Rosemary Ann Sexton (born 16 July 1977) is a British athlete, sports therapist, osteopath, and politician. She had a career in

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 ...

(MMA), from which she retired in 2014. In 2020, Sexton ran in the Green Party leadership election and came second.

Education and early life

Sexton was born in

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

, France but moved to Britain at a young age, and grew up and received her education in the United Kingdom. She attended

Kendrick School Kendrick School is a selective girls' grammar school situated in the centre of Reading, Berkshire, UK. In February 2011, Kendrick became an Academy. History The school is named after John Kendrick, a Reading cloth merchant who died in 1624. ...

, Reading. Her father commented "what consistently runs through Rosi’s life is winning: she has a need to win. Her physics teacher said ‘Rosi has a meticulous approach to her studies and nothing short of perfection satisfies her' ".

Music

Sexton was a musician and played with the Reading Youth Orchestra while at school (from 1991 to 1995). She reached grade 7 in cello and grade 8 in piano, then became an Associate of the

London College of Music Examinations London College of Music Examinations (LCM Examinations) is an examinations board offering graded and diploma qualifications in music, and in drama & communication. The board is a department of the London College of Music (LCM), a school within th ...

(piano). In November 1994, aged 17, she played in the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

, with the Reading Youth Orchestra. She also played the organ ("though I never got very good").

Mathematics

In 1995, Sexton was admitted to

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

, where she took a first class degree in mathematics (1998). Her tutor in mathematics was

Tim Gowers Sir William Timothy Gowers, (; born 20 November 1963) is a British mathematician. He is Professeur titulaire of the Combinatorics chair at the Collège de France, and director of research at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Trinity Co ...

. She preferred pure maths: her particular interests were logic, combinatorics and number theory. She then moved to the University of Manchester, where she achieved a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

(MSc) degree in

mathematical logic Mathematical logic is the study of logic, formal logic within mathematics. Major subareas include model theory, proof theory, set theory, and recursion theory. Research in mathematical logic commonly addresses the mathematical properties of for ...

in 2000. She went on to complete a PhD in theoretical computer science. Her supervisor was Harold Simmons who held a joint position in the

School of Mathematics The Department of Mathematics at the University of Manchester is one of the largest unified mathematics departments in the United Kingdom, with over 90 academic staff and an undergraduate intake of roughly 400 students per year (including students ...

and the Department of Computer Science, with whom she wrote two papers ''Point-sensitive and point-free patch constructions''. and ''An ordinal indexed hierarchy of separation properties''. The first of these papers has eight citations. Sexton's academic interests have been discussed in an interview by

David Colquhoun David Colquhoun (born 19 July 1936) is a British pharmacologist at University College London (UCL). He has contributed to the general theory of receptor and synaptic mechanisms, and in particular the theory and practice of single ion channel f ...

Political activity

In May 2019, Sexton was elected as a

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

councillor in the Shirley West ward of the Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council. In the same election, her partner Stephen Caudwell was elected as Green Party councillor for the Castle Bromwich ward. She ran in

Solihull Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blythe i ...

as a parliamentary candidate in the 2019 general election, losing to Julian Knight and coming in fourth with 3.7% of the vote. On 28 June 2020, it was announced that Sexton would stand as a candidate in the Green Party of England and Wales leadership election
A website
was created for her campaign. The results were announced on 9 September 2020: Sexton came second, beaten by incumbent leaders

Jonathan Bartley Jonathan Charles Bartley (born 16 October 1971) is a British politician and was Co-Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, a position he shared with Caroline Lucas and then, from 4 September 2018, with Siân Berry. He was the Green Pa ...

and

Siân Berry Siân Rebecca Berry (born 9 July 1974) is a British politician who served as Co-Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales alongside Jonathan Bartley from 2018 to 2021, and as its sole leader from July to October 2021. From 2006 to 2007, s ...

Mixed martial arts career

Sexton had been involved in martial arts since she was at school. She already held dan grades in jujutsu and Taekwondo. In 2000, after 10 years' experience in martial arts, she decided to train in Mixed Martial Arts and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, as a way of proving to herself that what she had learned was applicable to real life. A clue to the reason for this career change may be found in her comment "The other things I did, the music, the maths, just weren't quite hard enough" At the same time, she trained in osteopathy, receiving a degree in that subject from

Oxford Brookes University Oxford Brookes University (formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic (United Kingdom), Polytechnic) is a public university, public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and High ...

in 2010. She currently practices as an Osteopath in the Birmingham (Solihull) area, with a particular interest in sports injuries and evidence-based practice. She has written about the problem of performance-enhancing drugs (doping) in combat sports, and is a supporter of the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association, VADA. She is a spokesperson for SafeMMA, an organisation dedicated to ensuring safety of competitors, and she runs a combat sports injury clinic. In 2018, aged 41, she was promoted to black belt in BJJ by Paul Rimmer.

Early MMA career

Sexton made her mixed martial arts debut on 11 May 2002. She won her first five fights before moving up in weight to face

Gina Carano Gina Joy Carano (born April 16, 1982) is an American actress and former mixed martial artist. She competed in EliteXC and Strikeforce from 2006 to 2009, where she compiled a 7–1 record. Her popularity led to her being called the "face of wome ...

on 15 September 2006. Sexton was defeated by knockout late in the second round.

BodogFight

Sexton debuted for BodogFight on 16 December 2006 and upset Brazilian submission specialist Carina Damm with an armbar late in the first round. On 17 February 2007, Sexton faced Japanese striker "Windy" Tomomi Sunaba at a BodogFight event in Costa Rica. Sexton won the fight by Technical Decision in the second round after Sunaba suffered a serious ankle injury. Sexton fought once more for BodogFight and submitted

Julia Berezikova Julia Berezikova ( rus, Юлия Березикова, Julija Berezikova; born ) is a Russian female mixed martial artist and boxer. In February, 2014 she was the #7-ranked 125-pound female fighter in the world according to the Unified Women's MM ...

on 24 August 2007.

EliteXC

Sexton signed an exclusive three-fight contract with

Elite XC Elite Xtreme Combat, also known as EliteXC, was a United States-based mixed martial arts (MMA) organization owned and operated by ProElite. It was founded as a partnership between Showtime Networks and ProElite and officially announced on Decembe ...

in June 2008. She faced

Debi Purcell Deborah Ann Purcell is a retired American female mixed martial artist. She was formerly an assistant coach to the Southern California Condors of the International Fight League. Early life Purcell was involved in cheerleading, dance and competiti ...

at the 15 August 2008

ShoXC ''ShoXC'' is a mixed martial arts series produced by the mixed martial arts organization EliteXC, Showtime and Proelite.com. The series was announced on July 11, 2007. The purpose of the show is to highlight up and coming MMA fighters. On Oct ...

event in

Friant, California Friant (formerly, Converse Ferry, Jones Ferry, Hamptonville, and Pollasky) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fresno County, California, United States. The population was 549 at the 2010 census, down from 778 at the 2000 census. Friant is locat ...

and defeated Purcell by split decision.

Bellator Fighting Championships

Following the demise of Elite XC, Sexton debuted for Bellator Fighting Championships at

Bellator 12 2009 in Bellator MMA was the first installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships (Bellator FC)-produced series. It started broadcasting April 3, 2009, through an exclusive television agreement with ESPN Deportes. The episodes had a one-day ...

on 19 June 2009. She submitted Valerie Coolbaugh with an armbar in the first round. Sexton was scheduled to face

Angela Magaña Angela Magaña (born August 2, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). She is also known for competing on The Ultimate Fighter 20 for Team Melende ...

at CWFC 37: Right To Fight on 22 May 2010, but Magana suffered an injury and Sexton was matched against

Emi Fujino is a Japanese female mixed martial artist, kickboxer and professional wrestler, occasionally nicknamed . Background Fujino was born on in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. After graduating from college, she started training in Japanese style of catch ...

. However, due to Sexton's re-signing with Bellator, her CWFC fight was cancelled. Sexton faced

Zoila Gurgel ''Zoila'' is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose o ...

Bellator 23 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 ...

on 24 June. She was defeated by knockout exactly two minutes into the first round. As a result of the knockout loss, Sexton was given a 60-day medical suspension and did not compete in the Bellator women's 115-pound tournament.

Cage Warriors Fighting Championship

Sexton returned to face Sally Krumdiack at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 39 on 27 November 2010 in Cork, Ireland. She won via TKO in the second round. Sexton faced

Roxanne Modafferi Roxanne Vincenta Modafferi (born September 24, 1982) is an American retired mixed martial artist, who most recently fought for the UFC. Though she last fought in the flyweight division, she has fought in multiple weight classes in her career. A p ...

at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 40 on 26 February 2011. She defeated Modafferi by unanimous decision. Sexton was scheduled to face

Sheila Gaff Sheila (alternatively spelled Shelagh and Sheelagh) is a common feminine given name, derived from the Irish name ''Síle'', which is believed to be a Gaelic form of the Latin name Caelia, the feminine form of the Roman clan name Caelius, meani ...

at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 43 on 9 July 2011 for the Cage Warriors Women's Super Flyweight Championship at 125 pounds. However, she suffered a concussion during training and was forced to withdraw from the fight. On 2 June 2012, Sexton faced

Aisling Daly Aisling Daly ( ; born 24 December 1987) is a retired Irish female professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the UFC women's strawweight division. Daly had been a professional MMA competitor since 2007. Daly is well known for her ...

at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 47. The bout was part of a tournament to crown a

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 Warrio ...

125-pound women's champion. Sexton defeated Daly by unanimous decision to advance to the tournament final. Sexton was scheduled to face

in the finals at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 49 on 27 October 2012 in

Cardiff, Wales Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

. Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) drug testing was used in the weeks prior to the planned fight. However, the bout was cancelled on 19 October when Gaff withdrew due to illness.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Sexton moved up in weight to make her UFC debut in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada on the

UFC 161 ''UFC 161: Evans vs. Henderson'' was a mixed martial arts event held on June 15, 2013, at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Background While the UFC has hosted several events in the past in Canada, the event was the first that the or ...

card against Alexis Davis on 15 June 2013. Sexton lost the fight by unanimous decision (29–28, 29–27, and 29–28). On 26 October 2013, Sexton returned to the Octagon and faced

Jéssica Andrade Jéssica Fernanda da Costa Andrade (born September 25, 1991) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. Andrade is currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where she competes in the women's Flyweight division and is a ...

UFC Fight Night 30 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 MM ...

. She lost the fight via unanimous decision (30–26, 30–27, and 30–26). Sexton was released from the promotion shortly after the fight. On 21 June 2014, Sexton announced her retirement from MMA competition.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 13–5 , Joanna Jędrzejczyk , KO (punch) , Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 69 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:36 ,

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 , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–4 ,

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

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–3 , Alexis Davis , Decision (unanimous) ,

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

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 13–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Cage Warriors: 47 , , 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, 12–2 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Cage Warriors: 40 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nort ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 11–2 , Sally Krumdiack , TKO (punches) , Cage Warriors 39: The Uprising , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:07 ,

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

, Ireland , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–2 ,

Zoila Frausto Gurgel Zoila Frausto (born December 10, 1983) is an American professional female mixed martial artist and kickboxer. Her nickname comes from the popular 1990s TV series Xena: Warrior Princess. She was the first Bellator Women's Champion. Background ...

, KO (knee and punches) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:00 ,

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–1 , Valerie Coolbaugh , Submission (armbar) ,

, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:40 ,

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 ,

, Decision (split) , ShoXC: Hamman vs. Suganuma 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:00 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 ,

, Submission (armbar) , BodogFight: Vancouver , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:49 ,

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, Canada , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Tomomi Sunaba , Technical Decision (unanimous) , BodogFight: Costa Rica , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:05 , San José, Costa Rica , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Carina Damm , Submission (armbar) , BodogFight: St. Petersburg , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:15 ,

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

, Russia , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–1 ,

, KO (punch) , World Pro Fighting Championships , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:55 ,

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, 5–0 , Dina Van den Hooven , TKO (corner stoppage) , CWFC: Strike Force 4 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

English Midlands The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Kelli Salone , Submission (armbar) , P & G 1: Pride and Glory 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:45 ,

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

, Wales , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Carla O'Sullivan , Submission (rear-naked choke) , CWFC 3: Cage Warriors 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Serena Saunders , Submission (armbar) , CWFC 1: Armageddon , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:40 ,

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Angela Boyce , Submission (armbar) , G & S 5: Grapple & Strike 5 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, N/A ,

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

, England ,

Mixed martial arts achievements

* Cage Warriors Women's 132 lbs Champion (2005) * BodogFight Women's 125 lbs Champion * First

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

woman to fight in 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 ...

Personal life

Sexton has one son. In 2010, she qualified as an osteopath after completing her BSc Osteopathy degree at

. She has a passion for climbing and in 2017 climbed the highest artificial climbing wall in the world, Luzzone Dam, in Switzerland. The climb was sponsored for the benefit of the

Mind The mind is the set of faculties responsible for all mental phenomena. Often the term is also identified with the phenomena themselves. These faculties include thought, imagination, memory, will, and sensation. They are responsible for various m ...

charity.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sexton, Rosi 1977 births British sportsperson-politicians English female mixed martial artists Female Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners English female taekwondo practitioners English jujutsuka Mixed martial artists utilizing jujutsu Mixed martial artists utilizing taekwondo Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu English practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Living people Flyweight mixed martial artists People educated at Kendrick School People associated with the Department of Computer Science, University of Manchester Alumni of the University of Manchester Osteopaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Bantamweight mixed martial artists British sports physicians Councillors in the West Midlands (county) Green Party of England and Wales parliamentary candidates Green Party of England and Wales councillors British politicians of Chinese descent English people of Chinese descent Women councillors in England Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters