Minnesota Golden Gophers The Minnesota Golden Gophers (commonly shortened to Gophers) are the college sports teams of the University of Minnesota. The university fields a total of 25 (12 men's, 13 women's) teams in both men's and women's sports and competes in the Big T ...

Jacob Joseph Volkmann (born September 5, 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, incorpo ...

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. A professional MMA competitor since 2007, Volkmann has formerly competed for the UFC,

Bellator Bellator, warrior in Latin, may refer to: * Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States * Bishop Bellator of Archaeological site of Sbeitla, Sufetula (5th century) Taxonomy * Bellator (fish), ''Bellator'' (fish), a fis ...

, and the

World Series of Fighting The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) promo ...

Background

Volkmann was born in

Fergus Falls, Minnesota Fergus Falls is a city in and the county seat of Otter Tail County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,119 at the 2020 census. History The falls from which the city gets part of its name were discovered by Joe Whitford (a Scottis ...

and graduated from

Henning High School Henning High School was a public high school located in Henning, Illinois. History The town of Henning is located in eastern Illinois in central Vermilion County. U.S. Route 136 passes through Henning which sits west of Illinois Route 1. The C&E ...

. Volkmann wrestled for the Otter Tail Central Bulldogs and holds the schools all-time record for career wins and also won three state titles. Volkmann then attended

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, where he was a

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conferen ...

wrestling champion and a three time NCAA All-American. In 2001 as a freshman he finished fourth, then in 2003 as junior finished third (defeating future UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans), and then once again as a senior in 2004 finished fourth. After graduating from Minnesota, Volkmann attended the Northwestern Health and Science University in Bloomington, Minnesota where he earned his chiropractic doctorate and it was during this time that he also began competing in Greco-Roman wrestling at the senior level, and met UFC Lightweight Champion Sean Sherk through this program, who asked Volkmann to help train for a title fight. Volkmann later embarked on his own career in mixed martial arts.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Volkmann started his professional MMA career in 2007, primarily competing in Minnesota where he is a member of the

Minnesota Martial Arts Academy The Minnesota Martial Arts Academy is a martial arts training center in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. It was founded in 1992 by Greg Nelson, a former NCAA Division 1 wrestler at the University of Minnesota. History The Academy provides training ...

. At Bellator 7, Volkman made his lone

appearance by defeating WEC and TUF vet, Kevin Knabjian with a D'arce choke.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In August 2009, it was announced he would be making his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut at UFC 106 against Paulo Thiago. Volkmann lost the fight via unanimous decision. Volkmann lost his second UFC fight (after taking it on short notice) against Martin Kampmann at UFC 108 via first round submission due to a modified

guillotine choke The guillotine choke, also known as Mae Hadaka Jime (前裸絞, "front naked choke"; compare to a rear naked choke) in judo, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from in front of the opponent, often on the ground but can also be done while st ...

dubbed the "death choke." He received a third chance in the Octagon at UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Gomi against Ronys Torres, in which Volkmann moved down to

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 b ...

. Volkmann won the fight via split decision (28–29, 30–27, 30–27), earning his first UFC win. Volkmann was scheduled to face Paul Kelly on July 3, 2010 at UFC 116. However, the fight was moved on August 1, to the UFC on Versus: Jones vs. Matyushenko card, due to visa issues for Kelly. Volkmann defeated Kelly via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). On October 2, 2010, it was announced that Volkmann would fight former MFC lightweight champion, Antonio McKee, at UFC 125. Volkmann won via split decision. After his bout at UFC 125, Volkmann said that he wanted to fight U.S. President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

because he disagreed with his policies and asserting, "Someone needs to knock some sense into that idiot." That statement resulted in a visit from the U.S. Secret Service the following week. Volkmann has appeared on several national news shows for the comments, including

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ' ...

Inside Edition ''Inside Edition'' is an American news broadcasting newsmagazine program that is distributed in first-run syndication by CBS Media Ventures. Having premiered on January 9, 1989, it is the longest-running syndicated-newsmagazine program that is ...

, and the

Fox Business Network Fox Business (officially known as Fox Business Network, or FBN) is an American business news channel and website publication owned by the Fox News Media division of Fox Corporation. The channel broadcasts primarily from studios at 1211 Avenu ...

. Volkmann was also placed on administrative leave by White Bear Lake High School, where he is the assistant head coach of wrestling. Volkmann next fought Danny Castillo on August 14, 2011 at UFC on Versus 5. The contest was mostly a grappling affair with Volkmann, on more than one occasion, threatening with a D'arce choke in all three rounds. He won the fight via unanimous decision (29-28 on all cards). Volkmann was expected to face T. J. Grant on December 30, 2011 at UFC 141. However, Grant was forced from the bout with an injury and replaced by Efrain Escudero. Volkmann controlled throughout the fight, dominating Escudero on the ground for rounds one and two. Volkmann won the fight via unanimous decision. He again made waves calling out U.S. President

after the fight stating, "Obama needs a glassectomy...It's where they remove the belly button and put a piece of glass in there, so you can see what you're doing while your head's up your ass." The post-fight comments, again, got Volkmann placed on administrative leave by the White Bear Lake High School. Volkmann was defeated by Paul Sass via first round submission due to a triangle armbar on May 26, 2012 at UFC 146. Volkmann was expected to face Shane Roller on September 1, 2012 at UFC 151. However, after UFC 151 was cancelled, Volkmann/Roller was rescheduled and took place on October 5, 2012 at UFC on FX 5. Volkmann took Roller down early in the fight and quickly took his back, forcing him to submit to a rear-naked choke at only 2:38 of the first round. This was Volkmann's first stoppage win since being in the UFC. Volkmann faced promotional newcomer Bobby Green on February 2, 2013 at UFC 156. He lost the fight via submission in the third round. Following the loss, Volkmann was released from the promotion.

World Series of Fighting

A week after his UFC departure Volkmann was announced as the newest addition to the

ranks. Volkmann made his WSOF debut vs. Strikeforce vet Lyle Beerbohm at WSOF 3, on June 14. He won via unanimous decision. After the fight it emerged that Volkmann had suffered a seizure and blacked out before weigh-ins after becoming dehydrated from the weight-cut.

Other promotions

Volkmann defeated Danny White in a 165lb Catchweight bout at Dakota FC 18: Spring Brawl on April 26, 2014. He then faced UFC veteran T. J. O'Brien at Pinnacle Combat 16 on May 9, 2014. Volkmann lost the fight via guillotine choke. He was set to make his debut in

Maximum Fighting Championship Maximum Fighting Championship is a Canadian mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Edmonton, Alberta. MFC’s former home, in Canada, is the River Cree Resort and Casino in Enoch, Alberta, located just outside Edmonton, Alberta, but has also ...

against Andrew McInnes on October 3, 2014 at MFC 41. However, this fight never came to fruition and Volkmann didn't fight for the company.

Personal life

Volkmann has three children. He is divorced. Volkmann is also a chiropractor and runs a clinic.

Championships and awards

Grappling

International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

**World Champion (2008) **USA Grappling Midwest Regional Champion (2008) **USA Grappling National Champion (2008) **USA Grappling Runner Up (2009) (2010)

Collegiate wrestling

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athlete, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic sports, ...

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...

All-American out of

(2001), (2003), (2004) **

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

Division I 174 1b - 4th place out of

(2001) **

Division I 165 1b - 3rd place out of

(2003) **

Division I 165 1b - 4th place out of

(2004)

Mixed martial arts

*Victory Fighting Championship **VFC Welterweight Championship (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

*
Official UFC Profile
*MMA Website , https://web.archive.org/web/20120531113218/http://www.jacobvolkmann.net/ * {{DEFAULTSORT:Volkmann, Jacob 1980 births American male mixed martial artists Living people Mixed martial artists from Minnesota Lightweight mixed martial artists Welterweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling People from Fergus Falls, Minnesota American male sport wrestlers Minnesota Golden Gophers wrestlers Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters