Mark Anthony Weir (19 September 1967) is an English retired mixed martial artist usually fighting in the middleweight division at 185 lbs. He has fought in 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 ...

, the WEC,

PRIDE Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

Cage Rage Cage Rage Championships, also known as Cage Rage, was a United Kingdom-based, mixed martial arts promotion that premiered on 7 September 2002 in London. Cage Rage went into liquidation and is now no longer trading. Cage Rage had been owned and ma ...

UCMMA Ultimate Challenge MMA (also referred to as UCMMA) is a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United Kingdom. It is shown live on London Live in the UK, Fight Now TV in the US and on Viewster in several other countries. History The collap ...

Pancrase is a Japanese mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Tokyo. It was founded in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the An ...

, and BodogFIGHT. He is the former Cage Rage British Middleweight Champion.

Background

Weir began his

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; ...

training with

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 ...

and

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 ...

, but later switched to

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 ...

because his mother did not want him to box full-time. He gained his black belt in 1988 from Hee Il Cho, then 3 months later went on to win two World Titles and, at the age of 20, became the youngest fighter to ever win a World Championship. Proving his consistency Weir went on to win another two world titles in 1991. Weir not only went undefeated in Tae Kwon Do competitions, but also held an undefeated record in

Kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...

. After which he began training in

Jiu-Jitsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...

. And started competing in

MMA 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 ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Weir made his professional mixed martial arts debut in 1996, however he continued to practice both the traditional art and MMA. This was until 2000 when Weir made the decision to solely concentrate on his MMA fighting career.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Weir made his UFC debut at

UFC 38 ''UFC 38: Brawl at the Hall'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship. It took place at the Royal Albert Hall in London, United Kingdom, on July 13, 2002. The event was seen live on pay-per-view in the United Sta ...

on 13 July 2002 against

Eugene Jackson Eugene W. Jackson II (December 25, 1916 – October 26, 2001) was an American child actor who was a regular of the ''Our Gang'' short series during the silent Pathé era. Career When he joined the gang, Jackson replaced the series' first ...

. This was the UFC's inaugural appearance in the United Kingdom, and Weir won via knockout due to a punch only 10 seconds into the fight. Weir made his next appearance for the promotion at UFC 40, in 'the fight of the year' against Phillip Miller and was defeated in the second round via

rear-naked choke The rear naked choke (RNC), also known as hadaka jime (裸絞) in Judo and "lion killer choke (Mata Leão)" in BJJ, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word ''naked'' in this context suggests that, unlike other stra ...

submission. Weir then fought at UFC 42 against

David Loiseau David Loiseau (; born December 17, 1979) is a Canadian former mixed martial artist from Montreal, Quebec. He has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, EliteXC, and TKO Major League MMA veteran. He is the former TKO World Middleweight Ch ...

and was defeated via knockout in the first round. Loiseau continued on his winning streak to gain a title shot, against Richard Franklin.

Cage Rage and WEC

Weir then signed with

in his home country of England and made his promotional debut at Cage Rage 4 and won via rear-naked choke submission in the first round. Weir would go 3-2 in his next five fights before making his debut in the WEC. Weir made his debut at WEC 12 and won in the first round via

guillotine choke The guillotine choke, also known as Mae Hadaka Jime (前裸絞, "front naked choke"; compared to a rear naked choke) in judo, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from in front of the opponent, often on the ground but can also be done while stan ...

submission. Weir returned to Cage Rage with mixed fortune, however it wasn't long until Weir was back on winning form. At Cage Rage 12, Weir defeated Sol Gilbert via

TKO A technical knockout (TKO) is a professional fighting term. TKO may also refer to: Sports * TKO, the name of a professional wrestling move referring to either the cutter or stunner variant * TKO Group Holdings, a combat sports company Music Ar ...

at the end of the second round to become the inaugural Cage Rage British Middleweight Champion. Weir went on to defend his title against Akri Shoji, winning by KOREA in 16 secs.

PRIDE

After the win over Shoji, Weir had to make a huge decision whether to return to UFC or make his name in Japan. Weir decided on Japan and made his

debut at Pride Bushido 10 on 2 April 2006 against

Denis Kang Denis Kang (, born September 17, 1977) is a retired Canadian professional mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor since 1998, Kang has formerly competed for the UFC, PRIDE, DREAM, ...

who was on a 16 fight winning streak. Weir lost after he submitted due to knee strikes at the end of the first round.

UCMMA

On his return to the UK, Weir captured the UCMMA Middleweight Championship at UCMMA 11: Adrenaline Rush on 27 March 2010, defeating Jack Mason at the end of the second round via knockout. Weir then lost his first title defense at UCMMA 21: Stand Your Ground when he was knocked out by Denniston Sutherland. Weir made his most recent appearance at SFC: Supremacy Fight Challenge 9 on 17 February 2013 and won via rear-naked choke submission in the first round. This was to be Weir's final appearance in MMA before he announced his retirement in 2014.

Kickboxing career

In 2010, Weir won the vacant UCMMA Kickboxing Championship by defeating Mark Epstein. Weir also won the Middleweight Championship by defeating Jack Mason via knockout. Weir then successfully defended his title at Unbelievable 16 on 23 October 2010 against Luke Sines. Weir then lost his Middleweight Championship, being defeated via knockout by Louis King.

Personal life

Weir lives in

Hempsted Hempsted is a suburban village and former civil parish, on the edge of Gloucester in the county of Gloucestershire, England. The parish was abolished in 1966 and absorbed into the parish and city of Gloucester. In 1961 the parish had a populati ...

, England, with his wife and four children.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

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 Encyclopedia Awards *** Knockout of the Night (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 North American Middleweight Championship (One time) *

**Cage Rage British Middleweight British Championship (One time) First * Ultimate Challenge MMA **Ultimate Challenge MMA Middleweight Championship (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, , Mickey Burns , Submission (rear-naked choke) , SFC: Supremacy Fight Challenge 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:04 , Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 20–18–1 , Denniston Sutherland , KO (punches) , UCMMA 21: Stand Your Ground , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:20 ,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England , Lost UCMMA Middleweight Championship , - , Win , align=center, 20–17–1 , Jack Mason , KO (knee and punches) , UCMMA 11: Adrenaline Rush , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:57 ,

, England , Won UCMMA Middleweight Championship , - , Loss , align=center, 19–17–1 , Tor Troéng , Submission (triangle choke) , Superior Challenge 4 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:05 ,

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, Sweden , , - , Draw , align=center, 19–16–1 , Jean-François Lénogue , Draw , Furious Fighting Championship 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

, Morocco , , - , Loss , align=center, 19–16 , Mohamed Khacha , TKO (punches) , UCMMA 2: Unbreakable , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:26 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 19–15 , Marius Buzinskas , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , CFC 4: No Way Out , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:04 , England , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–15 ,

Drew Fickett Drew Fickett (born December 14, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. A professional competitor since 1999, Fickett has also formerly competed for the UFC, Strikeforce, DREAM, Cage Rage, the XFC, ...

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , Cage Rage 24 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:55 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–14 ,

Paul Daley Paul Anthony Daley (born 21 February 1983) is a British former mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and kickboxer. A professional competitor from 2003 to 2022, Daley competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC, Bellator MMA, Bella ...

, TKO (punches) , Cage Rage 23 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:14 ,

, England , For Cage Rage World Welterweight Championship and Cage Rage British Middleweight Championship. , - , Loss , align=center, 18–13 , Nick Thompson , TKO , BodogFIGHT: Vancouver , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:01 ,

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 18–12 ,

Daijiro Matsui is a Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. A professional MMA competitor since 1998, he has competed for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, Cage Rage, DEEP, Pancrase, and King of the Cage. As a professional wrestler, Matsui ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Cage Rage 21 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–12 , Zelg Galešic , TKO (punches) , Cage Rage 19 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:50 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–11 ,

Murilo Rua Murilo Milani Rua (; born May 22, 1980), also known as Ninja, is a Brazilian retired mixed martial artist. He is the older brother of former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Mauricio Rua. He was the inaugural EliteXC Middleweight Champion and a ...

, Submission (arm triangle choke) , Cage Rage 18 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:15 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–10 ,

, Submission (knees) , PRIDE Bushido 10 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:55 ,

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 17–9 ,

Akira Shoji Akira Shoji (小路晃) (born January 31, 1974) is a retired Japanese mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. He is most known as being a regular in almost all the beginning Pride Fighting Championship Shoji was in Pri ...

, KO (head kick) , Cage Rage 14 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:17 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 16–9 , Kyosuke Sasaki , KO (punches) , Cage Rage 13 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:52 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 15–9 , Sol Gilbert , TKO (corner stoppage) , Cage Rage 12 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , Won Cage Rage British Middleweight Championship. , - , Loss , align=center, 14–9 , Curtis Stout , TKO (punches) , Cage Rage 11 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:45 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–8 ,

Alex Serdyukov Alex Serdyukov (born May 24, 1980) is a retired Russian mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division. A professional from 2003 until 2009, he competed for the WEC and Palace Fighting Championship. Championships and accomplish ...

, Submission (arm triangle choke) , WEC 14: Vengeance , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:56 ,

Lemoore, California Lemoore (formerly La Tache and Lee Moore's) is a city in Kings County, California, United States. Lemoore is located west-southwest of Hanford, at an elevation of . It is part of the Hanford-Corcoran Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA Code 252 ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–7 , Gabriel Santos , Decision (unanimous) , Cage Rage 10 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–6 ,

Matt Lindland Matthew James Lindland (born May 17, 1970), is an American retired mixed martial artist, Olympic wrestler, speaker, actor, coach, entrepreneur, and politician. He won the Oregon Republican Party's nomination for the Oregon House of Representati ...

, TKO (doctor stoppage) , Cage Rage 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 14–5 , Will Bradford , Submission (fist choke) , WEC 12 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:11 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–5 ,

Johil de Oliveira Johil de Oliveira (born August 7, 1969) is a Brazilian former professional mixed martial arts veteran fighter, Luta Livre practitioner who has competed in Japan's Pride Fighting Championships and Brazilian-based organizations such as World Vale ...

, Submission (arm-triangle choke) , Cage Rage 8 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:35 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–5 , Jorge Rivera , TKO (doctor stoppage) , Cage Rage 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 12–4 , Gen Isono , TKO (corner stoppage) , Pain and Glory , , align=center, , align=center, , England , align=center, , - , Win , align=center, 11–4 , Alex Reid , TKO (cut) , Extreme Brawl 6 , , align=center, 2 , ,

Bracknell Bracknell () is a town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Built-up Area, Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the borough of Bracknell Forest. It lies to the east of Re ...

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–4 , Gregory Bouchelaghem , Submission (rear-naked choke) , XFC 2: The Perfect Storm , , align=center, 1 , ,

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 10–3 , Jean-François Lénogue , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Cage Rage 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:13 ,

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–3 ,

, KO (punches) , UFC 42 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:55 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–2 , Phillip Miller , Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC 40 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:50 ,

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, 9–1 ,

, KO (punch) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:10 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Ben Earwood , TKO (submission to punches) , MB 5: Unfinished Business , , align=center, 2 , ,

High Wycombe High Wycombe, often referred to as Wycombe ( ), is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England. Lying in the valley of the River Wye, Buckinghamshire, River Wye surrounded by the Chiltern Hills, it is west-northwest of Charing Cross in London, ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Shannon Ritch , Submission (choke) , MB 3: Independence Day , , align=center, 1 , ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Paul Jenkins , KO , Grapple & Strike 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:18 ,

Worcester, England Worcester ( ) is a cathedral city in Worcestershire, England, of which it is the county town. It is south-west of Birmingham, north of Gloucester and north-east of Hereford. The population was 103,872 in the 2021 census. The River Severn f ...

, , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , CJ Fernandes , TKO , MB 2: Capital Punishment , , align=center, , align=center, ,

, England , align=center, , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Sean Cocharin , TKO , Ultimate Fight Night , , align=center, 1 , ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Frank Ledroumaguet , Submission (armbar) , Pancrase: Pancrase UK , , align=center, , align=center, ,

, England , align=center, , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , John Andrews , Submission (choke) , Grapple & Strike 2 , , align=center, 1 , ,

, , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 , Dale Houghton , Submission (forearm choke) , Ring of Truth 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:16 , England , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Trevor Cunningham , KO , Grapple & Strike 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:17 ,

References

1. ‘A Day in the Life Of…’, Helen Blow, ‘’The Citizen’’, 4 February 1999 2. ‘Scott hopes for a box office hit’, Annelisa Macaulay-Lowe, ‘’The Citizen’’, 19 August 1999 3. ‘Scott’s a dead ringer for a film mogul’, ‘’The Citizen’’, 3 September 2001 4. ‘Horton is choked at loss’, ‘’The Citizen’’, 27 October 2000 5
XFUK Profile
6. ‘Horton is choked at loss’, ‘’The Citizen’’, 27 October 2000 7
UCMMA Events

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Weir, Mark 1967 births Living people English male kickboxers Sportspeople from Gloucester English male mixed martial artists Welterweight mixed martial artists Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing taekwondo English male taekwondo practitioners Black British sportsmen Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters