Michael Earl Russow (born November 9, 1976) is a retired 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 around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

who competed in the

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

division. Having made his professional debut in 1998, Russow has 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 ...

Adrenaline MMA Adrenaline MMA was a mixed martial arts organization that operated primarily in North America. It was formerly part of M-1 Global but became independent in October 2007 with Monte Cox as its head. History Foundation In October 2007, Sibling E ...

PRIDE FC PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

, and also participated in the Yarennoka! event in the

Saitama Super Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Chūō-ku, Saitama, Chūō-ku, Saitama (city), Saitama, Saitama Prefecture, Japan. It opened preliminarily on May 5, 2000, and then was officially opened on September 1 of the same year. Its maximum capa ...

in Japan. He is perhaps best known for his upset victory over Todd Duffee.

Mixed martial arts career

Background

Russow is from

Kankakee, Illinois Kankakee ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Kankakee County, Illinois, United States. Located on the Kankakee River, as of 2020, the city's population was 24,052. Kankakee is a principal city of the Kankakee-Bourbonnais-Bradley, IL MSA, Kan ...

and was a state wrestling champion in high school for the Heavyweight division. He also attended college at

Eastern Illinois University Eastern Illinois University (EIU) is a public university in Charleston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradual ...

and earned a degree in sociology. His first fight was in 1998.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Russow signed with the UFC in 2009 and made his debut against Justin McCully at UFC 102. He won via unanimous decision (29–28, 30–26, and 30–27). Russow then defeated Todd Duffee via third round KO at UFC 114. Russow absorbed heavy punishment from Duffee during the course of the fight but hung on late into the third and final round. Russow then connected with a hard straight right hand, taking Duffee and the fans in attendance by surprise. Russow defeated TUF 10 alum and DeathClutch teammate Jon Madsen on March 26, 2011, at UFC Fight Night 24 via TKO; with that win he improved his winning streak to ten. Russow was expected to face Dave Herman on October 8, 2011, at

UFC 136 ''UFC 136: Edgar vs. Maynard III'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 8, 2011, at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The event coincided with a two-day UFC Fan Expo held at the George R. Brown ...

. However, the bout was cancelled after Herman failed his preliminary drug test in which he tested positive for

marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...

. Russow faced John Olav Einemo on January 28, 2012, at UFC on Fox: Evans vs. Davis and won via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, and 30–27). Russow faced

Fabrício Werdum Fabrício Werdum (; born 30 July 1977) is a Spanish-Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Heavyweight Champion who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is also a 4-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, a two-time Abu Dhabi Comba ...

on June 23, 2012, at UFC 147. Russow was defeated by Werdum via TKO at 2:28 of round 1. Russow faced

Shawn Jordan Shawn Martin Jordan (born October 24, 1984) is an American professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who last competed in the Professional Fighters League's Heavyweight (MMA), Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 200 ...

on January 26, 2013, at UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Dodson. Despite a strong first round, Russow lost to Jordan by TKO in the second round and was subsequently released from the promotion.

World Series of Fighting

On October 6, 2013, it was announced that Russow has signed with

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 ...

. Since his signing with WSOF, Russow retired from MMA.

Personal life

Russow and his wife have a daughter. Russow is also a police officer in his hometown of Chicago.

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 ( ...

** Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. Todd Duffee **UFC.com Awards ***2010: Ranked #4 Knockout of the Year, Best Knockout of the 1HY & Ranked #2 Upset of the Year

Amateur wrestling

National Junior College Athletic Association The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 separate regions across 24 states ...

NJCAA The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, State college (disambiguation), state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 sepa ...

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 ...

(1997) *

Illinois High School Association The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is an association that regulates competition of interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level for the state of Illinois. It is a charter member of the National F ...

** IHSA Class AA High School State Championship (1995) ** IHSA Class AA High School State Championship 3rd Place (1993, 1994) ** IHSA Class AA All-State (1993, 1994, 1995)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Dodson , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:48 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 15–2 (1) ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC 147 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:28 ,

Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais Belo Horizonte is the List of largest cities in Brazil, sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population of around 2.3 million, and the third largest metropolitan area, containing a population of 6 million. It is the List of cities in Sout ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 15–1 (1) , John-Olav Einemo , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fox: Evans vs. Davis , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–1 (1) , Jon Madsen , TKO (doctor stoppage) , UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs. Davis , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–1 (1) , Todd Duffee , KO (punch) , UFC 114 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:32 ,

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, 12–1 (1) , Justin McCully , Decision (unanimous) , UFC 102 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–1 (1) , Braden Bice , Submission (north-south choke) , Adrenaline MMA 2: Miletich vs. Denny , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:13 ,

Moline, Illinois Moline ( ) is a city in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. With a population of 42,985 in the 2020 census, it is the largest city in Rock Island County and the List of municipalities in Illinois, ninth-most populous in Illinois outside ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–1 (1) , Jason Guida , Submission (guillotine choke) , Adrenaline MMA: Guida vs. Russow , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:13 ,

Hoffman Estates, Illinois Hoffman Estates is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 52,530. The village previously served as the headquarters for Transform Holdco L ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 (1) ,

Roman Zentsov Roman Zentsov (, ) (born September 10, 1973 in Bryansk) is a retired Russian heavyweight mixed martial arts fighter who has competed in the PRIDE Fighting Championships, a major MMA organization based in Japan, and BodogFIGHT. Zentsov has an overa ...

, Submission (north-south choke) , Yarennoka! , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:58 ,

Saitama, Saitama is the capital and largest Cities of Japan, city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Saitama, Urawa, Ōmiya, Saitama, Ōmiya, Yono, Saitama, Yono and Iwatsuki, Saitama, Iwatsuki. It is a Cities desig ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 (1) , Steve Campbell , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , XFO 21 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:32 , Lakemoor, Illinois, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 (1) , Pat Harmon , KO (punch) , Bourbon Street Brawl 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:10 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 (1) , Demian Decorah , Submission (kimura) , XFO 18 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:54 ,

Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin Wisconsin Dells is a city in Columbia, Sauk, Adams and Juneau counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The city takes its name from the Dells of the Wisconsin River, a scenic gorge that features sandstone formations along the banks of the W ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 (1) , Scott Harper , Submission (americana) , XFO 16 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:32 , Lakemoor, Illinois, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 4–1 (1) ,

Sergei Kharitonov Sergei Valerievich Kharitonov (, ; born August 18, 1980) is a Russian professional boxer, mixed martial artist and former kickboxer. A professional MMA competitor since 2000, Kharitonov has previously fought in Japanese MMA organizati ...

, Submission (armbar) , Pride 33 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:46 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 (1) , Steve Conkel , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Bourbon Street Brawl 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 (1) , Chris Harrison , Submission (americana) , XFO 14 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:11 , Lakemoor, Illinois, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 (1) , Brandon Quigley , KO (punches) , Combat: Do Fighting Challenge 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:18 ,

Cicero, Illinois Cicero is a town in Cook County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. As of the 2020 census, the population was 85,268, making it the 11th-most populous municipality in Illinois. The town is named after Marcus Tullius Cicero, a R ...

, United States , , - , NC , align=center, 1–0 (1) , Ed Meyer , NC , Combat: Do Fighting Challenge 6 , , align=center, N/A , align=center, N/A , Mokena, Illinois, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Nate Schroeder , Decision (unanimous) , JKD: Challenge 1 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States ,

References

External links

*
Official UFC Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Russow, Michael 1976 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling Martial artists from Chicago Mixed martial artists from Illinois Chicago Police Department officers American male sport wrestlers Sportspeople from Kankakee, Illinois People from Alexandria, Minnesota Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters