Kevin Knabjian (born July 5, 1984) is a retired

America 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 primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

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 ...

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

descent. A professional from 2003 until 2012, he 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 ...

and the WEC.

Mixed martial arts career

Knabjian went to

Eastern Illinois University Eastern Illinois University is a public university in Charleston, Illinois. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradually expanded into a co ...

, from which he graduated with a degree in

Business Management Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

. Together with fellow EIU student,

Brian Ebersole Brian Keith Ebersole (born November 27, 1980) is an American retired mixed martial artist who competed in the UFC's Welterweight division, and holds a record of 5-3 with the organization. In addition to the UFC, Ebersole has competed in Shooto, ...

, he started practicing MMA when he was in his freshman year of college. He also wrestled for EIU, a Division 1 school. In his professional debut Knabjian fought Adam Gibson to a draw. His WEC debut ended unsuccessfully when he was knocked out by

Brock Larson Brock Orville Larson (born August 23, 1977) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight and Middleweight divisions. A professional competitor from 2002 until 2016, Larson has formerly competed for the U ...

only 27 seconds into the fight; he went on to compete in other promotions, such as XFO, where he has drawn attention as the title fight of XFO 22, defeating Ultimate Fighter 1 fighter Josh Rafferty by TKO.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 12–7–1 ,

Drew Fickett Andrew Robert Fickett (born December 14, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. A professional competitor since 1999, Fickett has also formerly competed for the UFC, Strikeforce, DREAM, Cage Rage, the ...

, Submission (guillotine choke) , WMMA 1: Fighting for a Better World , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:38 ,

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

, United States ,

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 ...

bout. , - , Win , align=center, 12–6–1 , Brandon Adamson , Submission (kimura) , XFO 42: Xtreme Fighting Organization , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:44 ,

Hoffman Estates, Illinois Hoffman Estates is a village in Illinois, United States. The village is located primarily in Cook County, with a small section in Kane County. It is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 52,530. The village now serves a ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–6–1 , John Tarrh , Submission (punches) , PCF: TWC 9: Berserk , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:36 ,

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–6–1 , Nick Duell , KO (head kick) , NAAFS: Caged Vengeance 9 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:01 ,

Canton, Ohio Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–5–1 ,

Brian Gassaway Brian Gassaway (August 7, 1972 – October 17, 2021) was an American mixed martial artist who last competed in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor from 1996 until 2010, he competed for the UFC, Bellator, the WEC, King of ...

, Decision (unanimous) ,

Bellator 25 2010 in Bellator MMA was the second installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships (Bellator FC)-produced series. It started on April 8, 2010 and ended June 24, 2010. Tournaments were held in the featherweight, lightweight, welterweight and m ...

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

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, 10–4–1 ,

Jacob Volkmann Minnesota Golden Gophers Jacob Joseph Volkmann (born September 5, 1980) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2007, Volkmann has formerly competed for t ...

, Submission (D'arce choke) ,

Bellator 7 2009 in Bellator MMA was the first installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships (Bellator FC)-produced series. It started broadcasting April 3, 2009, through an exclusive television agreement with ESPN Deportes. The episodes had a one-day t ...

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:42 ,

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 , , - , Win , align=center, 10–3–1 , Jacob Kuester , Submission (heel hook) , Extreme Challenge 101 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:26 , Franklin, Wisconsin, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–3–1 , Mario Stapel , TKO (punches) , Primetime Fighting Championships , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:02 ,

Merrillville, Indiana Merrillville is a town in Ross Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 35,246 at the 2010 census. Merrillville is in east-central Lake County, in the Chicago metropolitan area. On January 1, 2015, Merrillville became the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–3–1 , Josh Rafferty , TKO (punches) , Xtreme Fighting Organization 22 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:58 ,

Crystal Lake, Illinois Crystal Lake is a city in McHenry County in the U.S. state of Illinois. Named after a lake southwest of the city's downtown, Crystal Lake is 45 miles northwest of Chicago. The population is 40,269 as of the 2020 Census, a 1.2% decrease from 201 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–3–1 , Josh Lee , Submission (rear-naked choke) , AB: Lockdown , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:51 ,

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, 6–3–1 ,

, TKO (punches) ,

WEC 28 ''WEC 28: Faber vs. Farrar'' was the fourth mixed martial arts event held by the World Extreme Cagefighting under Zuffa management. The event was held on June 3, 2007. ''WEC 28'' was the first WEC to be aired live on the Versus Network. The main ...

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:27 ,

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, 6–2–1 , Jedrzej Kubski , TKO (punches) , IMMAC 2: Attack , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:20 ,

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 , , - , Win , align=center, 5–2–1 , Grant Sarver , Submission (armbar) , CFC 1: Explosion , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:48 ,

Tinley Park, Illinois Tinley Park (formerly Bremen) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, with a small portion in Will County. The village is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 55,971. It is one of the fastest growing suburbs ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–2–1 , Joe Geromiller , TKO (punches) , Courage Fighting Championships 7 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:55 ,

Decatur, Illinois Decatur ( ) is the largest city and the county seat of Macon County in the U.S. state of Illinois, with a population of 70,522 as of the 2020 Census. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in Ce ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–2–1 , Randy Newell , Submission (armbar) , APEX: Undisputed , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:55 ,

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 2–2–1 , Andre Garcia , TKO , DC 2: Duneland Classic 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

Portage, Indiana Portage ( ) is a city in Portage Township, Porter County, in the U.S. state of Indiana, on the border with Lake County. The population was 37,926 as of the 2020 census. It is the largest city in Porter County, and third largest in Northwest Ind ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–2–1 ,

LaVerne Clark LaVerne Clark is an American mixed martial artist and a former professional boxer. Clark is a veteran of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Maximum Fighting Championship and World Fighting Alliance. Clark holds a professional record of 27–21 ...

, KO (punch) , Courage Fighting Championships 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:10 ,

, United States ,

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 ...

debut. , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1–1 , Miguel Gutierrez , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Cage Fighting Championship: Ultimate Fighting Mexico , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

Monterrey Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city in Mexico behind Guadalajara and Mexico City. Located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the city is anchor ...

, Mexico , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0–1 , Nino Marroquin , TKO (punches) , CFM: Cage Fighting Monterrey , , align=center, 3 , align=center, N/A ,

, Mexico , , - , Draw , align=center, 0–0–1 , Adam Gibson , Draw , Shooto: Midwest Fighting , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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 , , -

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Knabjian, Kevin 1984 births Living people Sportspeople from Chicago Eastern Illinois University alumni American people of Armenian descent American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Illinois Welterweight mixed martial artists