Roger Huerta
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Name | Roger Huerta |
| Nickname | El Matador | |
| Association | Jackson's Submission Fighting | |
| Weight Class | Lightweight (155 lbs.) | |
| Height | 5' 9" (175 cm) | |
| Style | Greco-Roman Wrestling, Muay Thai | |
| Birth Date | May 20, 1983 | |
| Fighting Out Of | Minneapolis, Minnesota | |
| Country | USA | |
| Roger Huerta's Pictures | Official Website |
Roger Huerta is an American mixed martial artist of Mexican descent. He competed in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Roger will also be appearing in the live action motion picture Tekken, as Miguel Caballero Rojo, due to be released in 2009.
In May 2007, Huerta graced the cover of Sports Illustrated Magazine to showcase its first story on the rising popularity of mixed martial arts.
Contents |
[edit] Professional Record
| Record | 21 - 7 - 1 (Win – Loss – Draw) (1 NC) |
| Wins | 11 (T)KOs 5 Submissions 4 Decisions 1 Other |
| Losses | 3 (T)KOs 1 Submissions 3 Decisions |
| Result | Opponent | Method | Event Title | Date | Round | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | Zorobabel Moreira | KO (Soccer Kick) | One FC 4: Destiny of Warriors | 6/23/2012 | 2 | 3:53 | |
| Loss | War Machine | TKO (Rib Injury) | UWF 1: Huerta vs. War Machine | 11/26/2011 | 3 | N/A | |
| Loss | Eddie Alvarez | TKO (Doctor Stoppage) | BFC: Bellator Fighting Championships 33 | 10/21/2010 | 2 | 5:00 | |
| Loss | Pat Curran | Decision (Unanimous) | BFC: Bellator Fighting Championships 17 | 5/06/2010 | 3 | 5:00 | Season Two Lightweight Tournament Semifinal |
| Win | Chad Hinton | Submission (Kneebar) | BFC: Bellator Fighting Championships 13 | 4/08/2010 | 3 | 0:56 | Season Two Lightweight Tournament Opening Round |
| Loss | Gray Maynard | Decision (Split) | UFC Fight Night 19: Diaz vs. Guillard | 9/16/2009 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Loss | Kenny Florian | Decision (Unanimous) | UFC 87: Seek and Destroy | 8/09/2008 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Win | Clay Guida | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | The Ultimate Fighter 6 Finale | 12/08/2007 | 3 | 0:31 | |
| Win | Alberto Crane | TKO (Punches) | UFC 74: Respect | 8/25/2007 | 3 | 1:50 | |
| Win | Douglas Evans | TKO (Punches) | The Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale | 6/23/2007 | 2 | 3:30 | |
| Win | Leonard Garcia | Decision (Unanimous) | UFC 69: Shootout | 4/07/2007 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Win | John Halverson | TKO (Punches) | UFC 67: All or Nothing | 2/03/2007 | 1 | 0:19 | |
| Win | Jason Dent | Decision (Unanimous) | UFC 63: Hughes vs. Penn | 9/23/2006 | 3 | 5:00 | UFC debut; Won Fight of the Night Honors |
| Win | Joe Camacho | TKO (Punches) | Raze MMA: Fight Night | 4/29/2006 | 2 | 2:43 | |
| Win | Dan Swift | TKO (Punches) | EC 66: Extreme Challenge 66 | 2/17/2006 | 2 | 0:51 | |
| Win | Lee King | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | IFC: Rumble on the Rio 2 | 10/15/2005 | 1 | 0:50 | |
| Win | Matt Wiman | Decision (Unanimous) | FFC 15: Fiesta Las Vegas | 9/14/2005 | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Win | Brad Blackburn | TKO (Corner Stoppage) | IFC: Rock N'Rumble | 7/30/2005 | 3 | 2:19 | Won IFC Welterweight Championship; last minute replacement for Tony Fryklund |
| NC | Melvin Guillard | No Contest (Overturned by Commission) | FCC 14: Freestyle Fighting Championship 14 | 3/05/2005 | 3 | 5:00 | Originally a decision in favor of Guillard, but it was overturned when Huerta appealed the decision because Guillard's cornerman greased his shoulders between rounds |
| Win | Kenny Jerrell | TKO (Punches) | FFC 14: Freestyle Fighting Championship 14 | 3/05/2005 | 1 | 2:15 | |
| Win | Steve Kinnison | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | FFC 14: Freestyle Fighting Championship 14 | 3/05/2005 | 2 | 2:57 | |
| Win | Naoyuki Kotani | TKO | XFO 4: Xtreme Fighting Organization 4 | 12/03/2004 | 1 | 1:29 | |
| Win | Jake Short | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | EC 60: Extreme Challenge 60 | 11/12/2004 | 3 | 0:37 | |
| Win | Matt Brady | TKO | EC 59: Extreme Challenge 59 | 9/24/2004 | 1 | 3:12 | |
| Loss | Ryan Schultz | Submission (Verbal) | SB 36: SuperBrawl 36 | 6/18/2004 | 1 | 1:47 | For SuperBrawl 36 Eight-Man Lightweight Tournament Finals; Schultz broke Huerta's Jaw |
| Win | Mike Aina | Decision (Unanimous) | SB 36: SuperBrawl 36 | 6/18/2004 | 3 | 3:00 | SuperBrawl 36 Eight-Man Lightweight Tournament Semi-finals |
| Win | Harris Sarmiento | TKO (Strikes) | SB 36: SuperBrawl 36 | 6/18/2004 | 3 | 2:12 | SuperBrawl 36 Eight-Man Lightweight Tournament Opening Round |
| Draw | Joe Jordan | Draw | EC 36: Extreme Challenge 56 | 3/26/2004 | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Win | Jeff Carlson | DQ | EC: Best of the Best 2 - Day Event | 8/02/2003 | N/A | N/A | |
| Win | Shane Lavafor | TKO | EC: Best of the Best 2 - Day Event | 8/02/2003 | N/A | N/A | |
[edit] Mixed Martial Arts Career
Huerta's first loss came as a result of a dislocated jaw early in the finals of the SuperBrawl 36 tournament against Ryan Schultz on June 18, 2004, his third match of the day.
[edit] UFC Career
Roger Huerta was originally slated to make his UFC debut against Hermes Franca at UFC 61, but was forced to withdraw from the fight as the result of an elbow injury. He won his first six fights in the UFC, the first at UFC 63 against Jason Dent, which was declared "Fight of the Night".
His next fight was against UFC newcomer John Halverson at UFC 67. The fight ended by TKO after 19 seconds of round one after Huerta landed a knee to the shoulder/head area of a grounded Halverson, knocking him down where Huerta finished him with punches. The end of the bout was controversial as knees to the head of grounded opponents are illegal under UFC rules.
Huerta won his next three fights against Leonard Garcia, Doug Evans and Alberto Crane before he faced and submitted Clay Guida by rear naked choke in the third round on December, 8, 2007 at The Ultimate Fighter 6 Finale.
Huerta lost his last fight by unanimous decision (all judges scored the bout 30-27) at UFC 87 against Kenny Florian.
On January 9, 2009, Huerta announced that he is taking an indefinite hiatus from MMA to further pursue opportunities in acting, though he still has one more fight on his UFC contract.
Huerta returned after a year's layoff to face top contender Gray Maynard at UFC Fight Night 19 losing a very close split decision. Though the fight was supposed to be his last in the octagon, before pursuing and acting/modeling career, it appeared after back to back losses, Huerta was having a change of heart.
- “Hopefully we get something going with that, but I’m not going to prioritize (acting) now. I’ll still prioritize fighting. If the UFC wants me back, I’d be willing to go back.” Huerta told Sherdog’s Loretta Hunt.
[edit] Post-UFC
Neither acting nor returning to the UFC seemed to be in Huerta's immediate future, as it was announced via his Twitter page in January of 2010 made it clear that he could end up with Strikeforce.
- "My manager@jeffclarkmma and I met with Scott Coker and Richard Chou with Strikeforce on monday," stated his Twitter, "So I believe this is where."
Once the Twitter comment was released, Strikeforce director of communications, Mike Afromowitz, said that Huerta had met with Strikeforce, but no offer had been made.
It was learned mid-March that Huerta would not be signing with Strikeforce, but would rather be participating in Bellator Fighitng Championship's second season Lightweight tournament. The winner of the tournament will face off against the current Bellator Lightweight Champion, Eddie Alvarez.
His first round opponent was chosen to be undefeated prospect Chad Hinton. The bout took place on April 8, 2010 at Bellator 13. The two faced off in a high-paced first round, but after some initial back-and-forth action, "El Matador" took over in the final two frames. Working from top position for the majority of the second round, Huerta scored big points while evading Hinton's attempts to sweep or submit. In the final frame, Huerta landed a few early punches before a slick transition into a Kneebar attempt that left Hinton with no choice but to tap at 0:56 of the third round, moving to the semifinals of the tournaments.
His semi-final fight was against Pat Curran, who was seen as an underdog, as Huerta was considered an early favorite to win the tournament. After a back-and-forth opening two rounds that saw both fighters look crisp in spots, the bout appeared to hang in the balance in the final frame. Both fighters responded to the demand of the moment, and the action stayed tight throughout. Both fighters earned takedowns, and both fighters worked striking effectively. At the close of the final frame, it was difficult to separate the two. The judges didn't find it challenging at all, and Curran was awarded the Decision (Unanimous) win, 29-28 on all three cards.
It should be noted that Pat Curran went on to win the Lightweight Tournament, earning himself a shot at Eddie Alvarez. Unfortunately for Curran though, he had to pull out of his title fight due to undisclosed reasons. Huerta stepped in, but the title would not be on the line, as it would be a Non-title "Super Fight."
[edit] Personal Life
Roger attends Augsburg College where he is two credits away from receiving a degree in Business Management and currently resides in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Huerta has numerous Tattoos. The Tribal Tattoo that covers his left chest and shoulder is reminiscent of the Tattoos that were once donned by Māori warriors and was custom designed especially for Huerta.[citation needed] A tattoo on his right forearm reads, "God, I offer myself to Thee, to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt. Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of Thy power, Thy love and Thy way of life. May I do Thy will always." This is the Alcoholics Anonymous third step prayer.
Roger was adopted at the age of 19 by his english teacher from Crockett High, Jo Ramirez.
[edit] Ranks and Titles
- Two time world champion for the IFC in the 155lb weight class and 170lb weight class
