Jorge Valente Gurgel (; ; born January 25, 1977) is a retired Brazilian

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 ...

who competed 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 from 2002 to 2014, Gurgel is best known as a contestant on

The Ultimate Fighter 2 ''The Ultimate Fighter 2'' was the second season of the mixed martial arts reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. The season featured a heavyweight and a welterweight division, with 9 fighters initially in each division. The UFC c ...

and for his career with 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 ...

and Strikeforce.

Background

Gurgel is originally from

Fortaleza Fortaleza (, locally , Portuguese for ''Fortress'') is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeastern Brazil. It belongs to the Metropolitan mesoregion of Fortaleza and microregion of Fortaleza. It is Brazil's 5th largest city and the t ...

, Brazil, where he earned 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 ...

under

Marcus Aurélio Marcus Aurélio Martins (; born 18 August 1973) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He formerly fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships and for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He currently does stunt and mo-cap work, after an MMA care ...

. Gurgel immigrated to the United States as an exchange student in high school. Remaining to attend

Wright State University Wright State University is a public research university in Fairborn, Ohio. Originally opened in 1964 as a branch campus of Miami University and Ohio State University, it became an independent institution in 1967 and was named in honor of aviation ...

he soon became an American citizen. While in school, Gurgel worked full-time teaching

evenings, waiting and busing tables late at night/early afternoons, and going to class in the morning. Since college, Gurgel has been training and teaching full-time.

Mixed martial arts career

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Gurgel starred in the second season of ''

The Ultimate Fighter ''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...

'' television series and was eliminated from the show in the fifth episode due to a loss to

Jason Von Flue Jason Lee Von Flue (born August 1, 1975) is a former American mixed martial artist who appeared on the second season of ''The Ultimate Fighter''. A professional competitor since 1999, he has competed for the UFC, WEC, Strikeforce and King of th ...

via unanimous decision, but showed tremendous heart by fighting with a blown ACL. Gurgel's match with Diego Saraiva at ''

UFC 73 ''UFC 73: Stacked'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). It took place on July 7, 2007, at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California and featured a total of nine bouts: four on the preliminary ...

'' was designated as the "Fight of the Night" by the UFC.Little new after UFC 73
, The Winnipeg Sun, published July 9, 2007, accessed July 10, 2007. In the contest, Gurgel defeated Saraiva by unanimous decision, even though he was badly injured during the fight. He was hospitalized afterward, due to a broken jaw and the presence of blood in his urine. After his loss to

Aaron Riley Aaron Matthew Riley (born December 9, 1980) is a retired American mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor from 1997 to 2013, he has also formerly ...

, Gurgel was released from the UFC. Gurgel was heavily criticized throughout his seven-fight run in the UFC for not displaying Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills in his fights. A third degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, the 35-year-old has generally elected to slug it out on his feet.

Strikeforce

Gurgel made his Strikeforce debut on June 19, 2009, defeating

Conor Heun Conor Heun (born February 11, 1979) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional from 2006 until 2012, he competed for Strikeforce, EliteXC, and the Los Angeles Anacondas of the International Fight League. Mixed martial arts car ...

via unanimous decision. Gurgel faced Billy Evangelista on November 6, 2009 at Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Evangelista losing via unanimous decision. Gurgel faced former EliteXC Lightweight Champion K. J. Noons at Strikeforce: Houston and lost by

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 strikin ...

19 seconds into the second round. There was controversy surrounding this fight due to an apparent late punch by Noons at the end of the first round that dropped and stunned Gurgel and an illegal knee by Noons during the barrage of strikes prior to the referee stoppage. Gurgel submitted Billy Vaughan in just 44 seconds via

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 stan ...

at Strikeforce: Feijao vs. Henderson on March 5, 2011. Gurgel headlined Strikeforce Challengers 18 on August 12, 2011, against fellow Ultimate Fighter alumni Joe Duarte Gurgel lost by a unanimous decision. Gurgel faced

Adriano Martins Adriano Soares Martins (born June 12, 1982) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Lightweight division of Taura MMA. A professional competitor since 2004, he has competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Strike ...

at Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine on January 12, 2013, he lost via unanimous decision.

Titan Fighting Championship

Gurgel fought former UFC fighter Mike Ricci at Titan FC 27 on February 28, 2014. He lost by first-round TKO. Gurgel has now lost 7 of his last 9 fights. On September 16, 2014, Gurgel announced his retirement from MMA competition.

Coaching

Gurgel owns the JG MMA and Fitness Academy in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...

, Gurgel has trained known fighters such as

Rich Franklin Richard Jay Franklin II (born October 5, 1974) is an American businessman and retired mixed martial artist. He is best known for competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where he is a member of the UFC Hall of Fame and a former UFC Midd ...

, Justin Edwards, Zoila Frausto, Dustin Hazelett, Jason Butcher, and Sean Salmon.Gurgel also trained know members of the soriano crime family including Levani Testaverde who had a MMA record of 10-0.Due to a horrifying motercyle crash that almost took his life was forced to retire due to vision lost hearing impair and loss of memory.

Personal life

Gurgel married female MMA fighter Zoila Frausto on February 19, 2011. The two have since separated.

Championships and accomplishments

** Fight of the Night (Two times) * Absolute Combat Challenge ** ACC Lightweight Championship (One time)

Brazilian jiu-jitsu

* NAGA SuperFight Champion * Six-time Brazilian State Champion Levani Testaverde. Fight of the night. 30 second knockout

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 14–10 , Mike Ricci , TKO (punches and elbows) , Titan Fighting Championship 27 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:57 ,

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, 14–9 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–8 , Joe Duarte , Decision (unanimous) , Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Duarte , , 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 Vega ...

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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, an ...

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Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

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Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

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, Decision (unanimous) , Strikeforce Challengers: Villasenor vs. Cyborg , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Kent, Washington Kent is a city in King County, Washington, United States. It is part of the Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue metropolitan area and had a population of 136,588 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest municipality in greater Seattle and th ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

UFC 91 ''UFC 91: Couture vs. Lesnar'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on November 15, 2008, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The main event featured the return of UFC Heavy ...

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–4 ,

Cole Miller Cole Miller (born April 26, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial artist, who most recently competed in the featherweight division in the UFC. His nickname "Magrinho" means "skinny" in Portuguese. Mixed martial arts career Before giving ...

, Submission (triangle choke) , UFC 86 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 4:48 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–3 , John Halverson , Decision (unanimous) , UFC 82 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–3 ,

Alvin Robinson Alvin Leavon Robinson (born July 16, 1982) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently fighting as a lightweight for the Bellator Fighting Championships. He is a former Ring of Fire lightweight champion. He holds a professional r ...

, Decision (unanimous) ,

UFC 77 ''UFC 77: Hostile Territory'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). The event took place on Saturday, October 20, 2007, at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio. Background The main event featured An ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 , Danny Abbadi , Decision (split) , UFC 63: Hughes vs. Penn , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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 ...

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Mark Hominick Mark Jeffrey Hominick (born July 22, 1982) is a Canadian retired mixed martial artist who competed in the Featherweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship where he was the inaugural Featherweight title challenger, the WEC, and A ...

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night 5 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 , Jason Ireland , Submission (guillotine choke) , KOTC 48: Payback , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:25 ,

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Joe Jordan , Submission (guillotine choke) , Extreme Challenge 56 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:55 ,

Medina, Minnesota Medina is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. An outer edge suburb of Minneapolis–Saint Paul, the city has a primarily rural character, with agricultural lands and natural preservation areas. Medina is home to the corporate hea ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Gin Minajev , Submission (guillotine choke) , Extreme Challenge 56 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Steve Kinnison , Submission (guillotine choke) , Freestyle Fighting Championships 8 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:08 ,

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, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–1 , Masakazu Imanari , Submission (heel hook) , ZST: Grand Prix Opening Round , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:32 ,

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, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Luke Spencer , TKO (submission to punches) , Absolute Combat Challenge 1 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:55 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Justin James , Submission (armbar) , VFC 4: Wildcard , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:51 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Gin Minajev , Submission (guillotine choke) , ICC 1: Retribution , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:18 ,

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References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gurgel, Jorge American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu American submission wrestlers Brazilian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian submission wrestlers American male mixed martial artists Brazilian male mixed martial artists Lightweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Living people Sportspeople from Fortaleza Brazilian emigrants to the United States 1977 births People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu People from West Chester, Butler County, Ohio Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters

Background

Mixed martial arts career

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Strikeforce

Titan Fighting Championship

Coaching

Personal life

Championships and accomplishments

Brazilian jiu-jitsu

Mixed martial arts record

See also

References

External links