Chris Tuchscherer (born September 8, 1975) is a retired 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 ...

who last competed as a

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...

for 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 ...

Background

Born in

Rugby, North Dakota Rugby is a city in, and the county seat of, Pierce County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 2,509 at the 2020 census, making it the 19th largest city in North Dakota. Rugby was founded in 1886. Rugby is often billed as the geog ...

, Tuchscherer competed in

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 ...

for

Bowman County High School Bowman County High School is a public high school located in Bowman, North Dakota Bowman is a city and county seat of Bowman County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 1,470 at the 2020 census. History Bowman was founded in 1907 ...

, continuing with the sport at

North Dakota State North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota. It was founded as North Dakota Agricultural College in 1890 as t ...

before eventually transferring to NCAA Division II Minnesota State University, Moorhead. At MSUM Tuchscherer participated in Heavyweight NCAA Division II competitions and became a two-time All-American as well as an NCAA Division II Championship Runner-Up.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

After using up all of his college eligibility, Tuchscherer - who was already a fan of MMA - was urged by his friends to try competing himself. He tried out for and earned a spot on a local fight card where he won his first amateur match in less than a minute. Tuchscherer continued training at MSUM while helping to coach the university's wrestling team. He later began training at

Minnesota Martial Arts Academy The Minnesota Martial Arts Academy is a martial arts training center in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. It was founded in 1992 by Greg Nelson, a former NCAA Division 1 wrestler at the University of Minnesota. History The Academy provides training in ...

with fellow All-American

Brock Lesnar Brock Edward Lesnar ( ; born July 12, 1977) is an American-Canadian professional wrestler, former mixed martial artist (MMA), amateur wrestler, and professional American football player who holds both American and Canadian citizenship. He is ...

. In his first professional MMA bout Tuchscherer defeated

Krzysztof Soszynski Krzysztof Soszyński (; born August 2, 1977) is a Polish–Canadian actor and retired mixed martial artist. An 11-year competitor from 2003 until 2014, Soszynski fought in the UFC, Strikeforce, the Los Angeles Anacondas of the IFL, and was a co ...

by decision. Later in his career, he won the Dakota Fighting Championships Heavyweight Championship, and at Extreme Challenge 85 on October 6, 2007, Tuchscherer defeated Jimmy Ambriz for the EC Heavyweight Championship. He later participated at

YAMMA Pit Fighting Robert "Bob" Meyrowitz is the co-creator of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background In 1973, Meyrowitz was a founder of D.I.R. Broadcasting and a creator of the syndicated radio series, the King Biscuit Flower Hour. In the late 198 ...

's only event in a heavyweight tournament where he defeated both Tony Sylvester and Alexey Oleinik by unanimous decision before losing by unanimous decision in the final to

Travis Wiuff Travis James Wiuff (born March 15, 1978) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2001 and a longtime veteran of the sport, Wiuff has competed for the UFC, PRIDE, Bellat ...

. Tuchscherer then won the Max Fights Heavyweight Championship on July 19, 2008, by defeating Tony Mendoza at Max Fights 4 before defeating

Branden Lee Hinkle Branden Lee Hinkle is a retired American professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1998 until 2016, he competed for the UFC, RINGS, Vale Tudo Japan, Pancrase, the WEF, and the International Vale Tudo Championship. Back ...

on March 21, 2009, at "Beatdown 4" to win the first SNMAA heavyweight championship.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Chris Tuchscherer tried out for the tenth season of the Ultimate Fighting Championship's (UFC) reality show, ''

The Ultimate Fighter ''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...

''. The UFC scouts at the tryouts noticed Tuchscherer's professional record and decided to give him a fight at a UFC event rather than go through the show's tournament. As a result, Tuchscherer debuted with the UFC at ''

UFC 102 ''UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on August 29, 2009 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. It featured former five-time UFC champion and UFC Hall of Fa ...

'' against

Gabriel Gonzaga Gabriel Gonzaga Santos Nogueira (; born 18 May 1979) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist, who competed in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is perhaps best known for his upset head-kick knockout of ...

. Early in their fight Tuchscherer was hit with a hard kick to his groin by Gonzaga. Tuchscherer required several minutes to recover during which he nearly vomited. He managed to convince a group of officials that he was willing and able to continue in the fight. Following the restart of the match, Tuchscherer lost to Gonzaga by technical knockout at 2:27 of the first round. His next fight was with

Tim Hague Timothy Edward Lee Hague (May 9, 1983 – June 18, 2017) was a Canadian mixed martial artist and boxer who competed in the heavyweight division, most recently for Absolute Championship Berkut. He became a professional fighter in 2006, and formerl ...

who was coming off being the subject of the UFC's fastest knockout. Occurring on February 6, 2010 at ''

UFC 109 ''UFC 109: Relentless'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on February 6, 2010, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background A previously rumoured bout between Renzo Gracie and ...

'', Tuchscherer was once again faced with being on the receiving end of a low blow early in the first round. He managed to continue this time. However, conditioning for both fighters seemed to be poor as the action throughout the match was sporadic and they were visibly exhausted in the third round. Tuchscherer won the fight by majority decision (29–28, 29–28, and 28–28). On July 3, 2010, at ''

UFC 116 ''UFC 116: Lesnar vs. Carwin'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on July 3, 2010, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The show was voted as the Best Major Show in the 2010 Wrestling Observer ...

'', Tuchscherer faced

Brendan Schaub Brendan Peter Schaub (born March 18, 1983) is an American podcast host, former professional mixed martial artist, and stand-up comedian. He is the host of ''The Fighter and the Kid'' podcast, the ''Below the Belt with Brendan Schaub'' podcast, ...

. Tuchscherer lost the fight by TKO in the first round. Tuchscherer's next bout was against

Mark Hunt Mark Richard Hunt (born 23 March 1974) is a New Zealand former mixed martial artist and kickboxer of Samoan descent, currently living in Sydney, Australia. Hunt competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) until 2018 and was the winn ...

on February 27, 2011 at ''

UFC 127 ''UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Sunday, 27 February 2011 at Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia. Due to the time zone difference it aired live on Saturday, 26 February in Nort ...

''. Tuchscherer suffered his second consecutive loss when Hunt knocked him out at 1:41 into the second round. Following his loss to Hunt, Tuchscherer was released from the UFC.

Crowbar MMA

Chris Tuchscherer ran his own promotion, "Crowbar MMA", that held five events in

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...

and

Grand Forks, North Dakota Grand Forks is the third-largest city in the state of North Dakota (after Fargo and Bismarck) and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 59,166. Grand Forks, along with its twin city o ...

Personal life

Tuchscherer and his wife have a daughter and a son. Before becoming a professional fighter, Tuchscherer worked as a plumber.

Mixed martial arts record

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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 Vegas ...

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Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

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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 ...

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New Town, North Dakota New Town is a city in Mountrail County, North Dakota. The population was 2,764 at the time of the 2020 census, making it the 18th largest city in North Dakota. New Town was platted in 1950 as a replacement site for the residents of Sanish and ...

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North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

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, Decision (unanimous) , YAMMA Pit Fighting , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

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Oleksiy Oliynyk Aleksei Alexeyevich Oleinik (born June 25, 1977, as Oleksíy Oleksíyovych Olíynyk) is a Russian mixed martial artist and combat sambo fighter who fought for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, competing in their heavyweight division. He be ...

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Travis Fulton Travis Jon Fulton (May 29, 1977 – July 10, 2021) was an American mixed martial artist and a professional boxer in the heavyweight division of both sports. Known as a longtime veteran in mixed martial arts, he competed in over 300 sanctioned ...

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Bismarck, North Dakota Bismarck () is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the state's second-most populous city, after Fargo. The city's population was 73,622 in the 2020 census, while its metropolitan popula ...

, United States , Won EC Heavyweight Championship. , - , Win , align=center, 13–0 (1) , Matt Eckerle , TKO (punches) , DFC 9: Dakota vs. the World , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:17 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–0 (1) , Chuck Grigsby , TKO (punches) , DFC 8: Proving Grounds , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:49 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–0 (1) , Demian Decorah , TKO (punches) , DFC 7: Revolution , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:24 ,

, United States , , - , NC , align=center, 10–0 (1) , Josh Hendricks , NC (overturned) , Fightfest 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

Canton, Ohio Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...

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Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–0 , Jim Dobson , TKO (punches) , DFC 5: Legends of the Falls , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:55 ,

Thief River Falls, Minnesota Thief River Falls, sometimes referred to as Thief River or abbreviated as TRF, is a city in Pennington County in the northwest portion of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 8,749 at the 2020 census. Thief River Falls is the county ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0 , Matt Lafromboise , TKO (submission to punches) , NFA: Last Dam Fights , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:44 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Chris Clark , TKO (submission to punches) , DFC 4: Nowhere to Run , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:06 ,

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Brainerd, Minnesota Brainerd is a city in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States. Its population was 14,395 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Crow Wing County. Brainerd straddles the Mississippi River several miles upstream from its confluence with ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Marc Zee , TKO (punches) , DFC 3: Submission Impossible , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:25 ,

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Moorhead, Minnesota Moorhead () is a city in and county seat of Clay County, Minnesota, United States, on the banks of the Red River of the North. Located in the Red River Valley, an extremely fertile and active agricultural region, Moorhead is also home to several ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tuchscherer, Chris 1975 births Living people People from Rugby, North Dakota American male mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling American male sport wrestlers Minnesota State–Moorhead Dragons wrestlers Mixed martial artists from North Dakota Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters