Jean-Claude Leuyer (born November 30, 1970), or simply Jean Claude, is an American former

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...

kickboxer Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

. He was a six-time world champion, holding titles in four different organizations, and competing in sixteen world title fights. He holds notable wins over

Rob Kaman Rob "The Dutchman" Kaman (born 5 June 1960) is a Dutch retired 9-time kickboxing and Muay Thai world champion. He is often called "Mr. Low Kick" because of his feared low kicks which he used to set up his devastating offensive attacks. Biograp ...

and

Tomasz Kucharzewski Tomasz Kucharzewski (August 13, 1968 – March 8, 2008) was a Polish-Canadian martial artist. Kucharzewski initially gained fame while fighting competitively in Kyokushin kaikan and Shidōkan styles of karate. Th ...

K-1 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...

Career

Early career

Although a

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

fighter by trade, Leuyer first began practicing martial arts at the age of five with Shotokan

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 ...

. He came to prominence in 1994 when he won the USMTA Heavyweight Championship. He then won the

ISKA The ISKA (originally International Sport Karate Association, later also called the International Sport Kickboxing Association) is one of the major international bodies regulating sport karate and kickboxing matches, and is based in the United ...

Intercontinental Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship by defeating Hirawi Te Rangi of New Zealand on March 13, 1994. Later in his career, he also held the ISKA World Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship and ISKA World Super Heavyweight Muay Thai Championship.

Invitation to K-1

In 1996, Leuyer was invited to take part in the K-1 World Grand Prix, the annual gathering of the world's best heavyweight kickboxers in Japan. Billed simply as "Jean Claude" in the promotion, he made his debut against Peter Aerts at the ''

K-1 Grand Prix '96 Opening Battle This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

'' in Yokohama on March 10, 1996. Towards the end of the first round, Aerts violently knocked Leuyer out with a right high kick. He returned at the ''

K-1 Grand Prix '96 ''K-1 Grand Prix '96'' was a kickboxing event promoted by the K-1 organization. It was the fourth K-1 World Grand Prix final involving eight of the world's best heavyweight fighters (+95 kg/209 lbs), with all bouts fought under K-1 Rul ...

'' in a superfight against Aerts' teammate

Rene Rooze Rene Rooze (born 26 January 1969) is a Dutch former kickboxer and mixed martial artist. Biography and career As a member of Team Aerts, he was an active fighter competing in mainly European events and accumulating (as of 2004) a kickboxing rec ...

on May 6, 1996. Rooze knocked Leuyer down little over a minute into the fight before knocking him out with a flurry of punches seconds later. His third fight in

came against yet another Dutchman, the legendary

, at ''

K-1 Hercules '96 This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

'' on December 12, 1996 in Nagoya. Kaman dominated the fight until the fifth round, wherein he suffered a cut shin. Leuyer was awarded a technical knockout win. Following this, he picked up another win over Frenchman Stephane Reveillon when he stopped him in round three at ''

K-1 Kings '97 This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Korakuen Hall, Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events ...

'' on March 3, 1997 in Yokohama. He then rematched Peter Aerts at ''

K-1 Braves '97 This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

'' on April 29, 1997. He was unable to take revenge, however, and was stopped in the second round. After defeating Achille Roger on May 31, 1997 in San Jose, California, Leuyer returned to Japan to fight for the

WKBA WKBA (1550 kHz, "Classic Country 93.1") is a broadcast radio station licensed to Vinton, Virginia, serving Roanoke and the Roanoke Valley in Virginia. WKBA is owned and operated by Tinker Creek Broadcasters, Inc. It mostly simulcasts WBRF in ...

World Super Heavyweight Championship against Ray Sefo at ''

K-1 Dream '97 This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

'' on July 20, 1997. Although good friends, they put on one of the most brutal fights in K-1 history, with Sefo taking the unanimous decision after seven rounds. He was invited back to the K-1 World GP again in 1997, but once again made it no further than the opening round as he was

knocked out 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 ...

in round two by Australia's

Sam Greco Salvatore "Sam" Greco (born 3 May 1967) is an Australian retired full contact karateka, heavyweight K-1 kickboxer, mixed martial artist. He was the 1994 Karate World Cup champion and holds notable kickboxing victories over Branko Cikatic, Ern ...

at the ''

K-1 Grand Prix '97 1st Round This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

'' on September 7, 1997. In October 1997, he met Ray Sefo in a rematch only to suffer the same fate once more, losing a decision.

Later career

On May 24, 1998, Leuyer fought Maurice Smith for the Draka World Super Heavyweight Championship in Los Angeles, California, but the bout was ruled a draw. After this, he was invited to the ''

K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Korakuen Hall, Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events ...

'' in Las Vegas, Nevada on August 7, 1998. He defeated karateka

by TKO in the quarter-finals, only to be KO'd by Curtis Shuster in the semis. He made a defence of his

World Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship against Andrei Dudko on May 15, 2000 in San Jose, California, stopping the challenger with a low kick in the fifth round. As the fight was entertaining and evenly-matched, a rematch was scheduled to take place in Moscow, Russia. Leuyer refused, however, and was stripped of his title. On September 15, 2000, he was eliminated at the quarter-final stage of the ''

K-1 USA Championships 2000 This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

'' in Las Vegas, when he was TKO'd by Paul Lalonde in round two. Leuyer returned at the ''

K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Preliminary USA This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Korakuen Hall, Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events ...

'' on May 5, 2001, but fared no better and was beaten on decision by Michael McDonald at the opening stage once again. Leuyer won back his ISKA World Super Heavyweight Freestyle title on September 29, 2001 in San Jose when he defeated Jeff Ford by TKO in round eight. His last foray into

came the following year on May 3 at the '' K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Preliminary USA'' in Las Vegas where he was defeated via unanimous decision by Dewey Cooper in the quarter-finals.

Personal life

Since his retirement from fighting, Leuyer has appeared in a number of films as an actor and stunt man, including Jet Li's ''

Fearless Fearless or The Fearless may refer to: Psychology * Lack of fear * Courage or bravery Film, television and audio Film * ''Fearless'' (1978 film), an Italian film directed by Stelvio Massi * ''Fearless'' (1993 film), an American drama directed ...

''.Jean Claude Leuyer's IMDb profile
/ref> He is also a trainer at the American Kickboxing Academy.

Titles

*IFCA **IFCA Muay Thai World Championship * International Sport Karate Association **ISKA Intercontinental Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship **ISKA World Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship **ISKA World Super Heavyweight Muay Thai Championship *USHE **USHE Heavyweight Championship *United States Muay Thai Association **USMTA Heavyweight Muay Thai Championship

Kickboxing record

, - , , Loss ,

Dewey Cooper Dewey Cooper (born November 10, 1974) is an American former kickboxer and boxer who competed in the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. After becoming a two-time world champion in 2000 by taking the WKC heavyweight and WKF cruiserweight ti ...

, K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Preliminary USA , Las Vegas, Nevada, USA , Decision (unanimous) , align="center", 3 , align="center", 3:00 , 2002 K-1 USA Grand Prix quarter-final. , - , , Win , Jeff Ford ,

Strikeforce Strike Force may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * ''Strike Force'' (video game), a 1991 arcade game *'' Commandos: Strike Force'', a 2006 video game *'' Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce'', a 2009 video game *''Marvel Strike Force'', ...

San Jose, California, USA San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

, TKO (corner stoppage) , align="center", 8 , align="center", - , Wins

World Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship. , - , , Loss , Michael McDonald ,

, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA , Decision (split) , align="center", 3 , align="center", 3:00 , 2001 K-1 USA Grand Prix quarter-final. , - , , Loss , Paul Lalonde ,

, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA , TKO , align="center", 2 , align="center", 2:31 , 2000 K-1 USA Grand Prix quarter-final. , - , , Win , Andrei Dudko ,

, KO (low kick) , align="center", 5 , align="center", - , Defends

World Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship. , - , , Loss ,

Cyril Abidi Cyril Abidi (born February 25, 1976), nicknamed "The Marseille Bad Boy", is a French former heavyweight kickboxer and mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1998 until 2007, he is perhaps best remembered for his upset first-round k ...

, , Marseilles, France , KO , align="center", - , align="center", - , , - , , Loss , Curtis Shuster ,

, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA , KO (punch) , align="center", 2 , align="center", 2:29 , 1998 K-1 USA Grand Prix semi-final. , - , , Win ,

, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA , TKO (corner stoppage) , align="center", 1 , align="center", 3:00 , 1998 K-1 USA Grand Prix quarter-final. , - , , Draw , Maurice Smith , Draka V , Los Angeles, California, USA , Decision draw , align="center", - , align="center", - , For Draka World Super Heavyweight Championship. , - , , Loss , Ray Sefo , , , Decision , align="center", 5 , align="center", 3:00 , , - , , Loss ,

, Osaka, Japan , KO (right hook) , align="center", 2 , align="center", 1:55 , 1997 K-1 World Grand Prix opening round. , - , , Loss , Ray Sefo ,

, Nagoya, Japan , Decision (unanimous) , align="center", 7 , align="center", 3:00 , For

World Super Heavyweight Championship. , - , , Win , Achille Roger , ,

, , align="center", - , align="center", - , , - , , Loss , Peter Aerts ,

Fukuoka, Japan is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...

, TKO (referee stoppage) , align="center", 2 , align="center", 2:08 , , - , , Win , Stephane Reveillon ,

, Yokohama, Japan , KO (low kicks) , align="center", 3 , align="center", 2:06 , , - , , Win ,

, Nagoya, Japan , TKO (shin injury) , align="center", 5 , align="center", 0:43 , , - , , Loss ,

, Yokohama, Japan , KO (punches) , align="center", 1 , align="center", 1:50 , , - , , Loss , Peter Aerts ,

, Yokohama, Japan , KO (right high kick) , align="center", 1 , align="center", 2:43 , 1996 K-1 World Grand Prix opening round. , - , , Win , Hirawi Te Rangi , ,

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, , align="center", 2 , align="center", - , Wins

Intercontinental Super Heavyweight Freestyle Championship. , - , , Win , Gerold Curray , , Phoenix, Arizona, USA , TKO , align="center", 2 , align="center", - , Defends USMTA Heavyweight Championship. , - , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'':

References

External links

Official K-1 Profile

Jean Claude Leuyer
at k-1sport.de * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leuyer, Jean-Claude 1970 births Living people American male kickboxers Kickboxers from Arizona Kickboxers from California Heavyweight kickboxers American Muay Thai practitioners Sportspeople from Phoenix, Arizona Sportspeople from San Jose, California American male actors American stunt performers