Grégory "Cheetah" Choplin (born 15 November 1980 in Saint-Denis) is a French-Ivorian

Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...

and

Super Middleweight Super middleweight, or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing In professional boxing, super middleweight is contested between the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, in which boxers can weigh between 160 pounds ( ...

Muay Thai Muay Thai or Muaythai (, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, the Art of Eight Limbs or the Science of Eight Limbs, is a Thai martial art and full-contact combat sport that uses stand-up striking, sweeps, and various clinch fighting, cl ...

kickboxer Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid martial art and boxing type based on punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouth guards, shorts, and ...

. Choplin currently fights out of DEREK boxing in la Courneuve. He is from Saint-Denis, Paris, France. He is a two-time Muay Thai world champion who has had several title fights within the It's Showtime organization and is widely thought of as one of the top kickboxers in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Career

After winning titles at youth and amateur level, Choplin would he would turn professional at the age of 20 and won his first professional title, the French Class A championship, a few years later in 2004. The same year he was selected to represent France at the amateur world Muaythai championships in

Bangkok, Thailand Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

, reaching the semi-finals and claiming a bronze medal. Between 2001 and 2006 Choplin would be virtually unbeatable at home, having defeated top domestic talent such as Frank Nadje and

Yohan Lidon Yohan Lidon (born March 28, 1983) is a French Muay Thai kickboxer. He is a 3-time world champion in Muay Thai and kickboxing - including being the first ever List of It's Showtime champions, It's Showtime 73MAX world champion. As of July 2021, h ...

. In order to seek greater challenges, Gregory started to compete outside France where his growing reputation got him a world title shot against Vincent Vielvoye in 2006. Despite having beating Vielvoye a few months early (albeit with some controversy) Choplin was seen as the underdog in the battle for the W.P.K.L. belt. After four rounds, however, Gregory was the new champion, defeating the home fighter in front of a partisan Dutch crowd via

technical knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

. In 2007, Choplin would sign a professional contract with the It's Showtime organization, becoming the first and (so far) only Frenchman to sign a contract with the Dutch kickboxing giants. Signing with the organization meant Gregory would face the best fighters in Europe on a regular basis. That year he also won a second world title, defeating Jan de Keyzer in Santander to become the W.F.C.A. champion. In 2008 he would participate as a wildcard entry in the bi-annual It's Showtime 75MAX trophy, reaching the final where he lost to Dmitry Shakuta. He was also selected as a contestant for the It's Showtime Reality Show, reaching the semi-final stage only to lose to Brazilian Muay Thai supremo

Cosmo Alexandre Cosmo Alexandre Moreira da Rocha (born 24 April 1982) is a Brazilian professional kickboxer and mixed martial artist. He is a former It's Showtime 77MAX World Champion, WMC Intercontinental and WPMF World Champion, W5 World Champion. On 5 De ...

via a devastating knee KO after an extra round in what was an exciting fight. Gregory bounced back from his recent setups by picking up a number of useful domestic wins against Cédric Muller and

as well as winning several fights within the It's Showtime organization throughout 2008 and the start of 2009. These results got Choplin a rematch against previous conqueror Dmitry Shakuta for Dmitry's It's Showtime 77MAX title. Choplin was unable to gain revenge for his earlier loss in his failed bid for the title in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

, losing a hard five round contest. Throughout 2010 Gregory focused on the domestic scene picking up a good win against top local fighter Moussa Konate. In 2011 Choplin fought in America for the first time, being on the wrong end of an upset when he lost against Ky Hollenbeck - the winner getting a shot at Choplin's old foe

for the W.B.C. Muaythai world title. He faced Joe Valtellini at ''Lion Fight 7'' in Las Vegas on October 13, 2012, and won via decision. Choplin lost to

Yodsanklai Fairtex Yodthanong Photirat (; born born, July 1, 1985), known professionally as Yodsanklai Fairtex (), is a Thai former professional Muay Thai fighter and kickboxer. He is a former WBC Muay Thai World Super welterweight champion at 154 lbs, and a ...

by way of third-round KO at ''Lion Fight 8'' in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA on January 25, 2013. He bounced back with a points win over Gil Silva at ''Le Choc des Légendes 2013'' in Paris, France, on March 9, 2013. He was scheduled to fight Duochonlek at the ''WBC World Muay Thai Millennium Championship'' in Saint-Pierre, Réunion on September 7, 2013 but the card fell through. He defeated

Marco Piqué Marco "The Sniper" Piqué (born January 9, 1980) is a Surinamese-Netherlands, Dutch welterweight kickboxer, fighting out of Team Snipers in The Hague, Netherlands. He is the current World Full Contact Association Muay Thai middleweight world cham ...

via UD in the main event of ''Lion Fight 14'' in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on March 28, 2014. He faced Hichem Menaouine at ''Golden fight 3'' in La Courneuve on June 6, 2015, for the W.M.C (World Muaythai Council) title and won via decision. Choplin defeated Ramon Kübler by TKO(Cut) at 2R on April 14, 2016, at Espace Venise in Sarcelles, Val-d'Oise, France. He retained his WBC Muaythai World title

Titles

Professional

*World Boxing Council Muay Thai ** 2013 WBC Muay Thai Super Middleweight (168 lbs) World Champion *** One successful title defense *World Muaythai Council ** 2015 WMC World Super Middleweight (-76.2 kg) Champion * International Kickboxing Federation ** 2011 IKF Intercontinental Middleweight Champion * It's Showtime ** 2008 It's Showtime 75MAX Trophy Runner up World Full Contact Association ** 2007 W.F.C.A. Thai-boxing World -76.2 kg Champion *World Professional Kickboxing League ** 2006 W.P.K.L. Muaythai world champion -76 kg *Fédération française de muaythaï et disciplines associées ** 2004 French Muaythai Class A National -75kg Champion

Amateur

*2004 I.F.M.A. World Muaythai Championships in Bangkok, Thailand -75 kg

Fight record

, - style="background:#cfc;" , 2016-04-14 , , Win , , align=left, Ramon Kubler , , Soirée Boxe anglaise et Muaythai , , Sarcelles, France , , TKO (cut) , , 2 , , 2:55 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2015-06-06 , , Win , , align=left, Hichem Menaouine , , Golden Fight 3 , , La Courneuve, France , , Decision (unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2014-03-28 , , Win , , align=left, Marco Piqué , , Lion Fight 14 , ,

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County, Nevada, Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave De ...

, , Decision (unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2013-05-05 , , Win , , align=left, Luis Reis , , Championnat du Monde WBC Thai, ,

Aulnay-sous-Bois Aulnay-sous-Bois () is a Communes of France, commune in the Seine-Saint-Denis department in the Île-de-France region in the north-eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre zero of France. The commune has been awarded fo ...

, , Decision (unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2013-03-09 , , Win , , align=left, Gil Silva , , Le Choc des Légendes 2013 , ,

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, , Decision , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2013-01-25 , , Loss , , align=left,

, , Lion Fight 8 , ,

, , KO (punches) , , 3 , , 2:40 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2012-10-13 , , Win , , align=left, Joe Valtellini , , Lion Fight 7 , ,

, , Decision , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2012-04-21 , , Win , , align=left, Mohamed Abdellahim , , La Nuit des Combattants 2 , , Persan,

, , TKO , , 1 , , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2012-03-24 , , Win , , align=left, Chris Ngimbi , , Thaiboxing Showtime 3 , ,

Hazebrouck Hazebrouck (, , , ) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France. It was a small market town in Flanders until it became an important railway junction in the 1860s. West Flemish was the usual language until 1880, when French was taught ...

, , Decision (Unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2011-05-14 , , Win , , align=left, Chaz Mulkey , , Battle in the Desert 5 , , Las Vegas, NV, USA , , Decision (Unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2011-12-07 , , Loss , , align=left,

, , A1 WCC Lyon , ,

Lyon, France Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

, , TKO (Doctor Stoppage) , , 4 , , , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2011-11-12 , , Loss , , align=left, Abdallah Mabel , , La 18ème Nuit des Champions , ,

Marseille, France Marseille (; ; see below) is a city in southern France, the prefecture of the department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the Provence region, it is located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, ...

, , Decision (Split) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2011-09-10 , , Win , , align=left, Dave Zuniga , , Canadian Fighting Championship 7 , ,

Winnipeg, Canada Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, , TKO (Punches) , , 2 , , , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2011-05-14 , , Loss , , align=left,

Ky Hollenbeck Ky Conrad Hollenbeck (born June 17, 1987) is an American Muay Thai kickboxer who competes in the middleweight division. He won national and North American titles as an amateur in his teens before turning professional in 2007 and beating Billy E ...

, , Battle in the Desert 2 , , Primm, NV, USA , , Decision (Unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2011-01-07 , , Win , , align=left, Rachid Boumalek , , Fight in Spirit , , Epernay, France , , KO , , 3 , , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2010-06-10 , , Win , , align=left, Jonathan Camara , , Ultimate Thai 5 , ,

, , Decision (Unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2010-04-24 , , Win , , align=left,

Moussa Konaté Moussa Konaté may refer to: * Moussa Konaté (writer), a Malian writer * Moussa Konaté (kickboxer), a French Muay Thai kickboxer * Moussa Konaté (footballer), a Senegalese footballer {{disambiguation ...

, , Fight Zone 4 , , Villeurbanne, France , , Decision (Unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2009-08-29 , , Loss , , align=left, Dmitry Shakuta , , It's Showtime 2009 Budapest , ,

Budapest, Hungary Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

, , Decision , , 5 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2009-03-14 , , Win , , align=left, Franco Lazarro , , Oktagon presents: It's Showtime 2009 , ,

Milan, Italy Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

, , Decision (Unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2008-12-06 , , Win , , align=left, Cédric Muller , , Le Choc Des Légendes III , ,

, , TKO (Cut) , , 3 , , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2008-09-06 , , Win , , align=left, William Etzler , ,

It's Showtime 2008 Alkmaar This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a Japanese kickboxing promotion. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993, at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. Since its inception, K-1 events were organized by the Fi ...

, , Alkmaar, Netherlands , , TKO (Ref Stop/3 Knockdowns) , , 1 , , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2008-06-07 , , Win , , align=left,

, , La Nuit des Challenges 5 , ,

, , Decision (Unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2008-03-15 , , Loss , , align=left, Dmitry Shakuta , , It's Showtime Trophy Final '08, Final , ,

's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 160,783. It is the capital of ...

, , Decision , , 3 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2008-03-15 , , Win , , align=left, Mohammed Rahhaoui , , It's Showtime Trophy Final '08, Semi-final , ,

, , Decision , , 3 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2008-03-15 , , Win , , align=left,

Alviar Lima Alviar "The Machine" Lima (born 23 March 1978) is a Cape Verdean-Dutch retired kickboxer who fought out of Rotterdam, Netherlands. He made his K-1 debut against Warren Stevelmans in K-1 MAX Netherlands 2008 The Final Qualification. Career Lima ...

, , It's Showtime Trophy Final '08, Quarter-final , ,

, , Decision (Unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2007-12-23 , , Loss , , align=left,

, , It's Showtime Reality, Tournament Semifinals , , Koh Samui, Thailand , , Ext.R KO (Knee) , , 4 , , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2007-12-23 , , Win , , align=left, Som Lee Nonthing, , It's Showtime Reality, Tournament Quarterfinals , , Koh Samui, Thailand , , , , , , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2007-09-17 , , Win , , align=left,

Murthel Groenhart Murthel Cyrill Dwyth Groenhart (born October 10, 1986) is a Dutch-Surinamese kickboxer and mixed martial artist. Groenhart is the 2012 K-1 World MAX World Championship Tournament Champion and former Glory Welterweight Champion. Kickboxing ca ...

, , It's Showtime Reality, Tournament First Round , , Koh Samui, Thailand , , Decision (Unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2007-06-30 , , Win , , align=left, Jan de Keyzer , , W.F.C.A. Gala , ,

Santander, Spain Santander ( , ; ) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain. It has a population of 172,000 (2017). It is a port city located in the northern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, facing the Cantab ...

, , Decision , , 5 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2007-03-24 , , Loss , , align=left, Mohammed Rahhaoui , , Fights at the Border V, Elimination Fight , ,

Lommel, Belgium Lommel () is a municipality and city in the Belgian province of Limburg. Lying in the Kempen, it has about 34,000 inhabitants and is part of the arrondissement of Maaseik. Besides the residential town, Lommel also has a number of nature reserv ...

, , Decision , , 3 , , 3:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2006-04-15 , , Win , , align=left, Vincent Vielvoye , , East Side 5 , , Gorinchem, Netherlands , , TKO , , 4 , , , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2006-02-18 , , Win , , align=left, Vincent Vielvoye , , It's Showtime 2006 Belgium , , Mortsel, Belgium , , Decision , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2005-10-22 , , Win , , align=left,

, , La Nuit des Superfights II , , Villebon, France , , Decision (Unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2005-05-07 , , Win , , align=left, Frank Nadje , , La Nuit des Superfights , , Villebon, France , , Decision (Unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2004-04-24 , , Win , , align=left, Adel Louail, , Finale Championnat de France , ,

, , TKO , , 3 , , , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2004-04-14 , , Win , , align=left, Khadda Redouani , , 1/2 Finale Championnats de France , ,

, , Decision (majority), , 4 , , 2:00 , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2002-11-30 , , Loss , , align=left, Cico Zerbini , , Kickboxing Mondiale 3 , , Padova, Italy , , Decision , , 5 , , 2:00 , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'': , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2006-11-10 , , Loss , , align=left, Dimitry Kirpan , , I.F.M.A. Muaythai World Championships '04, Semi-final -75 kg , ,

, , Decision , , 4 , , 2:00 , - ! style="background:white" colspan=9 , , - style="background:#cfc;" , 2006-11-08 , , Win , , align=left, Kazimbek , , I.F.M.A. Muaythai World Championships '04, Quarter-final -75 kg , ,

, , Decision , , 4 , , 2:00 , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'':

References

External links

Gregory Choplin , FacebookDEREK boxing , Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Choplin, Gregory 1980 births Living people French male kickboxers Middleweight kickboxers French male Muay Thai practitioners French sportspeople of Ivorian descent Sportspeople from Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis Black French sportspeople 21st-century French sportsmen