Mackens Semerzier (born November 3, 1980) is an American retired professional

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 last competed in the

Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, this ...

division. A professional competitor from 2008 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 WEC.

Background

In 1999 Mackens placed 6th in the 6A Florida High School Wrestling tournament and was a Disney Duals AAU Wrestling National runner up. At the age of 19, Semerzier signed on to the U.S. Marines. While enrolled, he would begin training a lot of boxing. A little later, through a Marine Corps Martial Arts program, he learned other elements of the MMA game, which he would supplement with training at civilian gyms, most notably Linxx Academy in Virginia Beach, where he still trains and coaches.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Semerzier made his pro debut against Ryan Lamareaux on a local North Carolina MMA card. Semerzier won the bout in the third round after locking up a rear naked choke submission. Only a little over a month after his pro debut, Semerzier had his second fight, again winning via rear naked choke submission. He won two more fights, finishing both opponents, before signing with the

World Extreme Cagefighting World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) was an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion founded in 2001. It was purchased by Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), in 2006. In its final incarnation, it was mad ...

in 2009.

World Extreme Cagefighting

Semerzier made his debut for the promotion at WEC 43 stunning the former IFL Featherweight Champion,

Wagnney Fabiano Wagnney Silva Fabiano-Santos (born July 14, 1975) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He is best known for fighting in the WEC, as well as for the Toronto Dragons of the International Fight League and is the former IFL Featherweight Champion ...

. Semerzier submitted the

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 ...

ace in the first round via triangle choke. He earned himself ''Submission of the Night'', and also was awarded "Sherdog's 2009 Upset of the Year". Semerzier suffered his first career loss to Lithuanian grappler

Deividas Taurosevičius Deividas Taurosevičius (born August 28, 1977) is a Lithuanian retired mixed martial artist who last competed in the Featherweight division. A professional competitor from 2002 until 2013, he competed for the WEC, Bellator, the Cage Fury Fighti ...

at WEC 46. Semerzier was scheduled to face Anthony Morrison on April 24, 2010 at

WEC 48 ''UFC Presents: Aldo vs. Faber'', also referred to as ''WEC 48: Aldo vs. Faber'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on April 24, 2010 at ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California. This was WEC's first a ...

, but Semerzier was forced from the card with an injury. Instead of fighting Morrison, he fought Javier Vazquez. Semerzier was defeated via second round submission on August 18, 2010 at

WEC 50 ''WEC 50: Cruz vs. Benavidez 2'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting that took place on August 18, 2010 at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas. Background This event marked WEC's first visit to Las Vegas since WEC 4 ...

. Semerzier was defeated by

Cub Swanson Kevin Luke "Cub" Swanson (born November 2, 1983) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2004, Swanson holds the most ...

via split decision in a back and forth affair on November 11, 2010 at

WEC 52 ''WEC 52: Faber vs. Mizugaki'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on November 11, 2010 at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas. Background Urijah Faber made his bantamweight debut against Japanese striker Takeya M ...

in a bout that earned ''Fight of the Night'' honors.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In October 2010,

merged 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 ...

. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC. Semerzier's first fight in the UFC was against UFC newcomer, and

The Ultimate Fighter 12 ''The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck'' is the twelfth installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship produced reality television series '' The Ultimate Fighter''. The UFC and Spike TV held open tryouts on April 1, 2010, in Cha ...

competitor,

Alex Caceres Alex Caceres (born June 20, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the featherweight division of the UFC. A professional MMA competitor since 2008, Caceres mostly competed in his regional circuit, before signing with the Ult ...

, at UFC Fight Night 24. He won the fight via rear naked choke submission early in the first round. Semerzier was expected to face Yuri Alcantara on August 27, 2011 at UFC 134. However, Semerzier was replaced on the card by UFC newcomer Antonio Carvalho. Semerzier was expected to face Mike Lullo on September 17, 2011 at UFC Fight Night 25. However, Semerzier was forced from the bout with an injury and was replaced by Robbie Peralta Semerzier faced Robbie Peralta on November 12, 2011 at UFC on Fox 1. Semerzier officially lost via TKO in the third round, but replays showed that a collision of heads started the stoppage. The fight was later ruled a no contest by the California State Athletic Commission. A rematch with Peralta was expected to take place on March 3, 2012 at

UFC on FX 2 ''UFC on FX: Alves vs. Kampmann'' (also known as ''UFC on FX 2'') was a mixed martial arts event held live by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday March 3, 2012 at the Allphones Arena in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Background ...

. However, Peralta was forced out of the bout with a toe injury and replaced by Daniel Pineda. Pineda defeated Semezier via first round submission. After losing to Pineda, Semerzier was released from the promotion.

Post UFC

Semerzier made his return to the cage on August 18, 2012 at XFO 45, defeating Guillermo Serment by submission due to a d'arce choke sixty two seconds into the fight. He then went to on to face Gilbert Jimenez a few months later on November 17, 2012. He defeated Jimenez via submission in the second round. He has not competed since this.

Championships and accomplishments

;World Extreme Cagefighting *Submission of the Night (One time) *Fight of the Night (One time) ;Sherdog *2009 Upset of the Year (vs.

, WEC 43)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 8–4 (1) , Gilbert Jimenez , Submission (guillotine choke) , Combat Sports Challenge 34 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:52 ,

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–4 (1) , Guillermo Serment , Submission (d'arce choke) , XFO 45: Outdoor War 8 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:02 ,

Island Lake, Illinois Island Lake is a village in Lake and McHenry counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Per the 2020 census, the population was 8,051. The village surrounds Island Lake, a lake which contains a small island. History The village was incorporated on ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–4 (1) , Daniel Pineda , Submission (triangle armbar) , UFC on FX: Alves vs. Kampmann , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:05 , Sydney, Australia , , - , NC , align=center, 6–3 (1) , Robbie Peralta , NC (accidental headbutt) , UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:54 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–3 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs. Davis , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:18 ,

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

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, Decision (split) ,

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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 ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–2 , Javier Vazquez , Submission (rear-naked choke) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:35 ,

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

, Decision (unanimous) , WEC 46 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 ,

, Submission (triangle choke) , WEC 43 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:14 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Kenny Foster , Submission (triangle choke) , Elite Fighting Challenge 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:03 ,

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 cen ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Jason Hilliker , TKO (punches) , Cagefest Xtreme: All In , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:01 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Justin Hickey , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Cagefest Xtreme: Evolution , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:52 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Ryan Lamareaux , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Vengeance Fighting Championship 1 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:04 ,

Concord, North Carolina Concord is the county seat and largest city in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, Cabarrus County, in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 105,186, with an estimated popu ...

, United States ,

References

External links

Official UFC Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Semerzier, Mackens American male mixed martial artists American sportspeople of Haitian descent Featherweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Living people Mixed martial artists from Florida 1980 births Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters American male sport wrestlers Amateur wrestlers American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu