Branden Lee Hinkle is a retired American professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1998 until 2016, he 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 Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

, RINGS,

Vale Tudo Japan is an annual mixed martial arts competition held in Japan. Originally arranged by promoter and former professional wrestler Satoru Sayama, he had previously created a hybrid martial art organization named Shooto in 1985. He arranged VTJ in 1994 w ...

, Pancrase, the WEF, and the International Vale Tudo Championship.

Background

Born and raised in

Jefferson, Ohio Jefferson is a village in and the county seat of Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,226 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Ashtabula micropolitan area, northeast of Cleveland. Modern-day Jefferson sports the worl ...

, Hinkle holds an accomplished

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

background, competing at

West Liberty State College West Liberty University (WLU) is a public university in West Liberty, West Virginia. It is West Virginia's oldest institution of higher education. It offers more than 70 undergraduate majors plus graduate programs, including a master's degree i ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

where he was a two-time

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division II Champion, a U.S. National Freestyle Wrestling All-American and also excelled at tennis, being a West Virginia College Conference Tennis Champion.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Hinkle was offered a fight in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

for $1,000 and an all-expenses paid trip. He accepted and made his professional debut against future

PRIDE Pride is defined by Merriam-Webster as "reasonable self-esteem" or "confidence and satisfaction in oneself". A healthy amount of pride is good, however, pride sometimes is used interchangeably with "conceit" or "arrogance" (among other words) wh ...

veteran

Ebenezer Fontes Braga Ebenezer Fontes Braga (born April 14, 1969) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist and kickboxer. He competed in the Light Heavyweight division. He lost his last fight at JF 2 - Jungle Fight 2 against Fabrício Werdum on May 15, 2004. __ ...

in 1998 for the International Vale Tudo organization in

. The inexperienced Hinkle lost the fight by submission ( triangle choke). After amassing a 12-6-1 record, with wins over Travis Fulton, Yoshihisa Yamamoto, and Jorge Rivera, Hinkle was signed by the

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Hinkle made his

debut against Sean Gannon at UFC 55. Gannon, a former Boston police officer, had gained fame for defeating Kimbo Slice in an organized but unsanctioned fight that had was uploaded onto

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

. Hinkle won the fight by TKO, but dropped his next three consecutive fights against veteran Jeff Monson, former WEC Light Heavyweight Champion Jason Lambert, and another UFC veteran, Alexandre Ferreira.

Post-UFC

Hinkle then bounced back with a unanimous decision win over former PRIDE veteran Roman Zentsov before facing fellow collegiate wrestler and future UFC veteran, Chris Tuchscherer. Hinkle was knocked out by punches. In his next fight he faced UFC and

Strikeforce Strike Force may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * ''Strike Force'' (video game), a 1991 arcade game *'' Commandos: Strike Force'', a 2006 video game *'' Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce'', a 2009 video game *''Marvel Strike Force'', ...

veteran Kevin Jordan, and won by TKO. Hinkle then debuted in Pancrase, but lost by submission (

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 ...

). Hinkle's last professional fight was in 2016, in Woodward, Oklahoma, which he won by submission.

Championships and accomplishments

* NCAA Div II Champion * US National Freestyle Wrestling All-American * Korean Neo Fight World Heavyweight Champion * World Extreme Fighting Heavyweight Champion * WV College Conference Tennis Champion

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 17–11 (1) , Marvin Babe , Submission , Horsepower Promotions: Fists of Fury 10 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:43 , Woodward, Oklahoma United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16–11 (1) , Alonzo Roane , TKO (punches) , Reality Cage Combat: West Virginia vs. the World , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:39 ,

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston is the capital and List of cities in West Virginia, most populous city of West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Elk River (West Virginia), Elk and Kanawha River, Kanawha rivers, the city had a population of 48,864 at the 20 ...

United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 15–11 (1) , Jessie Gibbs , Submission (rear-naked choke) , PFC 3: Pancrase Fighting Championship 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:25 ,

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

, France , , - , Win , align=center, 15–10 (1) , Kevin Jordan , TKO (punches) , DFL 1: The Big Bang , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:30 ,

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–10 (1) , Chris Tuchscherer , KO (punches) , SNMMA: Beatdown at 4 Bears , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 4:43 , New Town, North Dakota, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–9 (1) , Roman Zentsov , Decision (unanimous) , BodogFIGHT: Alvarez vs Lee , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Alexandre Ferreira , Submission (heel hook) , GFC: Evolution , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:37 ,

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

, United States , Return to

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...

. , - , Loss , align=center, 13–8 (1) , Jason Lambert , TKO (referee stoppage) , UFC Fight Night 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, United States ,

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 ...

debut. , - , Loss , align=center, 13–7 (1) , Jeff Monson , Technical Submission (north-south choke) , UFC 57: Liddell vs. Couture 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:35 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–6 (1) , Sean Gannon , TKO (punches) , UFC 55 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:14 ,

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is an area in the New England town, town of Montville, Connecticut, Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a Administrative divisions of Connecticut#Village, neighborhood, section of town, village in southeastern Montville, at the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–6 (1) , Jason DeAngelo , TKO (submission to punches) , HHCF 21: Redemption , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–6 (1) ,

Tommy Sauer Thomas Sauer (November 11, 1970 — March 24, 2020) was an American retired mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1998 to 2012, he competed for RINGS and the World Fighting Alliance. Background A native of Cleveland, Sauer moved ...

, TKO (punches) , WEF: Sin City , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:19 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–6 (1) , Daisuke Watanabe , Decision , NF 5: Neo Fight 5 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 9–6 (1) , Sim Kyum Kim , TKO (punches) , NF 5: Neo Fight 5 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:26 , South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 8–6 (1) , Sang Hyun Park , TKO (leg kick) , NF 2: Neo Fight 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, South Korea , , - , NC , align=center, 7–6 (1) , Sang Min Lee , No Contest , NF 2: Neo Fight 2 , , align=center, N/A , align=center, N/A ,

, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 7–6 , Rogelio Sanchez , Submission (armbar) , VTX: Vale Todo Xtremeo 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:23 , Nuevo Laredo, Mexico , , - , Win , align=center, 6–6 , Eric Knox , TKO (submission to punches) , NLF: Next Level Fighting , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 , Steubenville, Ohio, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–6 ,

Gabriel Gonzaga Gabriel Gonzaga Santos Nogueira (; born 18 May 1979) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist, who competed in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is perhaps best known for his upset head-kick knockout of M ...

, Submission (triangle choke) , Meca 9: Meca World Vale Tudo 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:54 ,

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 5–5 , Jorge Rivera , TKO (corner stoppage) , RSF 2: Attack at the Track , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:54 , Chester, West Virginia, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–5 , George Allen , TKO (punches) , RSF 1: Redemption in the Valley , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A , Wheeling, West Virginia, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 3–5 ,

Volk Han Magomedkhan Amanulayevich Gamzatkhanov (russian: Магомедха́н Аманула́евич Гамзатха́нов; born April 15, 1961), is a Russian retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestling, professional wrestler, sambo (mart ...

, Submission (triangle armbar) , RINGS: Millennium Combine 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 8:11 ,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–4 , Yoshihisa Yamamoto , Submission (rear-naked choke) , WEF 9: World Class , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:21 ,

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–4 ,

Wataru Sakata is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. Career A former Kyokushin karateka, Sakata trained in professional wrestling at Animal Hamaguchi's gym and joined Akira Maeda's Fighting Network RINGS immediately after. F ...

, Submission (leg lock) , RINGS: Millennium Combine 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 7:23 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 2–3 , Maurice Smith , Decision (majority) , RINGS: King of Kings 1999 Block B , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2–2 , Travis Fulton , TKO (punches) , HFP: Holiday Fight Party , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 12:38 , Georgia, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–2 , Carlos Barreto , Submission (guillotine choke) , IVC 8: The Road Back to the Top , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:32 , Aracaju, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 ,

Masanori Suda Masanori Suda (born July 7, 1973) is a Japanese people, Japanese mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. He competed in the Welterweight (MMA), Welterweight, Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight and Heavyweight (MMA), Heavyweight divisions. Suda is ...

, TKO (upkicks) , VTJ 1998: Vale Tudo Japan 1998 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:26 , Urayasu, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 ,

, Submission (triangle choke) , IVC 6: The Challenge , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 12:33 ,

Sao Paulo SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Saco Transportation Center (station code SAO), a train station in Saco, Maine, U.S ...

, Brazil ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hinkle, Branden Lee Living people American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Ohio Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing freestyle wrestling 1973 births People from Jefferson, Ohio Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American male sport wrestlers