Clay Harvison (born September 25, 1980) 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, incorp ...

who competes in the

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight boxe ...

division. A professional competitor since 2006, Harvison has 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 ...

, Bellator, and was a competitor on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar vs. Team dos Santos.

Background

Harvison earned his associate degree in finance from

Tallahassee Community College Tallahassee Community College (TCC) is a public community college in Tallahassee, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. As of fall 2017, TCC reported 24,639 stu ...

. He was enrolled at Kennesaw State for a year when he took a kickboxing class with a friend. Loving the adrenaline rush, Harvison took up Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu full-time in hopes of becoming a professional mixed martial artist. He started at KnuckleUp Fitness with Muay Thai coach Mateo Cutbill as his first trainer.

Mixed martial arts career

The Ultimate Fighter

In 2011, Harvison had signed with the

to compete in The Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar vs. Team dos Santos. Harvison was picked fourth on Team Lesnar and seventh overall. In the fifth preliminary match-up, Harvison's first fight on the show, he fought Englishman Mick Bowman. Harvison controlled the fight using effective striking, and showing good take down defense. Harvison won the fight via unanimous decision, and was set to go into the quarterfinal round. After the fight was over it was discovered while trying to block a high kick from Bowman, it was believed that Harvison suffered a compound fracture in his pinky finger with the bone protruding from the skin. However, an X-ray later revealed the injury to only be a dislocation rather than a fracture. Harvison faced

Ramsey Nijem Pedro Ramsey Nijem ( ar, رامزي نجم, born April 1, 1988) is an American retired mixed martial artist. A professional MMA competitor from 2008 to 2021, Nijem is perhaps best known for his 10-fight stint in the Ultimate Fighting Championshi ...

in his quarterfinal match. Harvison lost to Nijem via submission due to a rear-naked choke in the first round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Even though he lost to Ramsey in the quarterfinals, Harvison remained signed after the show. He made his official UFC debut June 4, 2011 on

The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar vs. Team dos Santos'' is the thirteenth installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. The UFC and Spike TV held open tryouts on November 4, 2010, ...

card, fighting against fellow castmate Justin Edwards. He won the fight via split decision. Harvison moved from Georgia to Utah to train with his ''Ultimate Fighter'' castmate,

, at the Riven Academy. Harvison was expected to face The Ultimate Fighter: United States vs. United Kingdom runner-up,

DaMarques Johnson DaMarques Johnson (born June 28, 1982) is a retired American mixed martial artist. He competed for the UFC and King of the Cage and was the Welterweight runner-up on '' The Ultimate Fighter: United States vs. United Kingdom''. Background Johnson ...

, on September 17, 2011 at

UFC Fight Night 25 ''UFC Fight Night: Shields vs. Ellenberger'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 25'' or ''UFC Fight Night: Battle on the Bayou'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 17, 2011 at the Ernest N. Moria ...

. However, Johnson was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced by

Seth Baczynski Seth Baczynski (born October 26, 1981) is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter currently competing in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight division. A professional since 2006, Baczynski has formerly competed for the UFC, and ...

. He was defeated by rear naked choke submission in the second round. Harvison was scheduled again to fight

. The bout took place on November 12, 2011 at

UFC on Fox 1 ''UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. dos Santos'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 1'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on November 12, 2011 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Background This card marked the ...

. Harvison lost the bout via first round KO. After the loss to Johnson, Harvison was released from the promotion.

Bellator MMA

Harvison made his Bellator debut on February 7, 2013, when he faced Ururahy Rodrigues at

Bellator 88 2013 in Bellator MMA was the eighth installment of the Bellator MMA, which began on January 17, 2013 and ended on April 4, 2013. Mixed martial arts tournaments were held in five weight classes and all of the champions, except the heavyweight ch ...

. He won the fight via TKO (knee) in the third round.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 14-9 , Jonathan Cobb , TKO (punches) , NFC 121 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:21 ,

Kennesaw, Georgia Kennesaw is a suburban city northwest of Atlanta in Cobb County, Georgia, United States, located within the greater Atlanta metropolitan area. Known from its original settlement in the 1830s until 1887 as Big Shanty, it became Kennesaw under its ...

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, United States , Catchweight (157 lbs) bout. , - , Loss , align=center, 13–7 , Yemi Oduwole , Decision (unanimous) , NFC 114 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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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 ...

bout. , - , Loss , align=center, 13–7 , Brandon Longano , Submission , NFC 96 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:05 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–6 , Jordan Rinaldi , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Legacy FC 47 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:31 ,

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Ran Weathers ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck'' is the twelfth installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. The UFC and Spike TV held open tryouts on April 1, 2010, in Charlot ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Wild Bill's Fight Night 58 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States ,

Lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight boxe ...

debut. , - , Win , align=center, 10–5 , Ururahy Rodrigues , TKO (knee) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:34 ,

, United States , Catchweight (160 lbs) bout. , - , Loss , align=center, 9–5 , Ronnie Rogers , Decision (split) , Wild Bill's Fight Night 49 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–4 ,

, KO (punches) , UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:34 ,

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–3 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Shields vs. Ellenberger , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:12 ,

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Las Vegas 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 ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Aric Nelson , TKO (punches) , Wild Bill's Fight Night 28 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:51 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Travis Adams , TKO (punches) , Clash of the Kings , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:15 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–2 , Matt Traylor , TKO (punches) , KoKings , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:08 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Shawn Snow , Submission (armbar) , Fight Party: Revenge , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:30 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Sean Dyer , TKO (punches) , Bullet Fight Gear: Last Man Standing , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:01 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Blake Bowman , Submission , ISCF: Gladiator X , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:01 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 3–1 , Jeremy Germenis , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Bullet Fight Gear: Showdown , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:17 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Josh Rutgers , Submission (punches) , Wild Bill's Fight Night 13 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:37 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Will Baggett , TKO (punches) , ISCF: Head-On Collision , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:55 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Joshua Fountain , Submission , Wild Bill's Fight Night 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:43 ,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, United States ,

References

External links

*
Official UFC Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harvison, Clay American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Living people 1980 births Sportspeople from Marietta, Georgia Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American Muay Thai practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu