Michael Andrew "Drewbie" McFedries (born July 27, 1978) is an American retired

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 ...

. McFedries formerly 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 ...

Titan FC Titan Fighting Championship (Titan FC) is an American mixed martial arts promotion based out of Pompano Beach, Florida. Their shows were originally run in and near Kansas City and have since expanded to include venues all over North America and e ...

and

Shooto Shooto is a combat sport and mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the ''Shooto Association'' and the ''International Shooto Commission''. Shooto was originally formed in 1985, first as a particular fighting system and then in 198 ...

Background

McFedries was born in Ames, Iowa and raised in

Bettendorf, Iowa Bettendorf is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States. It is the 15th largest city of Iowa and the third-largest city in the "Quad Cities". It is part of the Davenport– Moline– Rock Island, IA- IL Metropolitan Statistical Area. The popu ...

. His mother, Agnes, battled drug addiction and was also involved in prostitution, forcing the young McFedries to be self-reliant from a young age while also supporting his siblings and often getting into fights. In his freshman year at

Bettendorf High School Bettendorf High School (BHS) is a public four-year comprehensive high school located in Bettendorf, Iowa and is part of the Bettendorf Community School District. History Early history Prior to its opening in 1951, there was no high school in ...

, McFedries was expelled and was on the verge of dropping out of school altogether but was noticed by his gym teacher, and recruited by the head football coach at the school. Both were great mentors to the young McFedries, who would letter in football, track, soccer, and baseball after not competing in organized sports until his sophomore year. After graduating, he attended

Iowa Central Community College Iowa Central Community College is a public community college in Fort Dodge, Iowa, with satellite campuses in Webster City and Storm Lake. History The college was organized in 1966 on the foundation of three area junior colleges which had been ...

where he earned an

associate's degree An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree. The fi ...

and then St. Ambrose University to study sports management but did not graduate. After college, McFedries worked as a bouncer and fought in amateur

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 ...

fights at a local bar, before being invited by local legendary fighter and coach

Pat Miletich Patrick Jay Miletich (; born March 9, 1966) is a retired American mixed martial artist and former sports commentator. He is known for his fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he became the first UFC Welterweight Champion and UFC ...

, to train at

Miletich Fighting Systems Miletich Fighting Systems (MFS) was a mixed martial arts (MMA) training organization. It was recognized as an excellent training camp. It has been the training camp for fighters such as Matt Hughes, Tim Sylvia, Jens Pulver, Robbie Lawler, a ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

McFedries made his professional debut in 2001 against future UFC veteran

Nate Quarry Nathan Parker "Nate" Quarry (born March 19, 1972) is a retired American mixed martial arts fighter who is most notable for his appearance in '' The Ultimate Fighter'', a reality show from the Ultimate Fighting Championship, as well as co-hostin ...

and lost by TKO due to punches. In his next bout, McFedries faced current UFC fighter

Claude Patrick Claude Patrick (born June 14, 1980) is a Canadians, Canadian retired mixed martial artist. Patrick most recently competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), fighting in their welterweight (MMA), Welterweight division. Early life Claude ...

and won via unanimous decision. McFedries then put together his fourth consecutive win before making his UFC debut.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

With a 4-1 professional record, McFedries made his UFC debut and

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 at

UFC 65 ''UFC 65: Bad Intentions'' was a mixed martial arts competition held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on November 18, 2006 at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California – the UFC’s first show at this venue. It was broadcast live on pay-p ...

against Italian

Alessio Sakara Alessio Sakara (born September 2, 1981) is an Italian professional mixed martial artist, former professional boxer and Sanshou kickboxer, currently competing in the Light Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2002, Sakara has al ...

on November 11, 2006 in

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

. Despite being a heavy underdog, McFedries defeated Sakara via TKO in a highly-entertaining fight as the two exchanged huge punches. In his next bout at

UFC 68 ''UFC 68: The Uprising'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on March 3, 2007, at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. Background ''UFC 68'' was the first UFC event held in the state of Ohio, and coincid ...

, McFedries fought against Danish fighter

Martin Kampmann Martin Kampmann Frederiksen (born April 17, 1982) is a retired Danish professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is a former Cage Warriors World Middleweight Champion. Background Originally from Aar ...

and lost via

arm-triangle choke Arm triangle choke, side choke, or head and arm choke are generic terms describing blood chokeholds in which the opponent is strangled in between their own shoulder and the practitioner's arm. This is as opposed to the regular triangle choke, whi ...

submission. McFedries' next fight was against Bulgarian Olympic wrestler

Jordan Radev Jordan Radev ( bg, Йордан Радев; born March 4, 1976) is a Bulgarian wrestler and professional mixed martial artist. He was the second Bulgarian mixed martial artist to fight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship in its middleweight di ...

at UFC Fight Night: Stout vs. Fisher. McFedries won with a highlight-reel knockout only 33 seconds into the fight and won "Knockout of the Night" honors. His next bout was against Canadian Patrick Côté. Days before Christmas and only a matter of weeks before the fight, McFedries' mother was murdered. McFedries elected to fight anyway but lost via TKO. In his next bout at The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs. Team Forrest Finale, McFedries was pitted against former King of the Cage Super Heavyweight Champion

Marvin Eastman Marvin Lee Eastman (born June 8, 1971) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. A professional MMA competitor from 2000 until 2013, he competed in K-1, the UFC, World Fighting Alliance, Maximum Fighting Champions ...

. McFedries won the fight via

knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

and was again awarded "Knockout of the Night" honors. McFedries then lost via

kimura Kimura (written: lit. "tree village") is the 17th most common Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese novelist *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese botanist *, Japanese idol and singer *, Japanese footballer *, Japanes ...

submission to

Mike Massenzio Mike Vito Massenzio (born November 1, 1982) is an American mixed martial artist who has competed as a Middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He wrestled in New Jersey and was a two-time high school state champion in 2000 (160 lb ...

at UFC Fight Night 15 and to

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

specialist

Thales Leites Thales Leites Lourenço (; born 6 September 1981) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist best known for competing in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Early career Leites made his ...

via

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 keikog ...

submission at

UFC 90 ''UFC 90: Silva vs. Côté'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on October 25, 2008, at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. Background The main event featured UFC Middleweigh ...

. In 2009, he returned with a TKO victory over Xavier Foupa-Pokam at

UFC 98 ''UFC 98: Evans vs. Machida'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on May 23, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background A title unification match between the Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir and U ...

, dominating Foupa-Pokam before the fight was stopped at only 37 seconds into the first round. After criticizing his team

, McFedries, who had felt that he had not been supported by MFS, learned that he had been kicked out of the camp at the post-fight press conference. McFedries then lost at the hands of

Tomasz Drwal Tomasz is a Polish given name, the equivalent of Thomas in English. Notable people with the given name include: *Tomasz Adamek (born 1976), Polish heavyweight boxer *Tomasz Arciszewski (1877–1955), Polish socialist politician and Prime Minis ...

via

submission at

UFC 103 ''UFC 103: Franklin vs. Belfort'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on September 19, 2009 in Dallas, Texas at the American Airlines Center. The event was broadcast on pay-per-view. Background This ...

. Following the loss McFedries was released from his contract. Only the last of McFedries' nine UFC fights got out of the first round, and he holds the record for the shortest average fight time in UFC history (for fighters with more than five UFC bouts) at two minutes and 20 seconds.

Post-UFC career

McFedries was expected to face former King of the Cage Middleweight Champion

Joey Villaseñor Joey Simon Villaseñor (born October 17, 1975) is an American former professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1999 until 2012, Villasenor competed for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, Strikeforce (mixed martial arts), St ...

on September 11, 2010 at

Shark Fights 13 Shark Fights was a mixed martial arts promotion based in Amarillo, Texas. It made its debut on October 24, 2008. On September 11, 2010 Shark Fights had its biggest card in Shark Fights history by having UFC veterans Jorge Masvidal, Keith Jardin ...

, but was replaced by

Danillo Villefort Danillo Villefort (born August 5, 1983) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. Villefort has fought for the UFC, WEC, IFL, World Series of Fighting, and Professional Fighters League fighting in their Middleweight division. Biograph ...

due to injury. McFedries returned to train with Miletich Fighting Systems. In his first post-UFC fight, McFedries faced Samoan Gary Tapusoa on January 29, 2011 at Titan Fighting Championships 16. He won the fight via TKO. McFedries then faced Garret Olson in a

catchweight A catchweight is a term used in combat sports, such as boxing or mixed martial arts, to describe a weight limit that does not adhere to the traditional limits for weight classes. In boxing, a catchweight is negotiated prior to weigh-ins, which are ...

bout of 196 lbs. on August 27, 2011 at ProElite 1. He got another TKO victory, in the second round. McFedries was scheduled to face

Zak Cummings Zacharry "Zak" Michael Cummings (born August 2, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist, who currently competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2007, he has also formerly comp ...

at Titan Fighting Championship 25 on September 25, 2012. However McFedries was forced to pull out of the bout due to injury and was replaced by

Tommy Speer Thomas Speer (born August 20, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2005 until 2013, he received national exposure on ''The Ultimate Fighter 6: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra'', fighting ...

. It was later announced that Titan Fighting Championship 25 would be postponed due to bad weather conditions. McFedries faced Jeremy Kimball at Paramount Prize Fighting 1 on January 25, 2013. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. McFedries returned to action after a two-year hiatus to fight Bill Hill at XFO 55 on April 25, 2015, and won less than a minute in the first round via knockout. After the fight McFedries said he plans on making another run at the UFC.

Personal life

On November 3, 2012 McFedries was stabbed in the upper-shoulder area of his back while working as a bouncer at a

Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and a ...

night club. McFedries stated in an interview with FightLockdown that if he were not doing mixed martial arts that he would like to have several children, spread his beliefs in Christianity, and possibly do rap music videos with the support of his girlfriend. McFedries is afflicted with

Crohn's disease Crohn's disease is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that may affect any segment of the gastrointestinal tract. Symptoms often include abdominal pain, diarrhea (which may be bloody if inflammation is severe), fever, abdominal distension ...

, being diagnosed with the illness around 2002, and has spoken in many interviews about his struggle with the disorder. It has not stopped him from competing in mixed martial arts, but he does believe it has a large effect on his digestive ability. He has a brother who is much younger, and two younger sisters.

Championships and achievements

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 ...

** Knockout of the Night (Two times) vs.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 12–7 , Tony Parker , TKO (submission to punches) , XFO 56 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:41 ,

Island Lake, Illinois Island Lake is a village in Lake and McHenry counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Per the 2020 census, the population was 8,051. The village surrounds Island Lake, a lake which contains a small island. History The village was incorporated on ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–7 , Bill Hill , KO (punches) , XFO 55 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:57 ,

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–7 ,

Jeremy Kimball Jeremy Kimball, (born March 1, 1991) is an American mixed martial arts fighter who formerly competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2010, Kimball has also formerly compete ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Fight to Win: Paramount Prize Fighting , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–6 , Garrett Olson , TKO (leg kick and punches) , ProElite 1: Arlovski vs. Lopez , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:04 ,

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–6 , Gary Tapusoa , TKO (punches) , Titan FC 16: Sylvia vs. Wagner , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 4:42 ,

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 8–6 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

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Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–5 , Xavier Foupa-Pokam , TKO (punches) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:37 ,

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 , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–5 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:18 ,

Rosemont, Illinois Rosemont is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Located immediately northwest of Chicago, as of the 2010 census it had a population of 4,202. The village was incorporated in 1956, though it had been settled long before that. Whi ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–4 ,

, Submission (kimura) , UFC Fight Night: Diaz vs. Neer , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:28 ,

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–3 ,

, TKO (punches) , The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:08 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–3 , Patrick Côté , TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Swick vs. Burkman , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:44 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 ,

, KO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Stout vs. Fisher , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:33 ,

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–2 ,

, Technical Submission (arm-triangle choke) ,

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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 , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 ,

, TKO (punches) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:07 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Brian Monahan , TKO (punches) , Extreme Challenge 71 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

Moline, Illinois Moline ( ) is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. With a population of 42,985 in 2020, it is the largest city in Rock Island County. Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline, Illinois, East M ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Steve Evan Dau , TKO (submission to punches) , Extreme Challenge 51 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:26 , St. Charles, Illinois, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Rafal Piszczek , TKO (punches) , Shooto: Midwest Fighting , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:37 ,

Hammond, Indiana Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area, and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. First settled in the mid-19th century, it is one of the oldest cities of northern Lake County. As of the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UCC 10: Battle for the Belts 2002 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Hull, Quebec Hull is the central business district and oldest neighbourhood of the city of Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the west bank of the Gatineau River and the north shore of the Ottawa River, directly opposite Ottawa. As part of the Canadia ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 ,

, TKO (exhaustion) , Extreme Challenge 43 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:03 ,

Orem, Utah Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the northern part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is approximately south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the principal cities of the Provo-Orem, Utah Me ...

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Notes and references

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McFedries, Drew 1978 births Living people Sportspeople from Ames, Iowa African-American mixed martial artists American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Iowa Middleweight mixed martial artists Light heavyweight mixed martial artists People from Bettendorf, Iowa Bettendorf High School alumni Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople