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Jorge Rivera (fighter)

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Jorge Rivera
Rivera in 2009
BornJorge Luis Rivera
(1972-02-28) February 28, 1972 (age 52)
Boston, Massachusetts
Other namesEl Conquistador
NationalityAmerican
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st)
DivisionHeavyweight
Light Heavyweight
Middleweight
Reach73 in (190 cm)
StanceOrthodox
Fighting out ofMilford, Massachusetts, United States
TeamRivera Athletic Center
RankBlack belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Tim Burrill[1]
Years active2001–2012
Mixed martial arts record
Total29
Wins20
By knockout14
By submission2
By decision4
Losses9
By knockout5
By submission3
By decision1
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Military career
Allegiance United States
Service / branchUnited States Army seal United States Army
Years of service1989–1991
UnitA/1-70 Armor, 5th Infantry Division

Jorge Luis Rivera (born February 28, 1972) is a retired American mixed martial artist who competed in the Middleweight division. Perhaps best known for his 15 fights in the UFC, he was also featured on The Ultimate Fighter 4, after competing for Cage Warriors and Cage Rage in England.

Background

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Rivera is from Boston, Massachusetts, then Milford, Massachusetts before finally settling down in Bellingham, Massachusetts. Being one of the ethnic minorities in these towns, the Rivera children often got into street fights. When he was 25 years old, Rivera began training in mixed martial arts.[2][3]

Military career

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Rivera served as a 19K M1 Armor Crewman with A/1-70 Armor at Fort Polk, Louisiana. He participated in moving the unit from Fort Polk to Fort Hood, Texas before his enlistment ended in 1992.

Mixed martial arts career

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Rivera's first sanctioned fight was in 2001, when he was 29 years old against Branden Lee Hinkle in Chester, West Virginia. Lee Hinkle, who had been fighting professionally for three years, also had the legendary Mark Coleman in his corner. Rivera landed a solid straight right hand early, that knocked out Lee Hinkle's mouthpiece and caused him to stumble, but then responded using his wrestling, picking up and slamming Rivera. Lee Hinkle then proceeded to land many punches that caused referee Din Thomas to stop the fight, making Lee Hinkle the winner by TKO.[4]

Rivera's first fight in the UFC was a unanimous decision victory over David Loiseau at UFC 44. He then followed up with back-to-back submission losses to Lee Murray at UFC 46 and Rich Franklin at UFC 50 before rebounding with a unanimous decision win over Dennis Hallman at UFC 55.

Rivera was defeated by Chris Leben by technical knockout before appearing on The Ultimate Fighter 4 as a Middleweight contestant. Although Rivera was not successful in achieving a slot in the middleweight finals, he appeared on the live card of The Ultimate Fighter 4 Finale, defeating Edwin DeWees by technical knockout in the first round. Jorge then was defeated by Terry Martin by KO via an uppercut at UFC 67, fourteen seconds into round one. Jorge broke his jaw from the knockout punch and did not compete until UFC 80, where he knocked out heavy favorite Kendall Grove in the first round. He went 4–3 after the upset, with wins over Eric Schafer, Nate Quarry, Nissen Osterneck and submission artist Rob Kimmons, with his only losses since coming from top level opponents Martin Kampmann, Michael Bisping, and Costas Philippou.

Rivera was scheduled to face Alessio Sakara on August 28, 2010 at UFC 118,[5] but was forced off the card with an arm injury[6] and replaced by Gerald Harris.[7]

Rivera/Sakara was expected to take place on November 13, 2010 at UFC 122.[8] The fight was scrapped the day of the fight due to a "flu-like" illness from Sakara.[9]

On February 27, 2011 at UFC 127 Rivera lost to Michael Bisping by way of TKO at 1:54 in the 2nd round.[10][11] Weeks before he was set to fight Bisping, Rivera made some videos mocking and insulting Bisping and his family.

The bout between Rivera and Sakara had been rescheduled again for August 6, 2011 at UFC 133.[12] Before Rivera's fight against Sakara, Rivera mentioned that he may retire from the sport after his next fight due to his age. Rivera instead faced Costas Philippou.[13] He lost the fight via split decision.

Rivera faced Eric Schafer on January 20, 2012 at UFC on FX 1.[14] After a dominant first round from Schafer due to takedowns and ground control, Rivera turned the fight around in the second round and won by TKO due to punches.

Following the fight, Rivera retired from mixed martial arts competition.[15]

Personal life

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Rivera has five children, a son and four daughters, Janessa, Elijah, Marianna, Johanna, and Alanna Rivera. On August 5, 2008, his oldest daughter Janessa Marie died unexpectedly from a reaction to prescription medication.[16][17]

Championships and accomplishments

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Mixed martial arts record

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Professional record breakdown
29 matches 20 wins 9 losses
By knockout 14 5
By submission 2 3
By decision 4 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 20–9 Eric Schafer TKO (punches) UFC on FX: Guillard vs. Miller January 20, 2012 2 1:31 Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Loss 19–9 Costas Philippou Decision (split) UFC 133 August 6, 2011 3 5:00 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Loss 19–8 Michael Bisping TKO (punches) UFC 127 February 27, 2011 2 1:54 Sydney, Australia Bisping was deducted one point in round 1 after landing an illegal knee.
Win 19–7 Nate Quarry TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Florian vs. Gomi March 31, 2010 2 0:29 Charlotte, North Carolina, United States
Win 18–7 Rob Kimmons TKO (punches) UFC 104 October 24, 2009 3 1:53 Los Angeles, California, United States
Win 17–7 Nissen Osterneck Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Kampmann April 1, 2009 3 5:00 Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Loss 16–7 Martin Kampmann Submission (guillotine choke) UFC 85 June 7, 2008 1 2:44 London, England
Win 16–6 Kendall Grove KO (punches) UFC 80 January 19, 2008 1 1:20 Newcastle, England
Loss 15–6 Terry Martin KO (punches) UFC 67 February 3, 2007 1 0:14 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 15–5 Edwin Dewees TKO (punches) The Ultimate Fighter: The Comeback Finale November 11, 2006 1 2:37 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 14–5 Timothy Williams TKO (punches) WFL – Real: No Fooling Around April 1, 2006 1 3:50 Revere, Massachusetts, United States
Loss 13–5 Chris Leben TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night 3 January 16, 2006 1 1:44 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 13–4 Dennis Hallman Decision (unanimous) UFC 55 October 7, 2005 3 5:00 Uncasville, Connecticut, United States
Win 12–4 Marcelo Azevedo Decision (unanimous) Cage Rage 13 September 10, 2005 3 5:00 London, England
Win 11–4 Danny Vega Technical submission (arm-triangle choke) WFL: Unleashed August 6, 2005 1 0:47 Revere, Massachusetts, United States
Loss 10–4 Anderson Silva TKO (knees and punches) Cage Rage 11 April 30, 2005 2 3:53 London, England
Win 10–3 Alex Reid KO (punches) Cage Rage 10 February 26, 2005 1 0:41 London, England
Loss 9–3 Rich Franklin Submission (armbar) UFC 50 October 22, 2004 3 4:28 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 9–2 Mark Weir TKO (doctor stoppage) Cage Rage 7 July 10, 2004 1 5:00 London, England
Win 8–2 James Gabert TKO (punches) MMA: Eruption April 30, 2004 3 4:10 Lowell, Massachusetts, United States
Loss 7–2 Lee Murray Submission (triangle armbar) UFC 46 January 31, 2004 1 1:45 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 7–1 David Loiseau Decision (unanimous) UFC 44 September 26, 2003 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Middleweight debut.
Win 6–1 Solomon Hutcherson KO (punches) USMMA 3: Ring of Fury May 3, 2003 1 3:01 Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Win 5–1 Andy Lagden Submission (rear naked choke) CWFC 2 - Fists of Fury Nov 30, 2002 1 N/A London, England
Win 4–1 Travis Lutter TKO (punches) USMMA 2: Ring of Fury September 21, 2002 3 3:46 Lowell, Massachusetts, United States Defended the USMMA Light Heavyweight Championship.
Win 3–1 Joe Nye TKO (punches) USMMA 1: Ring of Fury May 18, 2002 1 0:52 Lowell, Massachusetts, United States Light Heavyweight debut; won the vacant USMMA Light Heavyweight Championship.
Win 2–1 Brian Hawkins KO (punches) TFC FightZone: Back in the Zone March 22, 2002 1 N/A Toledo, Ohio, United States
Win 1–1 Elias Rivera TKO (punches) Mass Destruction 3 March 22, 2002 1 6:50 Springfield, Massachusetts, United States Won the vacant Mass Destruction Heavyweight Championship.
Loss 0–1 Branden Lee Hinkle TKO (corner stoppage) RSF 2: Attack at the Track June 23, 2001 2 1:54 Chester, West Virginia, United States

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "TBBJJ Black Belts". timburrill.com.
  2. ^ "The Veterans Veteran - Jorge Rivera article by Rhett Butler". Archived from the original on 2013-10-02. Retrieved 2013-09-27.
  3. ^ "Bleacher Report". bleacherreport.com. Archived from the original on 2014-08-15.
  4. ^ "My First Fight: Jorge Rivera". mmamania.com. July 6, 2009.
  5. ^ Morgan, John (2010-05-04). "Jorge Rivera vs. Alessio Sakara targeted for August's UFC 118 in Boston". MMAjunkie.com. Archived from the original on 2010-05-06. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
  6. ^ "Jorge Rivera pulls out of 118 with a broken arm". mmajunkie.com. July 23, 2010. Archived from the original on July 26, 2010.
  7. ^ "Gerald Harris steps in for injured Jorge Rivera, faces Alessio Sakara at UFC 118". mmajunkie.com. July 23, 2010. Archived from the original on July 25, 2010.
  8. ^ "Jorge Rivera and Alessio Sakara agree to meet at UFC 122 in Germany". mmajunkie.com. August 23, 2010. Archived from the original on August 26, 2010.
  9. ^ "Alessio Sakara Out of UFC 122 With Illness". Mmafighting.com. 2010-11-13. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
  10. ^ "Michael Bisping tells Jorge Rivera to go home after TKO victory at UFC 127 | UFC News". ESPN.co.uk. 2011-02-27. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
  11. ^ "Michael Bisping Vs. Jorge Rivera Set To Go Down At UFC 127 In Australia". mmaweekly.com. November 23, 2010.
  12. ^ "Jorge Rivera and Alessio Sakara Finally Meet at UFC 133 in August". mmaweekly.com. April 12, 2011.
  13. ^ "With Alessio Sakara out, Costa Philippou faces Jorge Rivera at UFC 133". MMA Junkie. July 25, 2011. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012.
  14. ^ "Jorge Rivera vs. Eric Schafer targeted for UFC on FX 1". mmajunkie.com. November 29, 2011. Archived from the original on December 1, 2011. Retrieved November 29, 2011.
  15. ^ John Morgan & Dann Stupp (January 20, 2012). "UFC on FX 1 results: Rivera survives early trouble, registers TKO win in final fight". MMAjunkie.com. Archived from the original on January 22, 2012.
  16. ^ Duggan, Dan (2009-03-22). "Jorge Rivera fighting through tragedy". BostonHerald.com. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
  17. ^ Janessa's obituary
  18. ^ Thomas Gerbasi (December 28, 2008). "The Highly Unofficial 2008 UFC Awards - The Upsets". Ultimate Fighting Championship.
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