Reza Madadi (, (born June 20, 1978) is a retired Iranian-born Swedish

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 competed in the

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 ...

division. A professional mixed martial artist from 2006 to 2019, Madadi is best known for competing in 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 ...

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Madadi started out as a wrestler at the age of 15, his

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

career saw some good results, winning the Swedish championship in 2002 and 2003 along with victories in Sweden and other parts of Scandinavia, in both the styles of Greco-Roman and Freestyle. He transitioned from wrestling to

MMA 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 strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...

in 2006. Madadi competed in Strike And Submit (SAS), Superior Challenge (SC), Furious Fighting Championship (FFC) and a few other fighting organizations. Madadi holds a submission victory over former UFC fighter Junie Browning in 2010, later that year he took a very impressive decision victory against former WEC- and future

Strikeforce Strike Force may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * ''Strike Force'' (video game), a 1991 arcade game *'' Commandos: Strike Force'', a 2006 video game *'' Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce'', a 2009 video game *''Marvel Strike Force'', ...

and UFC fighter Carlo Prater. He became the Superior Challenge Lightweight Champion in 2011, after defeating former UFC fighter

Rich Clementi Richard Thomas Clementi (born March 31, 1977) is a former American mixed martial artist. Clementi has fought for the Ultimate Fighting Championships, Bellator, K-1 Hero's DREAM, King of the Cage, and Titan FC. Background Clementi was born in ...

via unanimous decision at Superior Challenge 7. He was expected to challenge for the title in British top promotion

Cage Warriors Cage Warriors (CW) is an Irish owned mixed martial arts promotion, based in London, England. The promotion was established in 2001 and staged its first MMA event in London in July, 2002. Many MMA stars have made their names under the Cage War ...

, against the champion

Matt Veach Matt Alan Veach (born May 31, 1981) is a retired American mixed martial arts fighter who most recently competed in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 2006, he has competed for the UFC, BAMMA, the MFC, and Cage Warriors. ...

on June 16, 2011. However, just a few days before the fight Veach had to withdraw due to an injury and Madadi was scrapped from the card. Madadi's success on the European circuit, 11-2 (6 submissions, 2 TKO's), led to him being considered as one of the best European lightweight prospects.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In November, 2011 it was reported that Madadi had signed with 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 ...

. He was expected to make his promotional debut against

Rafaello Oliveira Rafaello Oliveira Ferreira (; born January 26, 1982) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Oliveria took up Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at ...

on January 20, 2012 at

UFC on FX 1 The year 2012 was the 20th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. 2012 started with UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes and ended with UFC 155: dos Santos vs. Velasquez 2 ...

. However, Oliveira was forced out of a bout with an injury and replaced by

Fabrício Camões Fabrício dos Santos Camões (; born December 23, 1978) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist, who formerly competed in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Camões's primary style in the cage is Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Cam� ...

Madadi himself would later withdraw from the bout due to injury as well and was replaced by promotional newcomer Tommy Hayden. In his eventual debut, Madadi faced fellow promotional newcomer Yoislandy Izquierdo on April 14, 2012 at UFC on Fuel TV 2. After being stunned in the first round, Madadi defeated Izquierdo by submission due to a guillotine choke in the second round. In his next fight for the UFC, Madadi faced

Cristiano Marcello Cristiano Marcello da Silva (born December 3, 1977) is a retired Brazilian mixed martial artist and former Chute Boxe BJJ head coach who formerly fought for the UFC. Cristiano competed in the Brazilian National Jiu-Jitsu Championship in 1998, 19 ...

on October 13, 2012 at

UFC 153 ''UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 13, 2012, at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Background Vitor Belfort was expected to face Alan Belcher a ...

. He lost via a controversial split decision. The decision was controversial since most major MMA media outlets scored the bout for Madadi. Madadi faced Michael Johnson on April 6, 2013 at

UFC on Fuel TV 9 ''UFC on Fuel TV: Mousasi vs. Latifi'' (also known as ''UFC on Fuel TV 9'' or ''UFC Sweden 2'') was a mixed martial arts event held on April 6, 2013, at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. The event was broadcast live on Fuel TV. Ba ...

. After a back-and-forth two rounds, where Johnson stunned and dropped Madadi with a headkick late in the first round, Madadi recovered fast and won the fight via submission due to a d'arce choke in the third round. The win also garnered Madadi his first ''Submission of the Night'' bonus award. Madadi was expected to fight

Michael Chiesa Michael Keith Chiesa (; born December 7, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist, and sports analyst who currently competes in the welterweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional MMA competitor sin ...

on July 27, 2013 at

UFC on Fox 8 ''UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Moraga'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 8'') was a mixed martial arts event held on July 27, 2013, at the Key Arena in Seattle, Washington. The event was broadcast live on FX and Fox. Background The main event was a UFC ...

. However, on May 14, 2013, it was announced Madadi pulled out of the bout citing alleged visa issues and was replaced by

Jorge Masvidal Jorge Masvidal (born November 12, 1984) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Welterweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Masvidal has been competing professionally since 2003; h ...

. Following Madadi's conviction on burglary charges, the

officially released Madadi from the promotion.

Post-UFC

After leaving the UFC following, and still awaiting his sentencing for his robbery conviction, Madadi expressed an interest to go back and fight in the Sweden-based organisation Superior Challenge, in which he held the lightweight title before he got the call from UFC. On November 23, 2013 at Superior Challenge 9, Madadi entered the cage and called out fellow former UFC-fighter

Anton Kuivanen Anton Kuivanen (born May 1, 1984) is an Estonian-Finnish mixed martial artist and coach. Kuivanen trains and teaches at the GB Gym, which is located in Helsinki, Finland and he has also had training camps in American Top Team located in Cocon ...

, who fought earlier that evening, defeating one of Madadi's training partners. He was set to return to the cage on May 3, 2014 at Superior Challenge 10, his opponent was yet to be announced. Later news came that his opponent would be

Efrain Escudero Efraín Escudero (born January 15, 1986) is a Mexican mixed martial artist. He trains under Drew Fickett and competes in the 155 lb (70.3 kg) weight class. Efrain was the winner of season eight of Spike TV's reality show ''The Ultimate ...

and that the fight would be Madadi's first defense of his Superior Challenge Lightweight title, which he won back in 2011. However, Madadi later had to withdraw due to an injury and was replaced by Juha-Pekka Vainikainen.

UFC return

On June 10, 2015 it was announced by Madadi and his management that he was back in the UFC. Madadi faced

Norman Parke Norman Parke (born 22 December 1986) is a Northern Irish mixed martial artist. A professional MMA competitor since 2006, Parke has fought for the UFC, Absolute Championship Berkut, KSW, and BAMMA. He was also a competitor for Team UK on The ...

on October 24, 2015 at

UFC Fight Night 76 ''UFC Fight Night: Holohan vs. Smolka'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 76'') was a mixed martial arts event held on October 24, 2015, at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. Background The event was the third that the organization has hosted in Dublin, ...

. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. He fought

Yan Cabral Yan Cabral (born 13 May 1983 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) is a mixed martial artist, grappler and 4th degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt practitioner and instructor associated with the Nova União academy. A former UFC fighter, Cabral trained ...

on May 8, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 87 ''UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Arlovski'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 87'') was a mixed martial arts event held on May 8, 2016, at the Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Background The event was the first that the organization hosted ...

. Madadi won the fight by TKO after connecting with an uppercut and follow up punches in round 3. Madadi was expected to face

Rustam Khabilov Rustam Khabilov (born 4 November 1986) is a Russian mixed martial artist, currently competing in the Lightweight division of Bellator MMA. He is a Combat Sambo World Champion and a former member of the Legion Sport Club fight team in Rostov-on- ...

on September 3, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 93 ''UFC Fight Night: Arlovski vs. Barnett'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 93'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on September 3, 2016, at Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany. Background After h ...

. However on July 25, Madadi pulled out due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Leandro Silva. It was later revealed that Madadi had been forced to withdraw due to a heart-related illness. The illness, called

myocarditis Myocarditis, also known as inflammatory cardiomyopathy, is an acquired cardiomyopathy due to inflammation of the heart muscle. Symptoms can include shortness of breath, chest pain, decreased ability to exercise, and an irregular heartbeat. The ...

, causes an inflammation in the heart muscle which can have various consequences depending on the state of the illness and the person who suffers from it. He wasn't in serious danger but would still have to be sidelined from training until doctors hade figured out a solution to his problems. He was then expected to face promotional newcomer

Marc Diakiese Marc Diakiese (born 16 March 1993) is a Congolese-born English professional mixed martial artist who competes as a lightweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He has also competed for Caged Steel and BAMMA. Background Aged 17, Diakies ...

on October 8, 2016 at

UFC 204 ''UFC 204: Bisping vs. Henderson 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on October 8, 2016 at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. Background This was the fourth UFC event contested in Man ...

. However, Madadi was later forced to withdraw from the contest, after suffering an eye injury that need an emergency surgery. He was replaced by Lukasz Sajewski. Madadi faced Joseph Duffy on March 18, 2017 at

UFC Fight Night 107 ''UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 107'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 18, 2017, at The O2 Arena in London, England. Background This event wa ...

. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. Shortly after his fight against Joseph Duffy, Madadi took to his Instagram page to reveal that he had one fight left on his UFC contract and that it possibly would be the last fight of his career. He expressed wishes to get his potential last fight on the upcoming

UFC Fight Night 109 ''UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Teixeira'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 109'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on May 28, 2017, at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden. Background Preliminar ...

in his hometown of

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, Sweden. Madadi got his wish fulfilled in the last minute, as he stepped in on short notice, replacing an injured

Mairbek Taisumov Mairbek Vakhaevich Taisumov (Russian: Майрбек Вахаевич Тайсумов; born August 8, 1988 in Chechnya) is a Russian-born Austrian mixed martial artist. He fights in the lightweight division. A professional mixed martial artis ...

, against Joaquim Silva on May 28, 2017 at

. He lost fight by split decision. Subsequent to this fight, Madadi opted to not renew his contract with the UFC.

Absolute Championship Berkut and retirement

Despite contemplating retirement from MMA, Madadi signed a multi-fight contract with

Absolute Championship Berkut Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA), formerly known as Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB), is a Russian mixed martial arts, kickboxing and Brazilian jiu-jitsu organization and one of the leading promotions in Europe. To date, most events have been ...

. On July 4, 2017 it was announced that Madadi was set to face Yusup Raisov, who vacated his ACB featherweight title and moved up to lightweight division. The fight was planned to take place in the main event at ACB 92 in Malmö, Sweden on August 25, 2018. However, on July 30, 2018 it was announced that the event would be cancelled due to ACB having financial problems. In May 2019, Madadi announced his retirement from competition, stating that he will be concentrating on coaching mixed martial arts. Madadi is still training and coaching at his long time gym Allstar Training Center in Stockholm, along with UFC fighters such as

Alexander Gustafsson Alexander Gustafsson (born 15 January 1987) is a Swedish professional mixed martial artist. Gustafsson currently competes in the light heavyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Gustafsson spent a major part of his MMA ...

Ilir Latifi Ilir Latifi (born July 28, 1983) is a Swedish mixed martial artist who previously fought in the Heavyweight division of the UFC. A two-time national wrestling champion and a professional MMA competitor since 2008, Latifi has also competed in S ...

Jimi Manuwa Babajimi Abiola "Jimi" Manuwa (born 18 February 1980) is an American-born English retired mixed martial artist of Nigerian descent who competed in the light heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Early life Manuwa was bor ...

David Teymur David Teymur (born May 1, 1989) is a Swedish professional mixed martial artist who competes in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Kickboxing and Muay Thai career David and his older brother Daniel started ou ...

and

Khamzat Chimaev Khamzat Khizarovich Chimaev ( ce, Хизаран Хамзат; russian: Хамзат Хизарович Чимаев; born 1 May 1994), is a Swedish professional mixed martial artist and freestyle wrestler who competes in the Welterweight div ...

Personal life

Madadi is married. He and his wife, Kate, have two sons. Their first child was born in 2013 and the second in 2015. In August 2012, Madadi saved a baby and father from drowning in a lake outside of his hometown of

, Sweden. Madadi acts in one of the roles in the Swedish movie ''Tommy'' (2014).

Aggravated burglary and prison sentence

On May 27, 2013, Madadi was arrested in his adopted country of Sweden for burglary. Swedish tabloid ''

Expressen ''Expressen'' (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden, the other being '' Aftonbladet''. ''Expressen'' was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or "''Expressen'' to your rescue". ...

'' reported that the fighter and an accomplice broke into a designer handbag store before making off with $150,000 (U.S.) worth of stolen goods. Madadi and the accomplice were apprehended and faced charges of aggravated theft and abetting larceny, according to Swedish authorities. On August 16, 2013 Madadi was found guilty for aggravated burglary and sentenced to 18 months in prison. An appeal from Madadi was filed on September 5, 2013, and he was released from custody awaiting notice from the Swedish court of law. In the second trial, he was again found guilty, and no attempt for a second appeal was made. In March, 2015 after serving the active time of 14 months, the sentence was completed and Madadi was released from prison.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed Martial Arts

** Submission of the Night (One time) vs. Michael Johnson **Oldest fighter to win a UFC Lightweight fight (37 years, 11 months) *Superior Challenge **Superior Challenge Lightweight Championship (One time; First) *X-Fight FC **X-Fight FC Welterweight Championship (One time; First) *Nordic MMA Awards - MMAviking.com **2016 Comeback Fighter of the Year

Submission Wrestling

*Swedish Submission Wrestling Federation **2010 Swedish National Championship (-79 kg / 174 lbs) **2010 Eskilstuna Submission Wrestling Tournament Winner (-75 kg / 165 lbs)

Amateur wrestling

*Swedish Wrestling Federation **2002 Swedish National Championship, Freestyle (-69 kg)http://www.swedewrestling.se/Forbund/Statistikhistorik/#Alla SM-vinnare **2003 Swedish National Championship, Freestyle (-69 kg)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 14–6 , Joaquim Silva , Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Teixeira , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Sweden , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–5 ,

Joe Duffy Joseph Duffy (born 27 January 1956) is an Irish broadcaster employed by Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). One of RTÉ's highest-earning stars, he is the current presenter of ''Liveline'', an interview and phone-in chat show broadcast on R ...

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Manuwa vs. Anderson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 14–4 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Arlovski , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:56 ,

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, Netherlands , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–4 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Holohan vs. Smolka , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 13–3 , Michael Johnson , Submission (D'Arce choke) , UFC on Fuel TV: Mousasi vs. Latifi , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:33 ,

, Sweden , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–3 ,

, Decision (split) ,

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

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 12–2 , Yoislandy Izquierdo , Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC on Fuel TV: Gustafsson vs. Silva , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:28 ,

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 11–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Superior Challenge 7 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 10–2 , Carlo Prater , Decision (unanimous) , Superior Challenge 6 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 , Junie Browning , Submission (guillotine choke) , Superior Challenge 5 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:22 ,

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Andy Walker , TKO (punches) , Superior Challenge 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:11 ,

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Raymond Jarman , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , Superior Challenge 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Oriol Gaset , Submission (guillotine choke) , Furious Fighting Championship 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:38 ,

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

, Morocco , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–2 , Peter Irving , Decision (unanimous) , Strike and Submit 7 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Gateshead Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Aidan Marron , Decision (unanimous) , Superior Challenge 1 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Peter Wilson , Submission (armbar) , X-Fight FC 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:48 , Sunderland, England , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Romano de los Reyes , Submission (triangle choke) , Slamm: Holland vs Thailand 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:04 ,

Almere Almere () is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, Netherlands, located about 20 km to the east of Amsterdam (as the crow flies) across the IJmeer. Bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde, the municipality of Almere comprise ...

, Netherlands , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Geroid McNichol , Submission (armbar) , Strike and Submit 1 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:28 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 , Christian Johansson , TKO (punches) , Travelfight Arena 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:30 ,

Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inha ...

, Sweden , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Ville Manninen , Decision (unanimous) , ZST: Prestige , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

, Finland , , -

Grappling record

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Madadi, Reza 1978 births Living people Swedish male mixed martial artists Iranian male mixed martial artists Lightweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing freestyle wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Swedish male sport wrestlers Swedish practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Iranian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Sportspeople from Stockholm Iranian emigrants to Sweden Swedish criminals Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters