Lucas Brennan (born June 3, 2000) 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, incorp ...

and

jiujitsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdu ...

practitioner. He is a five-time finalist in the Brazilian-Jiu-Jitsu world championships and a two-time world champion who is currently signed to

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media cong ...

. As of September 26, 2023, he is #8 in the Bellator Featherweight Rankings.

Early life and education

Brennan was born in

Irvine, California Irvine () is a Planned community, master-planned city in South Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the 1960s and the city was formally incorporated on ...

, in 2000, his family moved to

Aubrey, Texas Aubrey is a city in Denton County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,006 at the 2020 census. History Aubrey, the town, was officially founded 1867, when Civil War veteran Lemuel Noah Edwards (1838–1910) built the second frame house th ...

, later in 2006 where he was raised in North Texas. In 2011, Brennan began training in BJJ in middle school. He is the son of American mixed martial artist

Chris Brennan Chris "The Westside Strangler" Brennan (born October 12, 1971) is an American mixed martial artist who last competed in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor from 1996 until 2012, he competed for the UFC, PRIDE, Cage Rage, King o ...

. Brennan graduated

Cum Laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

from

Frisco High School Frisco High School is a public high school located in Frisco, Texas and is a part of the Frisco Independent School District. In 2015, the school was rated " Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency. History Frisco High School was founded i ...

, class of 2018. He was formerly enrolled at the

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal School," ...

(UNT) in the College of Visual Arts and Design, before leaving to give full commitment to his already ongoing mixed martial arts (MMA) career. Prompted by his signing at age 19 with Bellator prior to his sophomore year.

Mixed martial arts career

Amateur career

Brennan made his amateur MMA debut on August 12, 2017. Brennan won his debut amateur bout in XKO with a third-round rear-naked choke against Christopher Williams, two months after turning 17 years old and prior to his senior year in high school. After winning his debut amateur MMA appearance, his next fight would not be until May 2018, which he won via a unanimous decision against Diara Culpepper in the

Legacy Fighting Alliance Legacy Fighting Alliance is an American mixed martial arts promotion, created as a result of the ''Legacy Fighting Championship'' and ''Resurrection Fighting Alliance'' merger in early 2017. History Resurrection Fighting Alliance On October 11, ...

(LFA). Brennan signed to LFA as their first-ever contracted amateur athlete at the time, but LFA would soon shift ownership, and Brennan returned to being a free agent. His final amateur fight was under the Tuff-N-Uff banner on June 07, 2019, winning a unanimous decision over Isaac Villegas in

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 ...

Professional career

Brennan's professional debut was made in Bellator MMA in the featherweight weight class at Bellator 224 in July 2019. Brennan won in the first round with a rear-naked choke submission against Thomas Lopez. In November 2019, he fought Jacob Landin and acquired another win at Bellator 233 with a first-round rear-naked choke submission. A scheduled bout with Jamese Taylor was canceled on the day of the event in February 2020 due to complications in Taylor's weight cut and supposed health. Later that same year at Bellator 244 in August, Brennan face Will Smith and win with a TKO in the second round. In November 2020, Brennan fought Andrew Salas and won via unanimous decision at Bellator 252. Brennan missed weight for this bout, coming in at 148 pounds, two pounds over the featherweight non-title limit. The bout continued at a catchweight and Brennan was fined a portion of his purse which went to Salas. Fighting only once in 2021 due to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

complications at

Bellator 260 Bellator 260: Lima vs. Amosov was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on June 11, 2021, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The event was the first Bellator event with fans in attendance since Bellator ...

, Brennan faced Matthew Skibicki and won via a first-round anaconda choke submission. In January 2022, Brennan defeated Benjamin Lugo at

Bellator 273 Bellator 273: Bader vs. Moldavsky was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA, it took place on January 29, 2022 at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Background A winner in eight of his last 11 bouts, Bader will be making ...

with his self-appointed assassin choke in the first round. This was a first in Bellator's history and the first submission of 2022. Brennan was scheduled to face Nick Talavera on November 18, 2022 at

Bellator 288 ''Bellator 288: Nemkov vs. Anderson 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on November 18, 2022, at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Background The event was headlined by a rematch in ...

. However, Talavera pulled out due to unknown reason the week of the event and the bout was scrapped. He was briefly linked to

Bellator 289 ''Bellator 289: Stots vs. Sabatello'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on December 9, 2022, at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, United States. Background The semi-finals of the $1-mill ...

against Dre Miley, but Miley was not cleared by the Illonois commission to compete. Brennan faced Josh San Diego on March 31, 2023 at Bellator 293. He won the fight by a rear-naked choke submission in the first round. Brennan faced Weber Almeida on August 11, 2023 at Bellator 298. He won the fight via knockout knee in the third round.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 9–0 , Weber Almeida , KO (knee) , Bellator 298 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:32 ,

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0 , Josh San Diego , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Bellator 293 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:14 ,

Temecula, California Temecula (; es, Temécula, ; Luiseño: ''Temeekunga'') is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The city had a population of 110,003 as of the 2020 census and was incorporated on December 1, 1989. The city is a t ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Johnny Soto , Submission (neck crank) , Bellator 282 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:34 ,

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is an area in the New England town, town of Montville, Connecticut, Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a Administrative divisions of Connecticut#Village, neighborhood, section of town, village in southeastern Montville, at the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Ben Lugo , Submission (assassin choke) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:27 ,

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Matthew Skibicki , Submission (anaconda choke) ,

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

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Andrew Salas , Decision (unanimous) , Bellator 252 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Will Smith , TKO (punches) , Bellator 244 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:14 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Jacob Landin , Submission (forearm choke) , Bellator 233 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:36 ,

Thackerville, Oklahoma Thackerville is a town in Love County, Oklahoma. It is located in South Central Oklahoma. The population was 445 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ardmore, Oklahoma Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Thackerville is located at (33. ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Thomas Lopez , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Bellator 224 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:02 ,

, United States ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Brennan, Lucas 2000 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Bellator male fighters Mixed martial artists from California Lightweight mixed martial artists American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu