the new Strikeforce Middleweight Champion. On September 17, 2009, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker announced that Le had relinquished his belt after securing a major motion picture deal. Twenty-one months after his last fight, Le returned to Strikeforce to face Scott Smith at '' Strikeforce: Evolution'' on December 19, 2009. Le suffered his first MMA defeat there, losing via TKO at 3:25 of the third round. After the match, Le expressed interest in an immediate rematch with Smith. His wish was granted on June 26, '' Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum'', in which Le defeated Smith via TKO in the second round to avenge his only MMA loss at the time.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Le has said that it is basically the UFC or bust for him at this point in his fighting career. "I know for a fact that if I do fight again, it's going to be in the UFC. I've never fought in the UFC, but I would love to fight in the UFC. But right now because of my contract with Showtime and Strikeforce, hopefully things can work out because there is a show in San Jose that Cain Velasquez is the main event. I would love to fight in San Jose for the UFC ...." In an interview with BloodyElbow on October 27, 2011, Le revealed he originally signed a six-fight contract with the UFC. Le was briefly linked to a matchup with

Vitor Belfort Vítor Vieira Belfort (; born 1 April 1977) is a Brazilian professional boxer and retired mixed martial artist who competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he fought in the Heavyweight, Light Heavyweight, and Middleweight d ...

on November 19, 2011, at '' UFC 139''. However, Belfort was removed from the bout and replaced by former Pride FC Middleweight Champion

Wanderlei Silva Wanderlei César da Silva ( , , ; born 3 July 1976) is a Brazilian former mixed martial artist who competed in Japan's Pride Fighting Championships and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He holds the record for the most wins, knockouts, ...

. Le managed to confuse Silva with his unorthodox kicks, and landed a spinning backfist that dropped Silva. During the second round, Silva managed to shake Le with huge punches and knees that completely broke Le's nose. Le was stunned, bloodied and fell to the ground, and the fight was stopped by the referee. Afterwards, in the press conference, Dana White commented that it was a good stoppage and that Cung was taken to the hospital. Le was scheduled to face former UFC Middleweight Champion

Rich Franklin Richard Jay Franklin II (born October 5, 1974) is an American businessman and retired mixed martial artist. He is best known for competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he is a member of the UFC Hall of Fame and a former UFC Midd ...

on July 7, 2012, at '' UFC 148''. However, due to an injury to headliner Vitor Belfort, Franklin instead faced Wanderlei Silva in a 190 lb catchweight rematch on June 23, 2012, at '' UFC 147''. Le instead faced former title contender Patrick Côté. He earned his first UFC win via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). Le faced Rich Franklin in the main event on November 10, 2012, at '' UFC: Macao''. Cung Le won the fight via KO with a powerful hook punch to Franklin's head at 2:17 of the first round.

''The Ultimate Fighter: China''

In November 2013, it was announced that Le would serve as the chief coach and mentor on '' The Ultimate Fighter: China'', the China-based version of ''

The Ultimate Fighter ''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...

'' which began airing in December 2013. After over a year-and-a-half of being away from competition, Le faced

Michael Bisping Michael Gavin Joseph Bisping (; born 28 February 1979) is an English former mixed martial artist, sports commentator, analyst, and actor. He competed in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship ( ...

on August 23, 2014, at '' UFC Fight Night 48''. After an even start, Le was cut around both eyes in the second round, as Bisping began to land the more powerful strikes. Bisping eventually won the one sided fight via TKO in the fourth round. Following the fight, Le tested positive for elevated levels of HGH and was subsequently suspended from competition for nine months. However, after reevaluating the evidence against Le, the UFC increased his suspension to 12 months. There has been some dispute of the test, as the testing laboratory in question was not WADA-approved, did not do the appropriate HGH test, and destroyed the blood sample before confirmatory tests could be done. Ultimately, on October 21, the UFC reversed their decision and rescinded Le's suspension in light of the aforementioned flaws. On December 3, 2014, Le told the media that he instructed his manager to request Le's release from UFC due to the drug-test dispute. On December 16, 2014, Le was listed as one of three MMA fighters who filed a

class-action lawsuit A class action is a form of lawsuit. Class Action may also refer to: * ''Class Action'' (film), 1991, starring Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio * Class Action (band), a garage house band * "Class Action" (''Teenage Robot''), a 2002 e ...

against Zuffa, LLC., the parent company of the UFC. The suit alleges that the UFC participated in anti-competitive practices that hindered fighters and their mixed martial arts careers. At the time Le was the only active fighter on the organization's roster to be involved in the lawsuit.

Retirement from MMA

On January 20, 2015, his manager, Gary Ibarra, announced to the media that Le had retired from MMA. Le's decision came after reconsidering his career with his family. He had previously expressed his lack of desire to fight in the UFC and contemplated retirement following the performance-enhancing drug disputes he had with the promotion in 2014. Le believed that the UFC owed him an apology for accusing him of using drugs when the test results later turned out to be faulty. Le, however, said that his retirement was only in MMA. He talked about the possibility of returning to professional kickboxing competitions, where he was active prior to his MMA debut.

Acting career

Le co-starred in the live-action ''

'' film, based upon the popular martial arts fighting game, as

Marshall Law ''Marshall Law'' is an Australian television series, which aired on the Seven Network in 2002, starring Lisa McCune and Alison Whyte as lawyers and sisters. History The show was originally conceived as a legal drama mixed with ''Ally McBeal' ...

, released November 5, 2009, for the American film market. Le had supporting roles in the science fiction film ''

'' with

Dennis Quaid Dennis William Quaid (born April 9, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for his starring roles in '' Breaking Away'' (1979), '' The Right Stuff'' (1983), '' The Big Easy'' (1986), '' Innerspace'' (1987), '' Great Balls of Fire!'' (1989), ' ...

and Ben Foster, and '' Fighting'', released in 2009 alongside

Channing Tatum Channing Matthew Tatum (born April 26, 1980) is an American actor and producer. He made his film debut in the drama ''Coach Carter'' (2005), and had his Breakthrough role, breakthrough with the sports comedy film ''She's the Man'' (2006) and t ...

. He also starred in a Hong Kong martial arts film ''

'', which was released on December 18, 2009; his film was the first time he worked with and had a fight scene with Hong Kong martial arts superstar

Donnie Yen Donnie Yen Chi-tan ( zh, c=甄子丹, p=Zhēn Zǐdān, j=, first=j; born 27 July 1963) is a Hongkongers, Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and action director. He is the recipient of various accolades, including three Golden Horse Fi ...

. He also appeared in a Vietnamese music show '' Paris By Night 99 – Tôi Là Người Việt Nam'' where he was interviewed by Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen; this show also marked one of the few times Le has spoken Vietnamese on camera. Le had a lead role in the 2012 action film '' Dragon Eyes'', costarring

and produced by

. The movie is based on the

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six decades. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the History of film, history of cinema ...

classic ''

Yojimbo is a 1961 Japanese samurai film directed by Akira Kurosawa, who also co-wrote the screenplay and was one of the producers. The film stars Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yoko Tsukasa, Isuzu Yamada, Daisuke Katō, Takashi Shimura, Kamat ...

'' and is "MMA-themed". Also in 2012, Le played Bronze Lion in ''

'', a film directed by

RZA Robert Fitzgerald Diggs (born July 5, 1969), better known by his stage name RZA ( ) or the RZA, is an American rapper, record producer, composer, actor, and filmmaker. He is the '' de facto'' leader of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan, having pro ...

. In 2014, he starred in '' Puncture Wounds'', an action film directed by Giorgio Serafini, co-directed and written by James Coyne. In 2015, he appeared as an abbot in the AMC TV series '' Into the Badlands''. In 2017, he appeared in the action movie '' Savage Dog'' alongside martial artists and action stars

Scott Adkins Scott Edward Adkins (born 17 June 1976) is an English actor and martial artist. He gained prominence with his portrayal of the Russian prison fighter Yuri Boyka in the American martial arts film '' Undisputed II: Last Man Standing'' (2006), a ro ...

and Marko Zaror.

Film and television credits

Fighting style

Cung Le was primarily a stand-up fighter known for his highly unorthodox striking. Drawing from his backgrounds in

Taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He had a particularly dangerous kicking game. He was perhaps best known for his use of the spinning back kick and spinning backfist, which he used to win multiple fights by knockout.

Personal life

Le credits his heroes or inspirational figures in martial arts to be

Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...

Gordon Liu Gordon Liu Chia-hui (born Sin Kam-hei, 22 August 1955) is a retired Hong Kong actor, martial artist, and filmmaker, best known for his roles in martial arts films. He was one of the biggest male stars of Shaw Brothers Studio's martial arts cinema ...

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...

, and

Jet Li Li Lianjie (courtesy name Yangzhong; born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese-born Singaporean Martial arts, martial artist and actor. With a Jet Li filmography, film career spanning more than forty years, Li is re ...

. Le has two sons with his ex-wife. He is married to a Native American bikini model Sunshine Spring Le. He often honors Vietnamese communities with the flag of South Vietnam in his fighting uniforms to remember his Vietnamese heritage. He is fluent in both English and Vietnamese. Le is a Christian and openly expresses his faith throughout social media.

Championships and accomplishments

Kickboxing

* International Kickboxing Federation ** IKF

World Light Heavyweight Championship (one time) *

International Sport Karate Association The ISKA (originally International Sport Karate Association, later also called the International Sport Kickboxing Association) is international bodies regulating sport karate and kickboxing matches. It is based in the United States. It was es ...

** ISKA Sanshou North American Light Heavyweight Sanshou Championship (one time) ** ISKA Sanshou U.S. Light Heavyweight Championship (one time) ** ISKA Sanshou U.S. Light Cruiserweight Championship (one time) * Ho Tet Tae Kwon Do ** Ho Tet Tae Kwon Do Tournament 1994 Grand Champion * USA International World Championships ** 1996 Continuous Sparring Tae Kwon Do World Champion * World Wide Draka Federation ** 1998 Draka Tournament winner * Shidokan Cup Bare-Knuckle Full Contact Karate ** 1998 Shidokan Cup U.S. Tournament winner

Wushu sanda

* International Wushu Federation ** 1999 WUF World Wushu Championships Sanshou bronze medalist ** 1997 WUF World Wushu Championships Sanshou bronze medalist ** 1995 WUF World Wushu Championships Sanshou bronze medalist * ''

Black Belt Magazine ''Black Belt'' is an American magazine covering martial arts and combat sports. The magazine is based in Hollywood, California, and is one of the oldest titles dedicated to martial arts in the United States. History and profile The magazine was ...

'' ** 2007 Kung Fu Artist of the Year

Submission grappling

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

** AAU Espoir Sambo National Championship (1989)

Mixed martial arts

* Strikeforce ** Strikeforce Middleweight Championship (one time) ** Tied most finishes in Strikeforce (7) ** Most knockouts in Strikeforce (7) *

** Fight of the Night (One time) ** Knockout of the Night (One time) **UFC.com Awards ***2011: Ranked #8 Fight of the Year ***2012: Ranked #2 Knockout of the Year * MMAFighting.com ** 2012 Knockout of the Year vs. Rich Franklin on November 10 *

Inside MMA ''Inside MMA'' was a live mixed martial arts news magazine, which aired on AXS TV, immediately following the network's live AXS TV Fights broadcasts. Hosted by Mauro Ranallo and UFC Hall of Famer Bas Rutten, the series provided an in-depth lo ...

** 2008 Fight of the Year Bazzie Award vs. Frank Shamrock on March 29

Amateur wrestling

California Community College Athletic Association The California Community College Athletic Association (3C2A; formerly CCCAA) is a sports association of community colleges in the U.S. state of California. It oversees 108 athletic programs throughout the state. The organization was formed in ...

** CCCAA State Championship (1990) ** CCCAA All-State (1990) ** West Valley College wrestling team captain (1990, 1991) *

California Interscholastic Federation The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is the governing body for high school sports in the U.S. state of California. CIF membership includes both public and private high schools. Unlike most other state organizations, it does not have s ...

** CIF All-State (1989) *

** AAU Espoir Freestyle National Championship (1989) ** AAU Espoir Greco-Roman National Championship (1989)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 9–3 ,

, TKO (knee and punches) , UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Le , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 0:57 ,

Macau Macau or Macao is a special administrative regions of China, special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most List of countries and dependencies by p ...

, SAR, China , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 ,

, KO (punch) , UFC on Fuel TV: Franklin vs. Le , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:17 ,

, SAR, China , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Patrick Côté , Decision (unanimous) , UFC 148 , , 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, 7–2 ,

, TKO (knees and punches) , UFC 139 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:49 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Scott Smith , KO (body kick) , Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:46 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–1 , Scott Smith , KO (punches) , Strikeforce: Evolution , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:25 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 ,

, TKO (broken arm) , Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Le , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Sam Morgan , KO (body kick) , Strikeforce: Four Men Enter, One Man Survives , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:58 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Tony Fryklund , KO (punch) , Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Baroni , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:25 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Jason Von Flue , TKO (doctor stoppage) , Strikeforce: Triple Threat , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:43 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Brian Warren , TKO (punches) , Strikeforce: Revenge , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:19 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Mike Altman , KO (punch) , Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Gracie , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:51 ,

, United States ,

Kickboxing record

, - bgcolor="" , , Win , Brian Ebersole ,

, Decision (unanimous) , 5 , N/A , 17–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Brian Warren , K-1 World Grand Prix 2004 in Las Vegas I ,

, Decision (unanimous) , 4 , 2:00 , 16–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Phil Petit , K-1 World Grand Prix 2003 in Las Vegas II , Las Vegas, Nevada , Decision (unanimous) , 4 , 2:00 , 15–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Scott Sheely , K-1 World Grand Prix 2003 in Las Vegas , Las Vegas, Nevada , TKO (strikes) , 2 , 1:13 , 14–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win ,

, Strikeforce , San Jose, California , Decision (unanimous) , 5 , N/A , 13–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Jeff Thornhill , Strikeforce , San Jose, California , KO (spinning back fist) , 3 , N/A , 12–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Laimon M. Keita , K-1 USA Championships 2000 , Las Vegas, Nevada , Decision (unanimous) , 5 , 3:00 , 11–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Mike Altman , Strikeforce , San Jose, California , KO (double roundhouse kick) , 3 , 0:30 , 10–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Na Shun Gerile , Art of War: China vs. USA ,

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, TKO (scissor kick) , 3 , N/A , 9–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Scott Sheely , Strikeforce , San Jose, California , TKO (broken cheek bone) , 2 , 0:59 , 8–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Dan Garett , Strikeforce , San Jose, California , KO (body kick) , 3 , 0:20 , 7–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Arne Soldwedel , 1998 Shidokan Cup ,

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, KO (right hook) , 7 , N/A , 6–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Laimon M. Keita , 1998 Shidokan Cup , Chicago, Illinois , Submission (foot lock) , 2 , N/A , 5–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Ben Harris , 1998 Shidokan Cup , Chicago, Illinois , KO (spinning hook kick) , 2 , N/A , 4–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Minaru Taro , Draka V ,

Los Angeles, California 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, ...

, KO (head kick) , 1 , N/A , 3–0 , , - , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Gaik Isrelyan , Draka V , Los Angeles, California , Decision (unanimous) , 5 , N/A , 2–0 , , - bgcolor="" , , Win , Jason Yee , 1997 Kung Fu Championships ,

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

, Decision (unanimous) , 5 , N/A , 1–0 , , - , colspan=10 , ''Legend'':

Notes

References

External links

*
IKF San Shou
* * *
Profile
at

ConvictedArtist.com Interview with Cung Le
{{DEFAULTSORT:Le, Cung 1972 births 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male kickboxers American male mixed martial artists American male taekwondo practitioners American male sport wrestlers American male television actors American male Muay Thai practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu American sambo practitioners American sanshou practitioners American sportspeople in doping cases American sportspeople of Vietnamese descent Cruiserweight kickboxers Doping cases in mixed martial arts Kickboxers from California Light heavyweight kickboxers Living people Male actors of Vietnamese descent Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from California Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing taekwondo Mixed martial artists utilizing sanshou Mixed martial artists utilizing sambo Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu People from Ho Chi Minh City Sportspeople from Ho Chi Minh City Martial artists from San Jose, California Strikeforce (mixed martial arts) champions Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Vietnamese emigrants to the United States Amateur wrestlers Sportspeople of Vietnamese descent West Valley College alumni