Rory Markham
From FightWiki
 |
Name | Rory Markham |
| Nickname | N/A | |
| Association | Miletich Martial Arts | |
| Weight Class | Welterweight (170 lbs.) | |
| Height | 5' 11" (180 cm) | |
| Style | Kyokushinkai Karate | |
| Birth Date | March 25, 1982 | |
| Fighting Out Of | Bettendorf, Iowa | |
| Country | USA | |
| Rory Markham Pictures | Official Website |
Rory Markham is an American mixed martial artist who competes at Welterweight. He previously fought for the Quad City Silverbacks of the International Fight League (IFL). He competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) before being released after his loss to Nate Diaz.
Contents |
Professional Record
| Record | 16 - 6 - 0 (Win – Loss – Draw) |
| Wins | 11 (T)KOs 5 Submissions 0 Decisions |
| Losses | 6 (T)KOs 0 Submissions 0 Decisions |
| Result | Opponent | Method | Event Title | Date | Round | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | Nate Diaz | TKO (Punches) | UFC 111: St. Pierre vs. Hardy | 3/27/2010 | 1 | 2:47 | Bout featured live on SpikeTV; Markham failed to make weight, weighing in at 177 lbs. |
| Loss | Dan Hardy | KO (Punch) | UFC 95: Sanchez vs. Stevenson | 2/21/2009 | 1 | 1:09 | |
| Win | Brodie Farber | KO (Head Kick) | UFC Fight 14: Silva vs. Irvin | 7/19/2008 | 1 | 1:37 | UFC debut; Won Knockout of the Night Honors |
| Win | Jay Ellis | Submission (Triangle Choke) | AMMA 1: Adrenaline MMA 1 | 6/14/2008 | 1 | 1:57 | |
| Loss | Brett Cooper | TKO (Punches) | IFL: World Grand Prix Finals | 12/29/2007 | 2 | 1:15 | |
| Win | Chris Clements | TKO (Punches) | IFL: 2007 Semifinals | 8/02/2007 | 1 | 1:17 | |
| Win | Pat Healy | KO (Punches) | IFL: Moline | 4/07/2007 | 3 | 1:47 | |
| Loss | Chris Wilson | TKO (Punches) | IFL: Championship Final | 12/29/2006 | 1 | 2:14 | |
| Win | Keith Wisniewski | TKO (Corner Stoppage) | IFL: World championship Semifinals | 11/02/2006 | 3 | 4:00 | |
| Win | Marcelo Azevedo | TKO (Punches) | IFL: Gracie vs. Miletich | 9/23/2006 | 1 | 3:58 | |
| Win | Brad Blackburn | KO (Punch) | IFL: Championship 2006 | 6/03/2006 | 2 | 0:23 | |
| Win | Mike Pyle | KO (Punch) | IFL: Legends Championship 2006 | 4/29/2006 | 1 | 0:44 | |
| Loss | Trevor Garrett | TKO | XFO 10: Explosion | 3/18/2006 | 1 | 0:47 | |
| Win | Brian Green | KO | XFO 9: Xtreme Fighting Organization 9 | 1/28/2006 | 1 | 0:26 | |
| Win | Mike Van Meer | KO | EC 64: Extreme Challenge 64 | 10/15/2005 | 1 | 1:48 | |
| Win | Victor Moreno | Submission (Rear Naked Choke) | EC 61: Extreme Challenge 61 | 4/22/2005 | 1 | 4:16 | |
| Win | Jimmy Boyd | Submission (Triangle Choke) | XFO 5: Xtreme Fighting Organization 5 | 3/19/2005 | 1 | 2:13 | |
| Win | James Warfield | TKO (Punches) | XFO 3: Xtreme Fighting Organization 3 | 10/02/2004 | 2 | 1:12 | |
| Win | Ryan Williams | Submission (Triangle Choke) | CFC 1: Courage Fighting Championships 1 | 7/24/2004 | 2 | 2:53 | |
| Win | Jason Guida | Submission (Armbar) | XFO 2: New Blood | 6/26/2004 | 2 | 0:58 | |
| Loss | Kurt Illeman | TKO (Cut) | EC 55: Extreme Challenge 55 | 12/05/2003 | 1 | 1:26 | |
| Win | John Bulger | KO | EC 54: Extreme Challenge 54 | 10/12/2003 | 1 | 0:59 | |
Beginning In Martial Arts
At age 16, Rory entered a Karate tournament at 170 pounds. At that time, the tournament had no suitable weight class in his age category, and so he was forced to compete in the adults division with no pads or gloves. He went on to knock out two of his opponents and win the tournament.
Mixed Martial Arts
Markham began his professional Mixed Martial Arts career in June 2004 with a second round armbar submission over Jason Guida, the brother of UFC fighter Clay Guida. Following the victory Markham won his next five fights before falling to Trevor Garrett in a first round TKO. One of Markham's most notable victories to date is a highlight reel head kick knockout of Brodie Farber at Ultimate Fight Night 14: Silva Vs. Irvin. This KO earned him a Knockout of the Night award at his UFC debut.
He was scheduled to fight British fighter, Dan Hardy, at UFC 95: Sanchez vs. Stevenson in February 2009 on Spike TV for the main televised card. Markham lost to Hardy via KO (Punch) at 1:09 of the first round.
After Nate Diaz was defeated twice in a row, as a Lightweight, he made the decision to move up to Welterweight, and the UFC decided the Markham would be his first opponent at the new weight. The bout took place on March 27, 2010 at UFC 111: St. Pierre vs. Hardy, and the bout was featured live and free on SpikeTV, rather than on the PPV. Markham failed to make weight, coming in at 177 lbs, and was fined $1000, so the bout was actually contested at a Catchweight of 177 lbs, even though Diaz weighed in at the accepted 171 lbs limit. Avoiding Markham's powerful punches and flashy high kicks, Diaz answered with the flurries of shots that have become the hallmark of both fighting Diaz brothers. Markham began to wilt under the pressure, and a knee in the clinch saw the fighter fall to the floor. Diaz pounced on his fallen foe and moved swiftly to the back. With one hook in, Diaz began looking to soften up his opponent for the finish. Markham defended the choke well, but Diaz simply elected to finish the fight with his hands. The strikes flowed freely, and the fight was halted with Markham simply turtling under the attack. The end came at the 2:47 mark of the first round.
After the loss to Diaz, Markham was released by the UFC.
Post-UFC
His first fight after being released by the UFC was scheduled to take place at Bellator 26 on August 26, 2010 against Steve Carl. Unfortunately for Markham, he was not medically cleared and was replaced by Tyler Stinson.
Outside MMA
While many of his most admired people are boxers (Sugar Ray Robinson, Gene Tunney, Rocky Marciano), Markham is an avid reader of many different biographies, which he analyzes and applies their perspectives to his own life.
In addition to his prowess in the ring, Markham will be applying some of those experiences into a new venture, as he has taken acting classes and has a role in the upcoming movie “The Death and Life of Bobby Z” with Paul Walker and Laurence Fishburne.
Ranks and Titles
- Brown Belt under Pat Miletich
- Lifelong Kyokushinkai Karate practitioner
