Ryan Jimmo (November 27, 1981 – June 26, 2016) was a Canadian mixed martial artist who competed in the

light heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruise ...

division of the

Ultimate Fighting Championship 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 Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. He mostly fought in Canada and competed on the eighth season 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 ...

''. Jimmo was the former MFC Light Heavyweight Champion.

Background

Jimmo was from

Saint John, New Brunswick Saint John is a seaport city of the Atlantic Ocean located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Saint John is the oldest incorporated city in Canada, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign of Ki ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the youngest of his four siblings. He has a background in

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

, beginning the martial art from a very young age and was taught by his father, a 5th degree

black belt Black Belt may refer to: Martial arts * Black belt (martial arts), an indication of attainment of expertise in martial arts * ''Black Belt'' (magazine), a magazine covering martial arts news, technique, and notable individuals Places * Black B ...

. Jimmo's father competed in Japan twice and was placed 5th in the world in his style. Jimmo himself began competition when he was 10 years old, winning provincial and regional championships. He also competed nationally before being shown mixed martial arts. At

St. Malachy's Memorial High School History St. Malachy's High School was established in 1958 as an all boys' Catholic High School. St. Malachy's became the successor school to St. Vincent's High School. St. Vincent's was opened in 1919 as an all boys' Catholic high school located ...

, Jimmo was captain of the football team and president of the chess club. He began amateur

bodybuilding Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...

after breaking his leg from karate in 2004.

Mixed martial arts career

Maximum Fighting Championship

Jimmo began his career in the Maximum Fighting Championship. His professional debut came at MFC 11 against former professional football player Adam Braidwood. The fight ended via TKO (punches) in the first round. Jimmo then appeared at MFC - Unplugged 3 and defeated Dwayne Lewis via unanimous decision. After this, Jimmo appeared at MFC 14 and 15, in between three local appearances. Amassing a 5-0 record over that span with two wins by

rear-naked choke The rear naked choke (RNC) is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word "naked" in this context suggests that, unlike other strangulation techniques found in jujutsu/judo, this hold does not require the use of a keikogi ...

and three by TKO. Ryan previously trained out of Power MMA and Fitness in Gilbert, Arizona.

''The Ultimate Fighter''

After compiling a 6–1 record, Jimmo successfully navigated tryouts for ''The Ultimate Fighter''. Jimmo was selected as one of the sixteen light heavyweights in the eighth season. Jimmo's first fight, to get entry into the house was against Antwain Britt. Britt took the victory in a majority decision after two rounds. Jimmo later expressed disappointment in his performance, but did add that "Dana White said it was probably one of the better fights of the day so that’s good. The UFC already has their eye on me." After his elimination from TUF 8, Jimmo went back to the local circuit, where he recorded three victories; one of which was over

Jesse Forbes Jesse Lee Forbes (born October 24, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2005 until 2010, he competed for the UFC, WEC, the MFC, and was a competitor on ''The Ultimate Fighter 3.'' Background Forbes ...

via unanimous decision.

Return to Maximum Fighting Championship

Jimmo then re-joined Maximum Fighting Championship and made his promotional debut at MFC 21 against Mychal Clark. Jimmo was untroubled throughout and took a unanimous decision with all judges scoring the bout 30–27. Jimmo followed this up with a split decision victory over UFC veteran Marvin Eastman at MFC 22. The fight largely revolved around exchanges in the clinch. Sherdog gave the bout to Eastman, but the official result was in favor of Jimmo, with scorecards of (29–28, 28–29, and 29–28). Jimmo's third fight in MFC was against Emanuel Newton at

MFC 23 ''MFC 23: Unstoppable'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Maximum Fighting Championship (MFC) on December 4th, 2009 at the River Cree Resort and Casino in Enoch, Alberta. The main event featured former UFC contender Thales Leites taking o ...

. Jimmo reportedly controlled most of the bout in the clinch and took a unanimous decision victory (30–27, 29–28, and 29–28). Jimmo's most notable fight at that point of his career was against Wilson Gouveia at

MFC 25 ''MFC 25: Vindication'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Maximum Fighting Championship (MFC) on May 7, 2010 at the Edmonton Expo Centre in Edmonton, Alberta. The event aired live on HDNet. The main event featured Thales Leites taking on J ...

. Prior to the fight, Sherdog discussed Jimmo's position in his division and stated that "Jimmo has all the tools and an affable personality that makes him championship material. Unfortunately, though, Jimmo has failed to capitalize on numerous opportunities to cement himself in the title picture because he hasn’t been a big finisher despite a 12-fight winning streak." Sherdog also added that they didn't believe that Jimmo could "grind out another win" as Gouveia, who was making his return to the light heavyweight division, would not gas out, as he had done on occasion at middleweight in the UFC. The fight was later made a catchweight bout of 208 lbs, after Gouveia once again came in overweight; this, despite moving up a weight class originally. Jimmo used various striking techniques to control his opponent and dropped Gouveia on a few occasions. Jimmo walked away with a unanimous decision (30–27, 30–26, and 30–26). Jimmo attributed the victory to Gouveia gassing out after his difficulty with making weight. Jimmo was then scheduled to fight for the Maximum Fighting Championship's Light Heavyweight title against newcomer

Glover Teixeira Glover Lucas Teixeira (; born 28 October 1979) is a Brazilian-American mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion ...

, but Jimmo questioned why he had been made to work for a title shot, while Teixeira, "a relative unknown" received a shot immediately. MFC then placed

Bobby Southworth Bobby Masai Southworth (born December 16, 1969) is a retired American mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who fought in the Light Heavyweight (MMA), Light Heavyweight division. He has fought in PRIDE FC and appeared on Season 1 of The Ultima ...

into the title bout, though Southworth would later withdraw from the fight due to personal problems. Jimmo still has no opponent scheduled. Jimmo defeated fellow

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

, Dwayne Lewis at

MFC 28 ''MFC 28: Supremacy'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Maximum Fighting Championship (MFC) on February 25, 2011 at the River Cree Casino in Enoch, Alberta. Background Antonio McKee was originally scheduled to defend his lightweight tit ...

on February 25, 2011 to win the vacant MFC Light Heavyweight Championship. Jimmo was expected to face former MFC Light-Heavyweight champion Emanuel Newton at

MFC 29 ''MFC 29: Conquer'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Maximum Fighting Championship (MFC) on April 8, 2011 at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor in Windsor, Ontario. The event was broadcast on HDNet. Background During the broadcast of MF ...

on April 8. However, he took on replacement Zak Cummings and won the fight via unanimous decision. Jimmo defended his title against

Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou Nkamhoua (; born April 18, 1984), mostly billed simply as Sokoudjou, is a Cameroonian professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 2006, Sokoudjou is the former KSW Light Heavyweight Champion, and h ...

MFC 31 ''MFC 31: Rundown'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Maximum Fighting Championship (MFC) on October 7, 2011 at the Mayfield Inn Trade and Conference Centre in Edmonton, Alberta. The event was broadcast live on HDNet. Background Antoni ...

, winning a controversial unanimous decision.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Jimmo was expected to make his promotional debut against Karlos Vemola on January 20, 2012 at

UFC on FX 1 The year 2012 was the 20th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. 2012 started with UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes and ended with UFC 155: dos Santos vs. Velasquez 2 ...

. However, Jimmo was forced from the bout with an injury. Jimmo faced

Anthony Perosh Anthony Perosh (born 5 October 1972) is a retired Australian professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Perosh was born and raised in Sydney, Australia and ...

on July 21, 2012 at UFC 149. Jimmo won the fight via knockout in seven seconds, making it tied for the third fastest knockout in UFC history. For his second fight with the promotion, Jimmo faced James Te Huna on February 16, 2013 at UFC on Fuel TV: Barão vs. McDonald. He had a successful first round as Jimmo dropped Te-Huna with a head kick. However, Te-Huna then rebounded by controlling the second and third rounds with his striking and wrestling, resulting in a unanimous decision loss for Jimmo. Jimmo next fought Igor Pokrajac at UFC 161 on June 15, 2013. Jimmo won the fight via unanimous decision. Jimmo faced Jimi Manuwa on October 26, 2013 at UFC Fight Night 30. He lost the fight via TKO in the second round due to a leg injury. Jimmo was expected to face UFC newcomer

Steve Bossé Steve Bossé (born July 29, 1981) is a Canadian professional boxer currently competing in the heavyweight division. Bossé is a former mixed martial artist in the Light Heavyweight division of the UFC and was also known as an infamous hockey enf ...

at The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale on April 16, 2014 in Quebec City. However, Bossé was forced to pull out of the bout citing an injury. Jimmo instead faced UFC newcomer

Sean O'Connell Sean O'Connell was a Gaelic football manager and player who featured for the Derry county team in the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s and was on the Derry side that finished runners-up to Dublin in the 1958 All-Ireland Championship – winning a ...

. He won the fight via knockout in the first round. The win also earned Jimmo his first ''Performance of the Night'' bonus award. Jimmo faced

Ovince St. Preux Ovince Saint Preux (born April 8, 1983) is a Haitian-American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division of the UFC. A professional competitor since 2008, Saint Preux has also formerly competed for Strikef ...

on June 14, 2014 at

UFC 174 ''UFC 174: Johnson vs. Bagautinov'' was a mixed martial arts event that took place on June 14, 2014, at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Background The event was headlined by a UFC Flyweight Championship bout between the curre ...

. He lost the fight via submission in the second round. Jimmo faced Francimar Barroso on May 30, 2015 at

UFC Fight Night 67 ''UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Alves'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 67'') was a mixed martial arts event held on May 30, 2015, at the Goiânia Arena in Goiânia, Brazil. Background The event was the second that the UFC has hosted in Goiânia ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Subsequently, he was released from the UFC for speaking out against the promotion and the Reebok deal.

Death

Jimmo was involved in a parking lot altercation early in the morning of June 26, 2016, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He argued with the driver of a truck, and as Jimmo was walking away, the driver ran him over and left the scene. Jimmo later died in the hospital from his injuries. Two men were charged following the incident. Anthony Getschel, 23, was charged with second-degree murder, criminal negligence causing death, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death, and failing to stop at the scene of an accident involving death. Jordan Wagner, 21, was charged with being an accessory after the fact to murder. Eventually on November 26, 2018, Getschel pleaded guilty to

manslaughter Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th cen ...

and hit and run, and he was sentenced to eight years in prison in a Canadian courthouse on December 3, 2018.

Championships and accomplishments

** Knockout of the Night (one time) **

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

(one time) **Tied second fastest knockout (

Todd Duffee Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporated ...

and

Jung Chan-Sung Jung Chan-sung ( ko, 정찬성; born March 17, 1987), anglicized as Chan Sung Jung and better known by his ring name The Korean Zombie, is a South Korean professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. He currently competes in the Featherweig ...

) in

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 Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

history (0:07 seconds) * Maximum Fighting Championship ** MFC Light Heavyweight Championship (one time) **Most Consecutive Title Defenses (two) **Most fights in MFC history (eleven)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 19–5 , Francimar Barroso , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Alves , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Goiânia Goiânia (; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Goiás. With a population of 1,536,097, it is the second-largest city in the Central-West Region and the 10th-largest in the country. Its metropolitan area has a population ...

, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 19–4 , Ovince Saint Preux , Submission (kimura) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:10 ,

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 ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 19–3 ,

, KO (punches) , The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale: Bisping vs. Kennedy , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:27 , Quebec City, Quebec, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 18–3 , Jimi Manuwa , TKO (leg injury) , UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Munoz , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:41 , Manchester, England, United Kingdom , , - , Win , align=center, 18–2 , Igor Pokrajac , Decision (unanimous) , UFC 161 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–2 , James Te Huna , Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fuel TV: Barão vs. McDonald , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

, United Kingdom , , - , Win , align=center, 17–1 ,

, KO (punch) , UFC 149 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:07 , Calgary, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 16–1 , Rameau Sokoudjou , Decision (unanimous) , MFC 31: The Rundown , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 15–1 , Zak Cummings , Decision (unanimous) , MFC 29: Conquer , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Windsor, Ontario Windsor is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from Detroit, Michigan, United States. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Essex County, it is the souther ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 14–1 , Dwayne Lewis , TKO (doctor stoppage) , MFC 28: Supremacy , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:13 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 13–1 , Wilson Gouveia , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 12–1 , Emanuel Newton , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 11–1 , Marvin Eastman , Decision (split) , MFC 22 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 10–1 , Mychal Clark , Decision (unanimous) , MFC 21 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Enoch, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 ,

Rick Roufus Rick John Roufus (born June 3, 1966) is an American retired kickboxer. He is one of the most famous kickboxers in America, and has also competed professionally in boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sp ...

, TKO (punches) , PFP: Wanted , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:24 ,

Dartmouth, Nova Scotia Dartmouth ( ) is an urban community and former city located in the Halifax Regional Municipality of Nova Scotia, Canada. Dartmouth is located on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour. Dartmouth has been nicknamed the City of Lakes, after the larg ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , XMMA 6: House of Pain , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Chris Fontaine , TKO (punches) , X: Fight , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:39 , Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Jeff Lundburg , TKO (punches) , ECC 7: Bad Blood , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:31 ,

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Craig Zellner , Submission (rear-naked choke) , MFC 15: Rags to Riches , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:20 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Samir Seif , TKO (punches) , PFP: New Year's Restitution , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:33 ,

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Nick Goetz , Submission (rear-naked choke) , MFC 14: High Rollers , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:44 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Matt Acorn , TKO (punches) , ECC 6: Hometown Heroes , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:30 ,

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 , Dwayne Lewis , Decision (unanimous) , MFC: Unplugged 3 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Adam Braidwood , TKO (punches) , MFC 11: Gridiron , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:54 , Edmonton, Alberta, Canada ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jimmo, Ryan 1981 births 2016 deaths Canadian male mixed martial artists Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Chitō-ryū Canadian male karateka Male murder victims Murders by motor vehicle People murdered in Alberta Road incident deaths in Canada Sportspeople from Saint John, New Brunswick Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters