Rory Markham

Rory Markham (born March 25, 1982) is an American professional mixed martial artist, stuntman and actor who most recently competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2003, currently fighting in XFO MMA. Markham has also formerly competed for the IFL, representing the Quad Cities Silverbacks.

Background

An experienced martial artist from a young age, Markham began training in Shidokan Karate at the age of six before later transitioning into Kenpo. At the age of 13, Markham began training in Kyokushin and began fighting in full-contact competitions when he was 15, winning all of his matches by knockout despite often being paired against much older opponents. Markham also began competing in boxing at the age of 17, holding an undefeated amateur record of 10-0. Markham later became affiliated with Pat Miletich.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

In 2003, Markham made his professional mixed martial arts debut, winning via first-round knockout. Markham would go on to compile a record of 8-2, competing in the regional circuit, before being invited to compete in the International Fight League for the Quad Cities Silverbacks, under his coach at the Miletich Fighting Systems, Pat Miletich.

IFL

Markham made his IFL debut at IFL: Legends Championship 2006 on April 29, 2006, against veteran Mike Pyle. Markham won in 44 seconds via knockout.

Markham followed this up with three more wins in the promotion all via KO/TKO over Brad Blackburn, Marcelo Acevedo, and Keith Wisniewski, respectively, before facing future UFC veteran Chris Wilson at the IFL: Championship Final. Markham was handed his first defeated inside of the promotion via TKO in the first round. Markham soon bounced back with two more knockout wins over Pat Healy and Chris Clements, respectively, before being defeated via second-round knockout at the hands of Brett Cooper at the IFL: World Grand Prix Finals.

Post-IFL

After the demise of the IFL, Markham fought for Adrenaline MMA's inaugural event on June 14, 2008, facing veteran Jay Ellis. Markham won via triangle choke submission in the first round.

UFC

With an overall 15-4 professional record, Markham was signed by the UFC. Markham made his debut at UFC Fight Night 14 on July 19, 2008 against Canadian Brodie Farber. After almost being finished early on in the fight, Markham knocked out Farber with a head kick. This victory earned him a Knockout of the Night award and was a nominee on Sherdog.com for "Knockout of the Year" and "Comeback of the Year".

In his next appearance, Markham faced British fighter Dan Hardy at UFC 95 on February 20, 2009 in London, England. Markham was knocked out with a left hook in the first round. Markham was then expected to face Martin Kampmann at UFC 108 on January 2, 2010, but pulled out due to a knee injury.

Markham then fought at UFC 111 on March 27, 2010 against Nate Diaz. After Markham was six pounds overweight at the weigh-ins, the fight was made a catchweight bout 177 lbs and was fined $1,000 as a result. This was significant as it was only the second time a fighter training with the Miletich Fighting Systems didn't make weight in 15 years. Markham was defeated via TKO in the first round and was released by the promotion.

Post-UFC

After being released from the UFC, Markham signed with Bellator and was expected to make his promotional debut at Bellator 26 against Steve Carl on August 26, 2010 for a spot in the Season Four Welterweight Tournament. However, Markham pulled out due to not being cleared to fight.

Markham was next expected to face Rudy Bears at Titan FC 18 on May 27, 2011 but withdrew from the fight. Markham was most recently scheduled to fight on June 16, 2012 against Jon Kirk at Battle Xtreme Championship but the fight was cancelled.

Film

Markham is a trained actor and member of the Screen Actors Guild. His films include The Death and Life of Bobby Z with Paul Walker and Laurence Fishburne; The Experiment with Adrien Brody and Forest Whitaker; Setup with Bruce Willis, 50 Cent, and Ryan Phillippe; and Alex Cross with Tyler Perry and Matthew Fox.

Filmography

Year	Title	Film/Television	Role	Other notes
2012	Alex Cross	Film	Nonied Soscheck
2011	Setup	Film	Markus
2010	The Experiment	Film	Wally Ziolkowski
2007	The Death and Life of Bobby Z	Film	Half-Blood

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
23 matches	17 wins	6 losses
By knockout	12	6
By submission	5	0
By decision	0	0

Res.	Record	Opponent	Method	Event	Date	Round	Time	Location	Notes
Loss	16–6	Nate Diaz	TKO (punches)	UFC 111	000000002010-03-27-0000March 27, 2010	1	2:47	Newark, New Jersey, United States	Catchweight bout of 177 lbs.
Loss	16–5	Dan Hardy	KO (punch)	UFC 95	000000002009-02-20-0000February 20, 2009	1	1:09	London, England, United Kingdom
Win	16–4	Brodie Farber	KO (head kick)	UFC Fight Night 14	000000002008-07-19-0000July 19, 2008	1	1:37	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Knockout of the Night
Win	15–4	Jay Ellis	Submission (triangle choke)	Adrenaline MMA 1	000000002008-06-14-0000June 14, 2008	1	1:57	Chicago, Illinois, United States
Loss	14–4	Brett Cooper	TKO (punches)	IFL: World Grand Prix Finals	000000002007-12-29-0000December 29, 2007	2	1:15	Uncasville, Connecticut, United States
Win	14–3	Chris Clements	TKO (punches)	IFL: 2007 Semifinals	000000002007-08-02-0000August 2, 2007	1	1:17	East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States
Win	13–3	Pat Healy	KO (punches)	IFL: Moline	000000002007-04-07-0000April 7, 2007	3	1:47	Moline, Illinois, United States
Loss	12–3	Chris Wilson	TKO (punches)	IFL: Championship Final	000000002006-12-29-0000December 29, 2006	1	2:14	Uncasville, Connecticut, United States
Win	12–2	Keith Wisniewski	TKO (corner stoppage)	IFL: World Championship Semifinals	000000002006-11-02-0000November 2, 2006	3	4:00	Portland, Oregon, United States
Win	11–2	Marcelo Azevedo	TKO (punches)	IFL: Gracie vs. Miletich	000000002006-09-23-0000September 23, 2006	1	3:58	Moline, Illinois, United States
Win	10–2	Brad Blackburn	KO (punch)	IFL: Championship 2006	000000002006-06-03-0000June 3, 2006	2	0:23	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	9–2	Mike Pyle	KO (punch)	IFL: Legends Championship 2006	000000002006-04-29-0000April 29, 2006	1	0:44	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Loss	8–2	Trevor Garrett	KO (punch)	Xtreme Fighting Organization 10	000000002006-03-18-0000March 18, 2006	1	0:47	Lakemoor, Illinois, United States
Win	8–1	Brian Green	KO (punches)	Xtreme Fighting Organization 9	000000002006-01-28-0000January 28, 2006	1	0:26	Lakemoor, Illinois, United States
Win	7–1	Mike Van Meer	KO (punches)	Extreme Challenge 64	000000002005-10-15-0000October 15, 2005	1	1:48	Osceola, Iowa, United States
Win	6–1	Victor Moreno	Submission (rear-naked choke)	Extreme Challenge 61	000000002005-04-22-0000April 22, 2005	1	4:16	Osceola, Iowa, United States
Win	5–1	Jimmy Boyd	Submission (triangle choke)	Xtreme Fighting Organization 5	000000002005-03-19-0000March 19, 2005	1	2:13	Lakemoor, Illinois, United States
Win	4–1	James Warfield	TKO (punches)	Xtreme Fighting Organization 3	000000002004-10-02-0000October 2, 2004	2	1:12	McHenry, Illinois, United States
Win	3–1	Ryan Williams	Submission (triangle choke)	Courage Fighting Championships 1	000000002004-07-24-0000July 24, 2004	2	2:53	Decatur, Illinois, United States
Win	2–1	Jason Guida	Submission (armbar)	Xtreme Fighting Organization 2	000000002004-06-26-0000June 26, 2004	2	0:58	Fontana, Wisconsin, United States
Loss	1–1	Kurt Illeman	TKO (cut)	Extreme Challenge 55	000000002003-12-05-0000December 5, 2003	1	1:26	Lakemoor, Illinois, United States
Win	1–0	John Bulger	KO (punches)	Extreme Challenge 54	000000002003-10-12-0000October 12, 2003	1	0:59	Lakemoor, Illinois, United States