Mark Holata (born August 25, 1982) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former mixed martial artist. A professional from 2007 until 2014, he is best known for his appearances in

Bellator Bellator, warrior in Latin, may refer to: * Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States * Bishop Bellator of Archaeological site of Sbeitla, Sufetula (5th century) Taxonomy * Bellator (fish), ''Bellator'' (fish), a fis ...

Background

Holata was born in

Claremore, Oklahoma Claremore is a city and the county seat of Rogers County in Green Country or northeastern Oklahoma, United States. The population was 19,580 at the 2020 census, a 5.4 percent increase over the figure of 18,581 recorded in 2010.Morris, Oklahoma Morris is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,494 at the 2010 census, an increase of 14.3% from the figure of 1,294 recorded in 2000. History The community began as a cattle stop on the Ozark and Cherokee Cen ...

, attending Morris High School. At Morris, Holata competed in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, and was talented, earning four letters and winning multiple All-State selections including as a punter, as well as being named his district's Offensive Player of the Year as a senior. In addition to football, Holata also received four letters in powerlifting, All-State honors three times, won the state title, and also lettered one year in

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

. Holata continued his football career for the

University of Tulsa The University of Tulsa (TU) is a private research university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It has a historic affiliation with the Presbyterian Church and the campus architectural style is predominantly Collegiate Gothic. The school traces its origin to ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Holata made his professional MMA debut in June 2007. During the first three years of his career, he amassed a record of 8-2.

Bellator

Holata made his

debut at

Bellator 31 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 ...

, where he defeated

Shawn Jordan Shawn Martin Jordan (born October 24, 1984) is an American professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Professional Fighters League's Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2009, Jordan has also formerly competed for ...

by way of first-round knockout. In 2011, Holata returned at

Bellator 42 2011 in Bellator MMA was the fourth installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships. Mixed martial arts tournaments were held in multiple Mixed martial arts weight classes, weight classes, including three of the original tournament classes: We ...

, where he defeated Tracy Willis by way of first-round submission. At Bellator 52 Holata lost by first-round knockout to Ron Sparks in a

quarterfinal A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

of the Bellator Season Five Heavyweight Tournament. Holata rebounded from the loss by defeating Abe Wagner by first-round submission at

Bellator 69 2012 in Bellator MMA was the sixth installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships, which began on March 9, 2012. The sixth season of Bellator was originally scheduled to begin on March 2, 2012. However, the debut was pushed back a week so i ...

. At

Bellator 75 2012 in Bellator MMA was the sixth installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships, which began on March 9, 2012. The sixth season of Bellator was originally scheduled to begin on March 2, 2012. However, the debut was pushed back a week so ...

Holata lost by first-round submission to

Vinicius Queiroz Vinicius Kappke de Queiroz (born August 29, 1983) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Heavyweight division of Bellator. A professional competitor since 2003, he has also competed for the UFC. Background Origina ...

in a quarterfinal of the Bellator Season Seven Heavyweight Tournament.Eight Heavyweights Invade Horseshoe Casino Hammond at Bellator 75 on October 5 – Bellator Fighting Championships
In March 2014, Holata returned to Bellator. He faced Alexander Volkov in the opening round of the Bellator Season 10 Heavyweight tournament at

Bellator 111 2014 in Bellator MMA was the tenth season for Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion. It began on February 28, 2014 and aired on Spike TV. The season included tournaments for the Heavyweight, Welterweight, Featherweight, Light Heavyweight, ...

on March 7, 2014. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 12–5 , Alexander Volkov , TKO (punches) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:21 ,

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 , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–4 ,

, Submission (armbar) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:26 ,

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 , , - , Win , align=center, 12–3 , Abe Wagner , Submission (achilles lock) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:24 ,

Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–3 , Ron Sparks , KO (punches) , Bellator 52 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:24 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–2 , Tracy Willis , Submission (knees and punches) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:49 ,

Concho, Oklahoma Concho is an unincorporated community in Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States. It is north of the Concho Indian Boarding School. The post office opened April 20, 1915. The ZIP code is 73022. The school and post office were named for Indian agen ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 ,

Carmelo Marrero Carmelo Marrero (born January 26, 1981) is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight divisions. He has competed for the UFC, WEC, Bellator Fighting Championships, the IFL, and the ...

, Decision (unanimous) , C3 Fights: SlamFest , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Newkirk, Oklahoma Newkirk is a city and county seat of Kay County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 2,172 at the 2020 census. History Newkirk is on land known as the Cherokee Outlet (popularly called the "Cherokee Strip"), which belonged to the Chero ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 ,

, KO (punch) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:13 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , James Jack , Decision (unanimous) , C3 Fights: Knockout-Rockout Weekend 3 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Jason Nicholsen , Submission (rear-naked choke) , C3 Fights: Knockout-Rockout Weekend 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:09 ,

Clinton, Oklahoma Clinton is a city in Custer County, Oklahoma, Custer and Washita County, Oklahoma, Washita counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 9,033 at the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census. History The community began in 1899 when ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Joel Traves , Decision (unanimous) , C3 Fights: Slammin Jammin Weekend 4 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–2 , Ralph Kelly , TKO (retirement) , C3 Fights: Slammin Jammin Weekend 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:00 ,

Red Rock, Oklahoma Red Rock ( iow, Chína Ino Šúje pronounced , meaning "Rock Red town") is a town in northern Noble County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 283 at the 2010 census, a decline from 293 at the 2000 census. The headquarters of the Otoe-M ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–2 , John Hill , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Bricktown Brawl 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:19 ,

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, 3–2 ,

Darrill Schoonover ''The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights'' is the tenth installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''. In a press conference following ''UFC 98'', Dana White announced that filming ...

, TKO (punches) , Freestyle Cage Fighting 23 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:33 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 3–1 , John Orr , TKO (strikes) , C3 Fights: Battle on the Border , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:48 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Danny Howell , TKO (punches) , Masters of the Cage 17 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:59 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Ryan Dunphy , Submission , Masters of the Cage 14 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:50 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Tony Roberts , Decision (unanimous) , Masters of the Cage 14 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, United States ,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Holata, Mark 1982 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists from Oklahoma Heavyweight mixed martial artists People from Claremore, Oklahoma People from Morris, Oklahoma Sportspeople from Oklahoma City