Gunnar Lúðvík Nelson (born 28 July 1988) is an Icelandic 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 ...

, currently competing 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 ...

. He is a black belt in

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 ...

, which was awarded by

Renzo Gracie Renzo Gracie (; born March 11, 1967) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner. A member of the Gracie family of Brazil, Renzo is a 7th Degree Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Carlos Gracie Jr. He is the so ...

after impressive results at the 2009

IBJJF The International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) is a for-profit company that hosts several of the biggest Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) tournaments in the world, including the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, World No-Gi Championship, Pan Jiu ...

Pan-Ams and the 2009 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship. Nelson is a member of Mjölnir gym in Iceland, and SBG Ireland.

Background

Early life

Gunnar was born on 28 July 1988, in

Akureyri Akureyri (, locally ) is a town in northern Iceland. It is Iceland's fifth-largest municipality, after Reykjavík, Hafnarfjörður, Reykjanesbær and Kópavogur, and the largest town outside Iceland's more populated southwest corner. Nicknamed ...

in the north side of Iceland but has lived in

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

, the capital of Iceland, almost all his life from early childhood. He played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

and

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

in his childhood years. At the age of 13, he started training in

Gōjū-ryū , Japanese for "hard-soft style", is one of the main traditional Okinawan styles of karate, featuring a combination of hard and soft techniques. Both principles, hard and soft, come from the famous martial arts book used by Okinawan masters dur ...

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 ...

and won the Icelandic Juvenile

Kumite Kumite ( ja, 組手, literally "grappling hands") is one of the three main sections of karate training, along with kata and kihon. Kumite is the part of karate in which a person trains against an adversary. Kumite can be used to develop a partic ...

Championship title in 2003, and again in 2004 and 2005. He took home medals in every karate tournament he participated in from 2003 to 2005. In 2005, he was chosen as Iceland's most promising up-and-coming karate talent of that year, when he was just 16. However, he gave up karate to train in

and

grappling Grappling, in hand-to-hand combat, describes sports that consist of gripping or seizing the opponent. Grappling is used at close range to gain a physical advantage over an opponent, either by imposing a position or causing injury. Grappling i ...

at age 17. Gunnar's father, Haraldur Dean Nelson (aka Halli Nelson), is of Anglo-American and Icelandic descent. He is also Gunnar's manager. Gunnar's mother, Guðrún Hulda Gunnarsdóttir Nelson, is Icelandic. Gunnar has one sibling, a sister named María Dögg Nelson, born in 1992 in Reykjavík.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Gunnar began grappling in 2006, receiving his

(BJJ) blue belt from Matt Thornton of Straight Blast Gym International. From the age of 17, he continued his tutelage primarily under John Kavanagh, one of Thornton's students. Gunnar first met Kavanagh during one of his BJJ seminars at Mjolnir, and the SBG Ireland owner would remain his head coach until this day. By 2008, Gunnar had already progressed far enough for Kavanagh to award him his brown belt, but with Kavanagh not being a black belt for more than six years at the time, he was unable to award Gunnar his own black belt under

rules. Gunnar subsequently spent a period at

Renzo Gracie Academy Renzo Gracie Academy is a martial arts school headed by Renzo Gracie, located in Midtown Manhattan. Overview Renzo Gracie founded the academy in 1996. It was originally above a methadone clinic before it moved to its current location at 224 Wes ...

in New York to advance rank to black belt. Shortly after his arrival, he had competed for their team in various competitions, winning a silver medal in the 2009

Mundials The World IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship (commonly known as the Worlds or Mundials) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament held once every year by the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation. It is widely considered to be the most important and ...

brown belt category. He also won gold at the 2009

Pan American Championship A Pan American Championship is a top level international sports competition between athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs in the Americas. Typically these championships are recurring, the most ...

(Gi), along with gold and silver (open class) in the 2009

(No-Gi). At the 2009 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship, Gunnar took 4th place in the absolute category where he defeated the much heavier and touted BJJ Black Belts

Jeff Monson Oregon State Beavers Jeffrey William Monson (born January 18, 1971) is an American-Russian mixed martial artist, boxer, and submission grappler who competes primarily in the Heavyweight division. A professional competitor ...

and

David Avellan David Avellan is an American grappler and professional mixed martial artist who has fought for World Extreme Cagefighting and Bodog Fight promotions. Past opponents include French journeyman Antony Rea and UFC contender Aaron Simpson. ...

.Absolute bronze « GRACIEMAG at the ADCC
. Graciemagbarcelona2009.wordpress.com (2009-09-27). Retrieved on 2012-02-26.

Gracie Gracie may refer to: Names * Gracie (name), a given name and a family name (includes a list of people with that name) * Gracie family, a Brazilian family known for their practice and development of martial arts * Hurricane Gracie, a 1959 Atlantic ...

had already seen enough, and awarded him his black belt after less than a year with his academy.
In 2011, Gunnar was again offered a place in the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship and had a good run (though not bringing home any medals), defeating the then present and twofold European Champion and multiple Finnish champion Marko Helen and the Brazilian and American champion and former World Champion Bruno Frazzato. Today, Gunnar is an instructor in his home club Mjolnir. He spends his time between there, SBG Ireland, Renzo Gracie Academy, and also SBG Mainline in Manchester.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

In May 2007, Gunnar fought 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 ...

for the first time, in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

, Denmark. The fight was against Danish fighter John Olesen. The judges ruled the bout a draw. Gunnar won five more fights in the 16 months following his debut, in Ireland, the United Kingdom and Denmark, before taking a break from the sport for almost two years. He returned at '' BAMMA 2: Roundhouses at the Roundhouse'' in February 2010 and defeated opponent Sam Elsdon via submission in the first round. He secured another first round victory in his next fight against Danny Mitchell at

Cage Contender Cage Contender is a European mixed martial arts promotion owned and operated by Belfast based Ferguson Sports Group LTD. History The creation of Irish sports promoter John Ferguson, Cage Contender began as a knockout style tournament to be ...

6 in Manchester, England before returning to

BAMMA BAMMA (British Association of Mixed Martial Arts) was a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United Kingdom. It premiered on June 27, 2009, and was shown on the television channel Bravo. BAMMA events were shown live on ITV4 in the UK and Ire ...

later that year. His next appearance was at '' BAMMA 4: Reid vs. Watson'' in September 2010 where he faced previously unbeaten British prospect Eugene Fadiora and won by submission in the first round. In February 2012, Gunnar returned to MMA with a first round armbar submission win over Ukrainian fighter Alexander Butenko at

12 in Dublin Ireland. In late 2012 Gunnar signed a multi-fight agreement with the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Gunnar signed a multifight contract with 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 ...

in July 2012. He's the first fighter from Iceland to fight for the company. Gunnar was expected to make his promotional debut against

Pascal Krauss Pascal "Panzer" Krauss (born April 19, 1987) is a retired German mixed martial artist who competed in the welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). His German nickname translates to 'tank' in English. Early life and educ ...

on September 29, 2012 at UFC on Fuel TV: Struve vs. Miocic. However, Krauss was forced out of the bout with an injury (

Rich Attonito Rich Attonito (born June 16, 1977) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional from 2004 until 2011, he fought in the UFC, Cage Warriors, King of the Cage, and was contestant on the 11th season of ''The Ultimate Fighter''. Ba ...

was shortly linked to fighting Gunnar but he had weight concerns and also pulled out) and Gunnar was expected to face

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 ...

at 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 175 lb, but his opponent could not make the required weight. The fight was contested at 183 lbs (Gunnar weighed in at 175 lbs). Gunnar submitted Johnson via rear-naked choke at the 3:34 mark of the first round. Gunnar was expected to face Justin Edwards on February 16, 2013 at UFC on Fuel TV: Barão vs. McDonald. However, Edwards was forced to pull out of the bout citing an injury, and was replaced by returning veteran

Jorge Santiago Jorge Santiago Rodrigues (; born October 9, 1980) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist. He was the first Sengoku Middleweight Champion and is the former Strikeforce Middleweight Grand Prix Champion. He has also competed for the UFC, King ...

. Gunnar won the fight by unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, and 30–27). Gunnar was expected to face Mike Pyle on May 25, 2013 at

UFC 160 ''UFC 160: Velasquez vs. Bigfoot 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held on May 25, 2013, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The main event was a rematch between former UFC Heavyweight Champion Cain Velasquez and Ant� ...

. However, Gunnar pulled out of the bout citing an injury and was replaced by

Rick Story Rick Thomas Story (born August 28, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional from 2007-2018, he last competed for the Professional Fighters League, but is better known for his 19-fight tenure with the UFC. Background Story ...

. A year later Gunnar returned to the UFC and faced

Omari Akhmedov Omari Akhmedov (born October 12, 1987) is a Russian professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division of Professional Fighters League (PFL). He previously fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Ba ...

on March 8, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 37. Gunnar won the fight via submission in the first round. The win also earned him his first ''Performance of the Night'' bonus award. Gunnar was expected to face

Ryan LaFlare Ryan LaFlare (born October 1, 1983) is a retired American mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC's Welterweight (MMA), Welterweight division. Background LaFlare was born and raised in Lindenhurst, N ...

on July 19, 2014 at

UFC Fight Night 46 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 ...

. LaFlare suffered an injury and was replaced by

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 ...

. Gunnar won the fight via second round rear-naked choke. The victory secured his second ''Performance of the Night'' bonus award. Gunnar next faced

on October 4, 2014 in the main event at

UFC Fight Night 53 ''UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Story'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 53'') was a mixed martial arts event held on October 4, 2014, at Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. Background This event was the third event that the UFC hosted in S ...

. Gunnar lost the fight via split decision. Gunnar was expected to face

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 ...

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, Hathaway pulled out of the bout on June 23 citing injury, and was replaced by

Brandon Thatch Brandon Michael Mathew Thatch (born July 11, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Thatch was adopted at age five by his m ...

. Gunnar won the fight by submission due to a rear naked choke in round one after dropping Thatch with a left-right hand combo. Gunnar was briefly linked to a fight with

Demian Maia Demian Maia (born 6 November 1977) is a Brazilian professional submission grappler and mixed martial artist. He competed in both the Welterweight and Middleweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Maia is regarded as one ...

on October 24, 2015 at

UFC Fight Night 76 ''UFC Fight Night: Holohan vs. Smolka'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 76'') was a mixed martial arts event held on October 24, 2015, at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. Background The event was the third that the organization has hosted in Dublin, ...

, but the bout did not materialize for that event as Maia was sidelined with a

staph infection A staphylococcal infection or staph infection is an infection caused by members of the ''Staphylococcus'' genus of bacteria. These bacteria commonly inhabit the skin and nose where they are innocuous, but may enter the body through cuts or abrasio ...

on his left leg. The bout eventually took place on December 12, 2015 at

UFC 194 ''UFC 194: Aldo vs. McGregor'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 12, 2015 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was originally scheduled to take place on Dece ...

. Gunnar lost the one-sided fight via unanimous decision. Gunnar faced

Albert Tumenov Albert Khuseinovich Tumenov (russian: Альберт Туменов; krc, Альберт Туменланы; born December 26, 1991) is a Russian professional mixed martial artist and former amateur boxer. Tumenov competes in the welterweight di ...

on May 8, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 87 ''UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Arlovski'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 87'') was a mixed martial arts event held on May 8, 2016, at the Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Background The event was the first that the organization hosted ...

. He won the fight via submission in the second round, and earned his third Performance of the Night bonus. Gunnar was expected to face

Dong Hyun Kim Kim Dong-hyun ( ko, 김동현, 金東炫; born November 17, 1981), anglicized as Dong Hyun Kim, is a retired South Korean mixed martial artist who most notably fought in the UFC's welterweight division. He was signed by the UFC after fighting ...

on November 19, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 99 ''UFC Fight Night: Mousasi vs. Hall 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 99'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on 19 November 2016 at The SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland Backgr ...

. However, on October 21, it was announced that Gunnar had pulled out due to an injury and the fight was off. Kim was rescheduled to face

Tarec Saffiedine Tarec Robert Saffiedine (born 6 September 1986) is a Belgian former professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional MMA competitor since 2007, Saffiedine has also f ...

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 ...

. Gunnar faced

Alan Jouban Alan Michael Joubanhttp://boxing.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/boxingnvgov/content/results/2016_Results/07-07-16MMA.pdf (born November 25, 1982) is an American retired professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division. A profess ...

on March 18, 2017 at

UFC Fight Night 107 ''UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 107'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 18, 2017, at The O2 Arena in London, England. Background This event wa ...

. After rocking Jouban with a punch, Gunnar secured a guillotine choke to win by submission in the second round. He was awarded a ''Performance of the Night'' bonus. Gunnar faced

Santiago Ponzinibbio Santiago Ponzinibbio (born September 26, 1986) is an Argentine mixed martial artist competing as a Welterweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background He was born in Argentina to parents of Italian heritage, with paternal grandpa ...

on July 16, 2017 at

UFC Fight Night 113 ''UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Ponzinibbio'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 113'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on July 16, 2017 at The SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. Background The event w ...

. He lost the fight by knockout in the first round. At the post-fight press conference, Gunnar claimed that Ponzinibbio poked him in the eye during one of the earlier exchange and caused him see double: "And I really should have said something because I was seeing double for the rest of the fight. He caught me with a shot that I didn’t really see." Ponzinibbio dismissed Gunnar's claim and stated, "I went there to knock him out and thank God it went as expected, I won by knockout. If (the eye poke) happened, of course it wasn’t intentional, but I watched the video again and didn’t see it." After the fight, Gunnar appealed his loss, as the referee had failed to stop the fight due to eye pokes under the Unified Rules of MMA; his appeal was denied by UFC. Gunnar was expected to face

Neil Magny Aoutneil "Neil" Jacques Magny (born August 3, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Welterweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional MMA competitor since 2010, Magny ...

on May 27, 2018 at

UFC Fight Night 130 ''UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Till'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 130'' or ''UFC Liverpool'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the UFC that was held on May 27, 2018, at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England. Background The event ...

. However, it was reported on April 28, 2018 that he was pulled from the event due to knee injury. Gunnar faced

Alex Oliveira Alex de Oliveira (born February 21, 1988) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Born and raised in Três Rios, Rio de Janeiro, Oliveira ...

on December 8, 2018 at

UFC 231 ''UFC 231: Holloway vs. Ortega'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on December 8, 2018 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Background A UFC Featherweight Championship bout between M ...

. He won the fight via a rear-naked choke after opening a brutal cut with an elbow in round two. Gunnar faced

Leon Edwards Leon Aaron Edwards (born 25 August 1991) is an English professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Welterweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Welterweight Champion. A profe ...

on March 16, 2019 at

UFC Fight Night 147 ''UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 147'' or ''UFC on ESPN+ 5'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 16, 2019 at The O2 Arena in London, England. ...

. He lost the fight via split decision. Gunnar was expected to face Thiago Alves on September 28, 2019 at

UFC Fight Night 160 ''UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Cannonier'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 160'' or ''UFC on ESPN+ 18'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 28, 2019 at Royal Arena in Cop ...

. However, Alves pulled out of the fight in mid-September due to undisclosed injury, and he was replaced by

Gilbert Burns Gilbert Alexander Pontes Burns (born 20 July 1986) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and submission grappler. He currently competes in the Welterweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As a grappler, Burns ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. As the first fight of his new multi-fight contract, Gunnar was expected to return from extended hiatus and face Cláudio Silva on March 19, 2022 at

UFC Fight Night 204 ''UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Aspinall'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 204'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 62'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on March 19, 2022 at The O2 Arena in Lo ...

. However, Silva pulled out in early March due to a knee injury and he was replaced by

Takashi Sato is a Japanese mixed martial artist. A professional since 2013, he currently competes in the Welterweight (MMA), Welterweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Early life Born to a Japanese father and Taiwanese mother, Sato ...

. Gunnar won the fight via unanimous decision.

View on mixed martial arts practices

Weight cutting

Throughout his career, Gunnar has never engaged in extensive

weight cutting Weight cutting is the practice of fast weight loss prior to a sporting competition. It most frequently happens in order to qualify for a lower weight class (usually in combat sports or rowing, where weight is a significant advantage) or in sports ...

. His training weight is around 175–176 pounds, necessitating only a 5–6 pound weight cut. He has been a big proponent of instituting strict rules against weight cutting, arguing that the practice is dangerous to the fighters and counterproductive to the UFC, as it leads to fights being cancelled or fought at

catch weight 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 ...

Wraps and gloves

Gunnar fights and spars without wraps on his hands and uses small gloves. He has said that he would fight without any gloves if it were possible. He maintains that minimal wraps and gloves give him a better feel of what he's doing with his hands. Wraps and gloves are intended to protect fighters' hands, but Gunnar notes that he has never broken his hands.

Personal life

Gunnar has two children, a son and a daughter. His son, Stígur, was born on May 30, 2014, whose mother is Icelandic artist, Auður Ómarsdóttir. Gunnar and his girlfriend Fransiska Bjork Hinriksdóttir have a daughter, who was born on October 31, 2019.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

(Four times) vs.

and

**Tied (with

Chris Lytle Chris Scott Lytle (born August 18, 1974) is a retired American mixed martial artist and boxer. An MMA professional from 1999 until 2011 and 20-fight veteran of the UFC, Lytle also fought in Pancrase, Cage Rage, and the WEC. He held the inaug ...

and

) for most submission wins in UFC Welterweight history (6) *Nordic MMA Awards - MMAviking.com **2012 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year **2015 Submission of the Year vs.

**2018 Submission of the Year vs.

Grappling

North American Grappling Association The North American Grappling Association (NAGA) is a grappling and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) promotion started in 1995. NAGA Submission Grappling and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournaments are held throughout North America and Europe. NAGA is the l ...

**NAGA Middleweight Champion (One time) *

International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation The International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation (IBJJF) is a for-profit company that hosts several of the biggest Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) tournaments in the world, including the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, World No-Gi Championship, Pan Ji ...

**2009

World Jiu-Jitsu Championship The World IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship (commonly known as the Worlds or Mundials) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament held once every year by the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation. It is widely considered to be the most important and ...

Middleweight Brown Belt Gi Silver Medalist **2009

Middleweight Brown Belt Gi Gold Medalist **2009

Middleweight Black Belt No Gi Gold Medalist **2009

Absolute Black Belt No Gi Silver Medalist

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 18–5–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Aspinall , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

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, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Cannonier , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Denmark , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–4–1 ,

, Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 17–3–1 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:17 ,

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 16–3–1 ,

, KO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Ponzinibbio , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:22 ,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Scotland , , - , Win , align=center, 16–2–1 ,

, Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:46 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 15–2–1 ,

, Submission (neck crank) , UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Arlovski , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:15 ,

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, Netherlands , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–2–1 ,

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, , align=center, 3 , 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 , , - , Win , align=center, 14–1–1 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:54 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–1–1 ,

, Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Story , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 13–0–1 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: McGregor vs. Brandão , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:48 ,

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, Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 12–0–1 ,

, Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Manuwa , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:36 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 11–0–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fuel TV: Barão vs. McDonald , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 10–0–1 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC on Fuel TV: Struve vs. Miocic , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:34 ,

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 9–0–1 , Alexander Butenko , Submission (armbar) , Cage Contender XII , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:21 ,

, Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0–1 , Eugene Fadiora , Submission (neck crank) ,

BAMMA 4 This is a listing of event held by the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts. BAMMA 1: The Fighting Premiership ''BAMMA 1'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts on 27 June 2009 at the Room ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:51 ,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0–1 , Danny Mitchell , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Cage Contender VI , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:51 ,

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0–1 , Sam Elsdon , Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

BAMMA 2 This is a listing of event held by the BAMMA, British Association of Mixed Martial Arts. BAMMA 1: The Fighting Premiership ''BAMMA 1'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the BAMMA, British Association of Mixed Martial Arts on 27 June 200 ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:30 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0–1 , Iran Mascarenhas , KO (punch) , Adrenaline 3: Evolution , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:22 ,

, Denmark , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0–1 , Barry Mairs , TKO (punches) , Angrrr Management 14: Ready for War , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:38 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0–1 , Niek Tromp , TKO (punches) , Cage of Truth 1: Battle on the Bay , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:50 ,

, Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0–1 , Adam Slawinski , TKO (punches) , Ultimate Fighting Revolution 10 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:30 ,

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

, Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0–1 , Driss El Bakara , Submission (armbar) , Cage Rage Contenders: Dynamite , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:46 ,

, Ireland , , - , Draw , align=center, 0–0–1 , John Olesen , Draw (split) , Adrenaline Sports tournament , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Denmark ,

Grappling record

{, class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:80%; text-align:left;" , - , colspan=8 style="text-align:center;" , 14 Matches, 8 Wins (4 Submissions), 6 Losses (1 Submission) , - ! Result ! style="text-align:center;", Rec. ! Opponent ! Method ! Event ! Division ! Date ! Location , - , Loss, , style="text-align:center;", 8-6, ,

Alexandre Ribeiro Alexandre Ribeiro (born January 20, 1981) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner, mixed martial artist and submission wrestler. He is a two-time World Black Belt Absolute (open weight) World J ...

, , Points , , rowspan=4, ADCC World Championship , , rowspan=2, Absolute, , rowspan=2, , , rowspan=4,

, - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 8-5, , Bruno Frazzato, , Points , - , Loss, , style="text-align:center;", 7-5, ,

André Galvão André Luiz Leite Galvão (; born September 29, 1982) is a Brazilian grappler and professional mixed martial artist. A 4th degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Fernando "Tererê" Augusto as well as a Judo black belt, Galvão is one of t ...

, , Points , , rowspan=2, -88 kg, , rowspan=2 , , - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 7-4, , Marko Helen, , Points , - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 6-4, , Bjarni Kristjánsson , , Submission (guillotine choke), , rowspan=2, Mjolnir Open , , rowspan=2, Absolute, , rowspan=2, , , rowspan=2,

, - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 5-4, , Brynjólfur Ingvarsson , , Submission (armbar) , - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 4-4, , Mike Russell, , Submission (rear naked choke) , , Health & Fitness Expo , , Superfight, , , ,

, - , Loss, , style="text-align:center;", 3-4, , Azunna Anyanwu, , Points, , rowspan=2, Grapplers Quest: Beast of the East , , rowspan=2, Absolute, , rowspan=2, , , rowspan=2,

Caldwell Caldwell may refer to: People * Caldwell (surname) * Caldwell (given name) * Caldwell First Nation, a federally recognized Indian band in southern Ontario, Canada Places Great Britain * Caldwell, Derbyshire, a hamlet * Caldwell, East ...

, NJ , - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 3-3, , Ronnie Mikvenski, , Points , - , Loss, , style="text-align:center;", 2-3, ,

Vinny Magalhães Vinicius "Vinny" de Magalhães (; born July 2, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Light heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2006, he was a finalist in '' The Ultimate Fighter: Team Nogueira vs. Team Mi ...

, , Points , , rowspan=5, ADCC World Championship , , rowspan=4, Absolute, , rowspan=4, , , rowspan=5,

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, - , Loss, , style="text-align:center;", 2-2, ,

, , Submission (kneebar) , - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 2-1, ,

, , Submission (rear naked choke) , - , Win, , style="text-align:center;", 1-1, ,

, , Points , - , Loss, , style="text-align:center;", 0-1, , James Brasco, , Referee Decision , , -88 kg, ,

Instructor lineage

Kano Jigoro Kano may refer to: Places *Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria *Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State **Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries **Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...

→

Tomita Tsunejiro is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Aijiro Tomita (1885–1954), Japanese politician *Hiroyuki Tomita (born 1980), Japanese gymnast *Isao Tomita (1932–2016), Japanese electronic music composer * Kazuo Tomita (born 19 ...

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Mitsuyo Maeda ,Virgílio, pp. 22–25 a Brazilian naturalized as Otávio Maeda (),Virgílio, p. 9 was a Japanese ''judōka'' (judo practitioner) and prizefighter in no holds barred competitions, also being one of the first documented mixed martial artists of t ...

→ Carlos Gracie, Sr. →

Helio Gracie Helio may refer to: * Helio AU-24 Stallion * Helio (wireless carrier), a defunct American wireless communications provider (2005–2010); originally a joint venture between SK Telecom and EarthLink, purchased by Virgin Mobile USA in 2008 * ...

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Rolls Gracie Rolls Gracie (; 1951–1982) was a Brazilian martial artist. He was a prominent member of the Gracie family known for their founding of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and considered by some the family's best ever fighter. He was teacher of Rickson Gracie, Ca ...

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Carlos Gracie, Jr. Carlos "Carlinhos" Gracie Jr. is a Brazilian 8th-degree coral belt Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and instructor. A member of the Gracie family, he is the son of Carlos Gracie, and first cousin to the Machado family brothers. Career ...

→

→ Gunnar Nelson

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Gunnar 1988 births Gunnar Nelson Gunnar Nelson Gunnar Nelson Gunnar Nelson Gunnar Nelson Mixed martial artists utilizing Gōjū-ryū Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Living people Gunnar Nelson Welterweight mixed martial artists Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters