Luke Rockhold facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Luke Rockhold
Luke Rockhold at UFC 229 press conference in October 2018
Born	Luke Skyler Rockhold (1984-10-17) October 17, 1984 (age 40) Santa Cruz, California, U.S.
Nationality	American
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st)
Division	Middleweight (2007–2018, 2022) Light Heavyweight (2019)
Reach	77 in (196 cm)
Style	Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Stance	Southpaw
Fighting out of	San Jose, California, U.S.
Team	American Kickboxing Academy RVCA Training Center Sanford MMA
Trainer	Javier Mendez Henri Hooft Jason Parillo
Rank	1st degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Leandro Vieira and Dave Camarillo
Years active	2007–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total	22
Wins	16
By knockout	6
By submission	8
By decision	2
Losses	6
By knockout	5
By decision	1

Luke Rockhold

Medal record
Representing  United States
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
World No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu Championship
Gold	2007 Long Beach	91.5kg
World Jiu-Jitsu Championship
Gold	2007 Long Beach	94.3kg
Pan American Jiu-Jitsu Championship
Silver	2006 Long Beach	88.3kg

Luke Skyler Rockhold (born October 17, 1984) is an American retired mixed martial artist. He is currently signed with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship and Karate Combat. He used to compete for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). There, he was a UFC Middleweight Champion. Rockhold also fought in Strikeforce. He was the last Strikeforce Middleweight Champion. This was before Strikeforce joined the UFC.

About Luke Rockhold

Luke Rockhold was born on October 17, 1984. His hometown is Santa Cruz, California. He came from a very athletic family. His older brother, Matt, was a professional surfer. Luke's father played professional basketball in Europe. His mother was a keen tennis player.

Luke started training in judo when he was six years old. He stopped when he turned ten. In seventh grade, he joined his school's wrestling team. He continued wrestling through Soquel High School. At the same time, he took jiu-jitsu classes.

Rockhold tried wrestling at a community college. But he decided to focus on jiu-jitsu full-time. After winning some BJJ tournaments, he chose to try mixed martial arts. In 2006, a friend invited him to train. This was at the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) in San Jose, California.

Mixed Martial Arts Journey

Fighting in Strikeforce

The growing fight promotion Strikeforce invited Rockhold to fight. His first fight was at Strikeforce: Young Guns II. Rockhold showed great skill in his first match. He made his opponent give up by using punches. Strikeforce was impressed and offered him another fight.

His second fight was at Strikeforce: Destruction. Rockhold won this fight by making his opponent submit. At Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz, he won his third fight in a row. Rockhold then faced a tougher opponent, Cory Devela. This was at Strikeforce Challengers: Villasenor vs. Cyborg. Even though he was not expected to win, he won in just 30 seconds. He used a rear-naked choke, his third in a row.

At Strikeforce Challengers: Gurgel vs. Evangelista, Rockhold beat Jesse Taylor. This made his record 5–0 in Strikeforce. In February 2010, Rockhold defeated Paul Bradley. He won by TKO (technical knockout) using knees to the body. This fight was at Strikeforce Challengers: Kaufman vs. Hashi. After this win, Rockhold wanted to fight more famous opponents. He was also announced as a character in the EA Sports MMA video game.

Becoming the Middleweight Champion

After being out for over a year and a half due to injuries, Rockhold returned. He fought Strikeforce Middleweight champion Ronaldo Souza. This fight happened on September 10, 2011. Rockhold won by a unanimous decision. He became the new Strikeforce Middleweight Champion.

For his first title defense, Rockhold faced Keith Jardine. This was at Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine on January 7, 2012. Rockhold won the fight by TKO in the first round.

In his second title defense, Rockhold fought Tim Kennedy. This was the main event at Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Kennedy on July 14, 2012. Rockhold successfully defended his title again. He won the fight by unanimous decision. He was supposed to defend his title a third time against Lorenz Larkin. But Rockhold had to pull out due to an injury. The event was later cancelled.

Joining the Ultimate Fighting Championship

In January 2013, the Strikeforce organization closed down. Luke Rockhold was one of the fighters chosen to join the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Rockhold's first UFC fight was against Vitor Belfort. This happened on May 18, 2013, at UFC on FX 8. He lost the fight by knockout in the first round.

Rockhold was set to fight Tim Boetsch at UFC 166. But he had to withdraw because of a knee injury. He was replaced by another fighter. Rockhold then faced Costas Philippou on January 15, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 35. He won by TKO in the first round. He knocked Philippou down with a kick to the body. This win also earned him a "Knockout of the Night" bonus. Rockhold eventually fought Tim Boetsch on April 26, 2014, at UFC 172. He won this fight by submission in the first round.

Rockhold fought Michael Bisping on November 8, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 55. He won in the second round. He dropped Bisping with a head kick and then used a guillotine choke. This win earned Rockhold his first "Performance of the Night" bonus.

On April 18, 2015, Rockhold faced former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida. This was at UFC on Fox 15. Rockhold defeated Machida by submission in the second round. He also earned his second "Performance of the Night" bonus.

Becoming the UFC Middleweight Champion

Rockhold then challenged Chris Weidman for the UFC Middleweight Championship. This big fight was on December 12, 2015, at UFC 194. Rockhold won by technical knockout in the fourth round. He became the seventh middleweight champion in UFC history. Both fighters received "Fight of the Night" honors. After the fight, Rockhold shared that he had been battling an infection. This made him very tired during the later rounds. Because he became a UFC champion, his hometown of Santa Cruz, California, declared December 18 as "Luke Rockhold Day."

After the Championship

A rematch with Weidman was planned for June 4, 2016, at UFC 199. However, Weidman pulled out due to an injury. Michael Bisping replaced him. Rockhold's title match against Bisping ended in the first round. Rockhold was knocked down and then finished with punches. Many in the MMA world saw this as a huge upset. Bisping took the fight on short notice and had lost to Rockhold before.

Rockhold was scheduled for a rematch with Ronaldo Souza on November 27, 2016. But Rockhold had to withdraw due to an injury.

Rockhold faced David Branch on September 16, 2017. This was after being away from fighting for almost 15 months due to injuries. He won the fight by making Branch give up from his punches in the second round.

Rockhold was set to fight UFC Middleweight Champion Robert Whittaker. This was on February 10, 2018, at UFC 221. But Whittaker pulled out due to a serious infection. Yoel Romero replaced him for an interim title fight. Romero missed weight for the fight. So, even if he won, he could not become champion. Romero knocked Rockhold out in the third round.

Rockhold was briefly linked to a fight with Alexander Gustafsson. But Rockhold re-injured his leg during training. A rematch with Chris Weidman was expected on November 3, 2018, at UFC 230. However, Rockhold withdrew due to an injury. Ronaldo Souza replaced him.

Moving to Light Heavyweight

In December 2018, Rockhold announced he would move up to light heavyweight. This was because cutting weight for middleweight had become very hard and caused injuries. Rockhold's light heavyweight debut was against Jan Błachowicz. This happened on July 6, 2019, at UFC 239. Rockhold lost the fight by knockout in the second round.

Later Career (2021 and beyond)

After a two-year break, Rockhold was expected to fight Sean Strickland. This was a middleweight bout on November 6, 2021, at UFC 268. However, Rockhold withdrew due to a herniated disc.

Rockhold was scheduled to face Paulo Costa on July 30, 2022. The fight was moved to August 20, at UFC 278. Rockhold lost the fight by unanimous decision. This fight earned him the "Fight of the Night" award. Rockhold retired from mixed martial arts after this fight. Even though he retired from MMA, he has shown interest in boxing.

In January 2023, Rockhold announced he had left his UFC contract. He said he would come out of retirement to compete in another MMA organization.

Hardcore FC Fight Show

Luke Rockhold and Tyron Woodley coached fighters. This was for a Hardcore FC Fight Show reality TV series. It was filmed in the United Arab Emirates in April and May of 2024.

Global Fight League

On December 11, 2024, it was announced that Rockhold signed with Global Fight League. He was scheduled to face Chris Weidman in a rematch. However, in April 2025, all GFL events were cancelled.

Other Combat Sports

Professional Grappling

Rockhold competed against Nick Rodriguez at Polaris 12. This was on November 30, 2019. He lost by a unanimous decision.

Rockhold was set to face Craig Jones in a grappling match. This was at Israel Fight Night on September 21, 2023. But the event was cancelled.

Rockhold competed in the over 80kg division of the first Craig Jones Invitational. This was on August 16 and 17, 2024. He lost to Pat Downey by decision in the first round.

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship

On March 1, 2023, BKFC president Dave Feldman announced Rockhold signed with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. He made his debut against Mike Perry. This was at BKFC 41 on April 29, 2023. He retired during the fight, losing by technical knockout.

Karate Combat

Rockhold made his Karate Combat debut against Joe Schilling. This was on April 20, 2024, at Karate Combat 45 in Dubai. He won the fight by a right hook knockout in the third round.

Boxing

On July 16, 2025, Rockhold announced his professional boxing debut. He will fight English mixed martial artist Darren Till. This fight will headline Misfits 22 – Ring of Thrones. The bout is scheduled for August 30, 2025. It will take place at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. They will fight for the first in-house bridgerweight title.

Other Activities

Modeling Career

Rockhold signed with Soul Artist Management. This is a New York model management agency. It is the same agency that found fellow UFC fighter Alan Jouban. It also helped start the career of Channing Tatum. Luke has since had his first professional modeling photos released. His modeling career quickly grew. He said he would be fine taking a break from fighting to focus on modeling. He has also modeled at New York Fashion Week.

Face of Ralph Lauren Cologne

In 2018, Rockhold became the new face of Ralph Lauren's "Polo Blue" cologne.

Personal Life

Luke Rockhold enjoys surfing and skateboarding. He is also a professional model. He has modeled at New York Fashion Week. He is also the face of Ralph Lauren's "Polo Blue" fragrance.

Championships and Accomplishments

Mixed Martial Arts

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • UFC Middleweight Championship (One time)
  • Fight of the Night (Two times) vs. Chris Weidman and Paulo Costa
  • Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. Costas Philippou
  • Performance of the Night (Two times) vs. Michael Bisping and Lyoto Machida
  • UFC.com Awards
    • 2014: Ranked #6 Fighter of the Year & Ranked #4 Submission of the Year vs. Tim Boetsch
    • 2015: Ranked #6 Fighter of the Year
• Strikeforce
  • Strikeforce Middleweight Championship (One time; final)
    • Two successful title defenses
  • Tied most finishes in Strikeforce history (7)
  • Most submissions in Strikeforce history (5)
• Sherdog.com
  • 2015 All-Violence First Team
  • 2014 Submission of the Year vs. Tim Boetsch
  • 2014 All-Violence First Team
• Fight Matrix.com
  • 2015 Upset of the Year vs. Chris Weidman
  • 2015 Most Noteworthy Match of the Year vs. Chris Weidman

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

• International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation
  • 2007 IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Championships Purple Belt No-Gi Gold Medalist
  • 2007 IBJJF World Jiu-Jitsu Championships Blue Belt Gold Medalist
  • 2006 IBJJF Pan American Championships Blue Belt Silver Medalist

Mixed Martial Arts Record

Bare Knuckle Record

Karate Combat Record

Boxing Record

Pay-per-view Bouts

MMA

Bare Knuckle Boxing

Boxing

See also

In Spanish: Luke Rockhold para niños

• List of Strikeforce alumni
• List of male mixed martial artists