Phil Ryan Cardella (born July 9, 1976) is an American

mixed martial arts 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, inc ...

fighter. He formerly fought as a

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 ...

in the

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

organization. All but one of Cardella’s triumphs have come by first-round submission. He holds a 3rd degree 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

Relson Gracie Relson "Campeão" Gracie is a professional Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner and martial arts personality. He is a member of the Gracie family. Relson currently lives alternatively in Hawaii and Brazil where he teaches Brazlilian Jiu-Jitsu at his a ...

, as well as a 3rd degree black belt in ''

Taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. T ...

'' and a 2nd Degree black belt in ''

Hapkido Hapkido ( , , also spelled ''hap ki do'' or ''hapki-do''; from Korean 합기도 ''hapgido'' ) is a hybrid Korean martial art. It is a form of self-defense that employs joint locks, grappling, throwing techniques, kicks, punches, and other stri ...

''. He served as an assault amphibious vehicle crewman in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

from 1994 to 1998, during which he also taught primary marksmanship and combat water safety. Today he continues to work with various branches of the U.S. Military to train them in hand-to-hand combatives using

. Phil was the first American fighter to represent the Relson Gracie Team in MMA competition. Relson Gracie has been in Phil's corner during many of his MMA matches. Phil is the founder of the Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu associations in Texas, and has since moved to Florida to lead his team and community there as the Head Instructor o
Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Florida
a martial arts school specializing 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 ...

WEC career

While his record for the WEC reads 0-2, Cardella was a winner in the minds of several fans and critics after his fight against

Danny Castillo Daniel Alfonso Castillo (born August 25, 1979) is a retired American mixed martial artist. A professional from 2007 until 2015, he competed in 22 bouts with both the UFC and WEC. Mixed martial arts career Early career Castillo began training M ...

ended a split decision. In his fight with Castillo, he became the first fighter in the WEC to win more than one round on a judge's scorecard, purely by scoring points with an offensive guard. He made his WEC return at

WEC 42 ''WEC 42: Torres vs. Bowles'' was a mixed martial arts event held by World Extreme Cagefighting on August 9, 2009 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada Background Kenji Osawa was originally scheduled to face Rani Yahya at this e ...

on August 9, 2009, losing to Ed Ratcliff by unanimous decision.

Coaching

Cardella has been known to coach a number of professional MMA fighters, including UFC contender

Kamal Shalorus Kamal Shalorus (; born 26 August 1973) is an Iranian-born British professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight division of ONE Championship. A professional competitor since 2008, Shalorus has also formerly competed for the U ...

, Strikeforce top title contender Tim Kennedy, former UFC star

Roger Huerta Roger Huerta (born May 20, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist currently fighting in the lightweight division. He initially gained exposure by competing in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Bellator Fighting Cha ...

, and Bellator fighter Chris Spicer.http://centexsubfighting.com/staff-bios.html

Mixed martial arts record

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Ran Weathers ''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 Charlot ...

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Amarillo, TX Amarillo ( ; Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Potter County. It is the 14th-most populous city in Texas and the largest city in the Texas Panhandle. A portion of the city extends into Randall Count ...

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Ed Ratcliff Edward Norris Ratcliff (born March 5, 1983) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 2005 until 2010, he fought in the WEC. Background Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Ratcliff is African-America ...

, Decision (unanimous) , WEC 42:Torres vs. Bowles , , 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 Vegas ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–3 , Johnny Flores , Submission (armbar) , Shark Fights 4: Richards vs Schoonover , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:48 ,

Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the northw ...

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Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi (; Ecclesiastical Latin: "'' Body of Christ"'') is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patrici ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Rafael Dias , Decision (unanimous) , GFC - Evolution , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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, and t ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Patrick Horner , Submission (armbar) , GFC - Team Gracie vs Team Hammer House , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:20 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–2 , Steve Kinnison , KO (slam) , FFC 6 - No Love , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:35 ,

Biloxi, Mississippi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in and one of two county seats of Harrison County, Mississippi, United States (the other being the adjacent city of Gulfport). The 2010 United States Census recorded the population as 44,054 and in 2019 the estimated popu ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Rocky Long , Submission (armbar) , REF - Renegades Extreme Fighting , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:49 ,

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 in ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Jose Santibanez , Submission (guillotine Choke) , REF - Renegades Extreme Fighting , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:27 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Richard Rosas , Submission (strikes) , WFC 2 - World Fighting Championships 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

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 , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Casey Erwin , Submission (triangle Choke) , WFC 1 - World Fighting Championships 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Randall Ebarb , Submission (armbar) , REF - Renegades Extreme Fighting , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:02 ,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Chris Winchester , Submission (armbar) , REF - Renegades Extreme Fighting , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:24 ,

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References

External links

*
Official websiteOfficial website for Relson Gracie Austin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cardella, Phil 1976 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing taekwondo Mixed martial artists utilizing hapkido Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu American male taekwondo practitioners American hapkido practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu