Chris Honeycutt (born July 25, 1988) is an American

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, incorpo ...

who formerly fought in Bellator's Middleweight division.

Background

Born in

Brook Park, Ohio Brook Park is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States and a suburb of Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city population was 18,595 . Geography Brook Park is located at (41.399550, −81.818423). According to the United States Census ...

, Honeycutt began

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 ...

at the age of four. Honeycutt attended

North Andover High School North Andover High School is a public high school in the town of North Andover, Massachusetts, United States. The school is a part of the North Andover Public School System, and is the only high school in the district. Construction on the school w ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

for two years before moving and transferring schools to St. Edward High School in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, being coached by

Greg Urbas Greg Urbas is a retired head wrestling coach at St. Edward High School in Lakewood, Ohio. Military career From 1973–1977, Urbas was an officer in the United States Marine Corps. Teaching career While at St. Edwards, Urbas was a math teacher. ...

. At North Andover, Honeycutt finished second in the state tournament and finished the season with a record of 32–1 with the loss coming in the state final. As a sophomore, Honeycutt won the Massachusetts state championship. At St. Edward's, Honeycutt placed third in the state tournament and then went undefeated and won the state championship again for his senior season. Honeycutt finished with an overall high school record of 154-10 and was also a member of the 2006 Junior National team. Honeycutt continued his wrestling career at

Edinboro University PennWest Edinboro is a campus of Pennsylvania Western University, a multi-campus public university in Pennsylvania. Located in the town of Edinboro, the campus has more than 4,600 enrolled students. History Edinboro University was founded a ...

where he was a two-time NCAA Division I All-American. A fan of

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 ...

, Honeycutt soon began his career after college. Honeycutt also had brief training in

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...

as well as

Tae Kwon Do ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast k ...

before embarking on a career in MMA.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career: Up and Comers Unlimited

Honeycutt made his professional MMA debut on January 26, 2013, defeating Jesse Torres via first-round TKO in the Up and Comers Unlimited promotion. After another first-round stoppage win, Honeycutt faced Manny Murillo for the vacant UPC middleweight championship at UPC Unlimited: Up & Comers 16 on July 20, 2013. He won the fight via unanimous decision after five rounds to become the UPC middleweight champion. Honeycutt successfully defended his title once, defeating Jake Gallagher via TKO due to punches in the first round at UPC Unlimited: Up & Comers 18 on January 4, 2014.

Battlegrounds MMA

Honeycutt was expected to compete in the Battlegrounds MMA single night 8-man tournament on October 3, 2014. However, in September it was announced that him, along with

Dennis Hallman Dennis Lloyd Hallman (born December 2, 1975) is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed from 1996 to 2015. A veteran of 75 fights, he competed in various promotions including the UFC, Strikeforce, IFL, the World Seri ...

, were removed from the welterweight bracket and replaced by

Jesse Taylor Jesse Marcus Taylor (born January 2, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) and 10th Planet Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt fighter currently competing in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 2006, he was ...

and Joe Ray.

Bellator MMA

Welterweight

Honeycutt made his welterweight and Bellator debut at Bellator 125 against Ultimate Fighter 12 contestant Aaron Wilkinson on September 19, 2014. Honeycutt won the fight via TKO in the second round. Honeycutt faced Clayton MacFarlane at

Bellator 133 2015 in Bellator MMA was the seventh year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. Bellator held 16 events in 2015. Background In June 2014, Founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney parted with the company. ...

on February 13, 2015. He won the fight via TKO in the third round. In his third fight for the promotion, Honeycutt faced Paul Bradley at

Bellator 140 2015 in Bellator MMA was the seventh year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. Bellator held 16 events in 2015. Background In June 2014, Founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney parted with the company ...

on July 17, 2015. The fight ended midway through the second round after an accidental clash of heads between the two fighters, resulting in a cut on Bradley that the doctor deemed too bad to allow the fighter to continue. The official result was a No Contest. A rematch with Bradley was held on January 29, 2016, at

Bellator 148 2016 in Bellator MMA was the eighth year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promoter based in the United States. Bellator held 23 events in 2016. Background 2016 is notable for the launch of sibling promotion Bellator Kickboxi ...

. Despite again being the betting favorite, Honeycutt lost the bout via TKO early in the first round, resulting in the first loss of his MMA career. After his first loss, Honeycutt returned to face Matt Secor at

Bellator 153 2016 in Bellator MMA was the eighth year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promoter based in the United States. Bellator held 23 events in 2016. Background 2016 is notable for the launch of sibling promotion Bellator Kickbox ...

on April 22, 2016. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Return to middleweight

Honeycutt returned to the middleweight division and faced

Mikkel Parlo Mikkel Parlo (born May 3, 1990) is a Danish retired mixed martial artist who last competed in the Middleweight division of Bellator MMA. Mixed martial arts career Early career Parlo began competing as an amateur in 2008, compiling a record of ...

at Bellator 156 on June 17, 2016. Honeycutt won the fight via unanimous decision. Honeycutt faced Ben Reiter at Bellator 166 on December 2, 2016. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Honeycutt faced Kevin Casey at Bellator 182 on August 25, 2017. He won the fight via TKO in the second round. Honeycutt faced Rafael Lovato Jr. at Bellator 189 on December 1, 2017. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. Honeycutt faced Leo Leite at Bellator 202 on July 13, 2018. He won the fight via unanimous decision, getting three 30–25 score cards from the judges.

Absolute Championship Akhmat

Honeycutt faced

Alexander Shlemenko Alexander Pavlovich Shlemenko (russian: Александр Павлович Шлеменко, born 20 May 1984) is a Russian mixed martial artist currently fighting in the Middleweight division. He is most notable for fighting for Bellator Fi ...

at Eastern Economic Forum: Roscongress Vladivostok Combat Night on September 15, 2019. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Honeycutt faced Azamat Bekoev on April 23, 2021, at ACA 122. He lost the bout via rear-naked choke in the second round. Honeycutt faced Arbi Agujev on September 11, 2021, at ACA 128. He won the bout via unanimous decision. Honeycutt faced Nikola Dipchikov at November 18, 2021 at ACA 132: Johnson vs. Vakhaev. He lost the bout after getting knocked out via elbows from the bottom.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

*Up and Comers Unlimited **UPC Middleweight Championship (one time) **One successful title defense

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 13–5 (1) , Nikola Dipchikov , KO (elbows) , ACA 132: Johnson vs. Vakhaev , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:31 ,

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...

, Belarus , , - , Win , align=center, 13–4 (1) , Arbi Agujev , Decision (unanimous) , ACA 128: Goncharov vs. Omielańczuk , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Belarus , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–4 (1) , Azamat Bekoev , Submission (rear-naked choke) , ACA 122: Johnson vs. Poberezhets , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:33 ,

, Belarus , , - , Win , align=center, 12–3 (1) ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Eastern Economic Forum: Roscongress Vladivostok Combat Night , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, c ...

, Russia , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–3 (1) , Costello van Steenis , Decision (split) , Bellator 210 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Thackerville, Oklahoma Thackerville is a town in Love County, Oklahoma. It is located in South Central Oklahoma. The population was 445 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ardmore, Oklahoma Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Thackerville is located at (33. ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–2 (1) , Leo Leite , Decision (unanimous) , Bellator 202 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–2 (1) , Rafael Lovato Jr. , Decision (unanimous) , Bellator 189 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–1 (1) , Kevin Casey , TKO (punches) , Bellator 182 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:06 ,

Verona, New York Verona (called ''Te-o-na-ta-le'', "''pine forest''" by the Haudenosaunee) is a town in southwestern Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 6,293 at the 2010 census. The town was named after Verona, Italy. Verona is located so ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 (1) , Ben Reiter , Decision (unanimous) , Bellator 166 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 (1) ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Bellator 156 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 (1) , Matt Secor , Decision (unanimous) ,

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Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is an area in the town of Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a village in southeastern Montville, at the mouth of the Oxoboxo River where it flows into the Thames River. The name is now applied more generally to all of the ea ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–1 (1) , Paul Bradley , TKO (punches) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:40 ,

, United States , , - , NC , align=center, 6–0 (1) , Paul Bradley , NC (accidental headbutt) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:47 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Clayton MacFarlane , TKO (body punches) ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Jake Gallagher , TKO (punches) , UPC Unlimited: Up & Comers 18 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:11 ,

Rancho Mirage, California Rancho Mirage is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 17,218 at the 2010 census, up from 13,249 at the 2000 census, but the seasonal (part-time) population can exceed 20,000. Incorporated in 1973 and locate ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Richard Blake , Submission (rear-naked choke) , UPC Unlimited: Up & Comers 15 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:20 ,

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Honeycutt, Chris Living people 1988 births American male mixed martial artists Welterweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing taekwondo American male sport wrestlers Amateur wrestlers American male taekwondo practitioners People from Cuyahoga County, Ohio