Darrell Joseph Horcher (born July 28, 1987) 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 competes 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. A professional since 2010, he 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 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) ** ...

and the

Cage Fury Fighting Championships Cage Fury Fighting Championships (CFFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion primarily operating in the Northeastern United States, founded by Felix and Amy Martinez. They promoted their first shows in Atlantic City, New Jersey, laun ...

, where he was the Lightweight Champion.

Early life and education

Born in

Chicago 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 ...

and raised in

Shermans Dale, Pennsylvania Shermans Dale is an unincorporated community in Carroll Township, Perry County, Pennsylvania, United States, along Shermans Creek. It was originally settled by Scots-Irish settlers before the American Revolutionary War. Its ZIP code is 1709 ...

, Horcher 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 ...

during his freshman year at West Perry High School, where he graduated in 2005. He later transitioned to

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

Horcher compiled an amateur record of 4–1 before turning professional in September 2010, Horcher fought all of his earlier fights in Pennsylvania-based promotions. With a record of 5–0, he signed with

in 2012.

Bellator MMA

Horcher made his Bellator debut against then-undefeated

E. J. Brooks Emanuel J. Brooks (born November 27, 1985) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division. A professional since 2010, he has fought in Bellator MMA. Background Brooks competed in wrestling at Cahokia High S ...

in a Bellator season seven lightweight tournament reserve bout on October 19, 2012 at Bellator 77. Despite coming in as an underdog, Horcher won the fight via knockout in just 21 seconds into first round. Horcher then faced Chris Liguori at Bellator 83 on December 7, 2012. Horcher won the fight via unanimous decision. Horcher was handed his first professional loss via unanimous decision to former TUF 8 contestant

Phillipe Nover Phillipe J. Nover (born February 3, 1984), is a retired American mixed martial artist. He is best known for making it to the finals of The Ultimate Fighter: Team Nogueira vs. Team Mir. He is a former Ring of Combat lightweight champion. Early ...

Bellator 95 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 ch ...

Cage Fury Fighting Championships

After his stint in Bellator, Horcher was expected to face Mike Bannon at CFFC 25 on June 22, 2013. However, the bout was cancelled for unknown reasons. Horcher faced Mike Medrano at CFFC 30: Sterling vs. Roberts on November 2, 2013. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Horcher faced Gabriel Miglioli at CFFC 35: Heckman vs. Makashvili on April 26, 2014. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Horcher was expected to face Gil de Freitas at CES 25 on August 8, 2014. However, the fight was cancelled for unknown reasons. Horcher faced Alex Ricci at CFFC 40: Horcher vs. Ricci on August 23, 2014. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Horcher faced Jordan Stiner for the vacant CFFC lightweight championship at CFFC 45: Stiner vs. Horcher on February 7, 2015. He won the fight via TKO in the third round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Horcher was tabbed as a short notice replacement to face

Khabib Nurmagomedov Khabib Abdulmanapovich Nurmagomedov (born 20 September 1988) is a Russian former professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight (MMA), Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He was the longest-rei ...

on April 16, 2016 at UFC on Fox 19. The contest took place at a catchweight of 160 lbs. He lost the fight via second-round TKO. Horcher faced Devin Powell on June 25, 2017 at UFC Fight Night 112. He won the fight via split decision. Horcher faced

Scott Holtzman Scott Holtzman (born September 30, 1983) is an American former mixed martial artist, who most recently competed in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional from 2012 to 2022, he formerly competed for the Xtre ...

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 by unanimous decision. Horcher faced promotional newcomer

Roosevelt Roberts Roosevelt Roberts (born February 11, 1994) is an American mixed martial artist (MMA) who competed in the Lightweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Roberts was born in Miami, Florida in 1994. After his mother le ...

on November 30, 2018 at The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale. He lost the fight via a guillotine choke in round one. Horcher was released by UFC in December 2019.

Post UFC

After the release, Horcher returned to CFFC and was expected to face Vadim Ogar at CFFC 88 on November 18, 2020. However, the bout was rescheduled to CFFC 90 on December 17, 2020. In turn, the bout was postponed to take place a day later on December 18, 2020 at CFFC 91. Horcher won the fight via first-minute knockout. Horcher, as a replacement for Natan Schulte, faced

Olivier Aubin-Mercier Olivier Aubin-Mercier (; born February 23, 1989) is a Canadian retired mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight division. Fighting from 2011 to 2023, Aubin-Mercier competed for the Professional Fighters League, where he won the 2022 ...

on August 13, 2021 at PFL 7. At weigh-ins, Horcher weighed in at 159.25 pounds, missing weight by 3.25 pounds. The bout proceeded at catchweight and he was fined 20% of his purse, which went to his opponent Aubin-Mercier. Horcher lost the bout via unanimous decision. Horcher was scheduled to face Akhmed Aliev at Eagle FC 46 on March 11, 2022. The day of the event, the bout was postponed to Eagle FC 47 set for May 20. Horcher lost the fight via first-minute knockout. Horcher faced Akhmed Aliev on May 20, 2022 at Eagle FC 47. He lost the bout via knockout 30 seconds into the bout. Horcher faced fellow UFC veteran

Shane Campbell Shane Darryl Campbell is a Canadian Welterweight Muay Thai kickboxer, mixed martial artist, and a former W.K.A. Muay Thai World Champion. Campbell is also the current WMA World Pro Muay Thai Champion, Aggression MMA World Champion, and Unified ...

at Unified MMA 54 for the promotions super lightweight title on December 15, 2023. He lost the fight via second round knockout.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

*Cage Fury Fighting Championships ** CFFC Lightweight Championship (one time; former) ***One successful title defense *Complete Devastation MMA **CDMMA lightweight championship (one time; former)

Mixed martial arts record

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Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

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PFL 7 (2021) The ''PFL 7'' mixed martial arts event for the 2021 season of the Professional Fighters League was held on August 13, 2021. This was the start of the playoffs for the Welterweight and Lightweight divisions. This event aired on ESPN2, with the pr ...

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Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is a suburb in the Miami metropolitan area. The population of Hollywood was 153,067 as of 2020, making it the Broward County#Communities, third-largest city in Broward County, th ...

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Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster ( ) is a city in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 58,039 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, eighth-most populous ci ...

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Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

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Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

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Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

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King of Prussia, Pennsylvania King of Prussia (nicknamed K.O.P.) is a census-designated place in Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania, Upper Merion Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The community took its unusual name in the 18th century from a loca ...

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Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Horcher, Darrell Living people 1987 births American male mixed martial artists American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Lightweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters