Brandon Michael Mathew Thatch (born July 11, 1985) is an American professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

who most recently competed in the

Welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify the ...

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 ...

Background

Thatch was adopted at age five by his mother's partner, Clarence Thatch, a former

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 ...

champion and MMA specialist. Thatch's grandfather was also a professional boxer. Thatch began training in karate at the age of three, and fought in his first

kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sports, combat sport focused on kicking and punch (strike), punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is pract ...

bout at age 17. He later transitioned into a career in

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Thatch started his amateur MMA career on March 31, 2007 against Jesse Brown, which he won via second round submission. Thatch went undefeated as amateur in 2007 with a 3-0 record. He made his pro debut in June 2008 against Mike Crisman at Ring of Fire 32. Thatch won the fight via TKO 38 seconds into the fight. Thatch made his

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'', ...

debut against Brandon Magana at Strikeforce: At The Mansion II. He lost the fight via split decision. He would bounce back with an 18-second head kick knockout win over Michael Arrant at Ring of Fire 33. In Thatch's next fight, he took on Danny Davis Jr, winning via submission in the first round. Thatchthen faced Chris Holland at Ring of Fire 40, winning via KO in 19 seconds. Next for Thatch was a bout with

Chidi Njokuani Chidi Godson Njokuani (born December 31, 1988) is an American former Muay Thai kickboxer and current professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professio ...

at Ring of Fire 41, which he won by TKO in the first minute. In his next fight, Thatch took on Patrick Vallee at Instinct MMA 2 on December 2, 2011, winning via TKO in 15 seconds. Thatch was named

Bloody Elbow ''Bloody Elbow'' is a news website that covers the sports of mixed martial arts (MMA), boxing, kickboxing, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, and other traditional martial arts and combat sports. Founded in 2007, the site is notable for its investigative re ...

's #3 welterweight prospect in their annual scouting report. Four months later, Thatch fought Jory Erickson at Instinct MMA 3. He won the fight by KO in 18 seconds. Thatch next faced Martin Grandmont at Instinct MMA 4 on June 29, 2012. He won the fight via submission in the first round. In Thatch's next fight, he headlined Resurrection Fighting Alliance 7 against Mike Rhodes. Thatch won the bout via submission in the first round. Before and after the fight, Thatch believed that he was going to get a call from 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 ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship

On May 8, 2013, Thatch signed a multi-fight deal with the UFC. Thatch faced Justin Edwards on August 28, 2013 at

UFC Fight Night 27 ''UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Kampmann 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 27'') was a mixed martial arts event held on August 28, 2013, at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. The event was broadcast live on Fox Sports 1. Backg ...

. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. The win earned him his first ''Knockout of the Night'' bonus award. In his second UFC fight, Thatch faced

Paulo Thiago Paulo Thiago Alencar Antunes (; born January 25, 1981) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight division of Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki, KSW. A professional competitor since 2005, he ha ...

UFC Fight Night 32 ''UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 32'') was a mixed martial arts event held on November 9, 2013, at the Goiânia Arena in Goiânia, Brazil. The event was broadcast live on Fox Sports 1. Background Th ...

on November 9, 2013. He won the fight via TKO in the first round, forcing Thiago to submit after landing a knee to the liver. With the win, Thatch extended his first round finish streak to ten. Thatch was expected to face

Jordan Mein Jordan Taylor Mein (born October 10, 1989) is a Canadian professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Welterweight division of Bellator MMA. A professional competitor since 2006, Mein has also formerly competed for Ultimate F ...

on August 23, 2014 at

UFC Fight Night 49 ''UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. dos Anjos'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 49'') was a mixed martial arts event held on August 23, 2014, at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Background The event was headlined by Lightweight contenders Benson ...

, replacing an injured Thiago Alves. Subsequently, Thatch pulled out of the bout with Mein, citing a toe injury. Thatch was expected to face Stephen Thompson on February 14, 2015 at

UFC Fight Night 60 ''UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Thatch'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 60'') was a mixed martial arts event held on February 14, 2015, at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. Background The event was the third that the UFC has hosted ...

. However, Thompson pulled out of the fight on January 30, citing a rib injury. Subsequently, Thatch faced former

UFC Lightweight Champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

Benson Henderson Benson Henderson (born November 16, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist who competes for Bellator MMA, currently competing in their Lightweight division. He is a former UFC Lightweight Champion and WEC Lightweight Champion. As of Novembe ...

at the event. Thatch lost the back and forth fight via submission in the fourth round. Their performance earned both participants ''Fight of the Night'' honors. Thatch was expected to face

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the s ...

on July 11, 2015 at

UFC 189 ''UFC 189: Mendes vs. McGregor'' was a mixed martial arts event held on July 11, 2015, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event took place during the UFC's annual International Fight Week. The event was expected t ...

. However, on June 23, Thatch was pulled from that bout in favor of a fight with Gunnar Nelson, as his scheduled opponent,

John Hathaway John Lawrence Hathaway (born 1 July 1987) is an English mixed martial artist who competes in the welterweight division. Mixed martial arts career Background and early career Formerly an open-side flanker for local rugby team Hove RFC, Hatha ...

, was forced out with an injury. Thatch lost the fight by submission in the first round after getting knocked down by Nelson. Thatch next faced

Siyar Bahadurzada Siyar Bahadurzada ( fa, سیار بهادرزاده; born 17 April 1984) is a retired Afghan-born Dutch mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He currently works as an instructor for ...

on March 5, 2016 at

UFC 196 ''UFC 196: McGregor vs. Diaz'' was a mixed martial arts event held on March 5, 2016 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was officially announced in November 2015 as "UFC 197," taking place on March 5, 2016 at HS ...

. He lost the fight via submission in the third round. Thatch was expected to face

Erick Silva Erick Vinicius Silva (born June 21, 1984) is a Brazilian former mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division. A professional from 2005 till 2019, he competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Bellator MMA, and Jungle Fight, ...

on September 24, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 95 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 ...

. However, Thatch pulled out of the fight with an undisclosed injury and was subsequently replaced by Luan Chagas. Thatch was expected to face

Sabah Homasi Sabah Homasi (born October 19, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight division of Bellator MMA. A professional competitor since 2009, he has also competed for the UFC, Titan FC, and Strikeforce. As o ...

on December 30, 2016 at

UFC 207 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 ...

. However, Homasi pulled out of the fight, citing injury, and was subsequently replaced by promotional newcomer

Niko Price Nicholas Gordon Price (born September 29, 1989) is an American mixed martial artist currently fighting in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Born and raised in Cape Coral, Florida, Price attended Marine ...

. Thatch lost the fight by submission in the first round and was subsequently released from the promotion.

Championships and accomplishments

** Fight of the Night (One time) ** Knockout of the Night (One time) *Ring of Fire **Young Guns Welterweight Championship (One time) *

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

**2015 Best Fight of the Half-Year vs.

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

Official UFC Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thatch, Brandon 1985 births American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Colorado Living people Sportspeople from Denver Welterweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing karate Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American male karateka