The Former Careers of UFC Fighters

Brock-Lead

While some guys go straight from college to martial arts, other UFC fighters take a much different route to fighting greatness. From school teachers to cops to members of parliament, the UFC features fighters from all walks of life. Here are seven UFC fighters who spent their days doing something other than delivering major beat-downs to make a day’s wage.

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1. Mirko Cro Cop

The former Pride Champion is one of the busiest Croatians around. The former Anti-Terrorist fighter has been a member of Parliament, a movie star, and is currently playing for the Croatian soccer team on top of fighting.

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2. Brock Lesnar

Lesnar, a former 4-time All-American in college, took one of the most noticable routes to the UFC. After college, Lesnar was signed by the WWE. He left the WWE in 2004 to join the Minnesota Vikings’ training camp but got cut before the season started. He returned to wrestling in Japan but not long after MMA and the UFC came calling.

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3. Rich Franklin

While working his way up the ladder in the world of MMA, former Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin worked as a school teacher in Ohio. He continues to work with non-profit organizations that help kids.

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4. Michael Bisping

It was a hard road for Ultimate Fighter winner Michael Bisping to make it to the UFC. While making his way through the world of MMA in Britain, Bisping held down gigs in as a factory worker, a mailman, a carpenter, a door salesman, and as a DJ.

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5. Amir Sadollah

The Ultimate Fighter winner had one of the most unlikely jobs while working his way up. Sadollah worked as a surgical technologist for a company called VCU Healthsystems.

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6. Houston Alexander

Aside from being an animal in the octagon, Houston Alexander is said to be an animal on the stage. Alexander had been a radio broadcaster and continues to be a hip-hop artist under the name of Scrib 1972.

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7. Forrest Griffin

Before Griffin went on to become the first ever Ultimate Fighter winner he held a much less noble job: as a police officer in Augusta, GA.

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Follow Author, Igor Derysh on Twitter! @igorderysh

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  • joe friday says:

    Re: Forrest Griffin. the writer, Igor, describes Forrest’s past career as a police officer as a “much less noble job”.

    Less noble than a UFC/MMA fighter? Are you for real?

    I realize everyone has the right to their opinion, but I have to believe that was a typo.

    Either that or Igor has some sort of bent view of society…….

  • joh says:

    Joe friday – I do believe they call that, sarcasm.

  • brianjmorrison says:

    Cro Cop never played for the Croatian Football team. He was signed by HNK Cibalia a Croatian league team. Two very very different things.

  • Alexander says:

    Kimbo Slice was a bodyguard and now he is a big bad fighting machine:
    http://www.blitzcorner.com/MMA/Kimbo-Slice-Pics

    P.S

    Did you know that he is the father of 6?

  • CapnCaveman says:

    Me thinks Alexander is Kimbo Slice’s online alias… either that or Alexander has a huge man-crush on Kimbo.

  • Jeremy says:

    It is a sad world we live in when being a police officer is considered “less noble” than being a pro athlete.

  • billy brown says:

    You want to know whats interesting about this? nothing. tune in next week to see what toilet paper the top mma fighters prefer.

  • Aaron says:

    Filipovic wasnt the member of an anti-terrorist group, he was a a paramilitary who helped purge Croatia of its non-croatian residents.
    Canadian jarhead Scott Taylor, editor of Esprit de Corps magazine did a thing at our college about the medak pocket about what kind of things ‘anti-terrorist groups’ do to elderly people.
    Considering Filipovic is from one of the most anti-semitic countries in the world (their president was proud that his wife wastn jewish and wrote a revisionist history, Historical Wastelands, which claimed the holocaust was only 2 million dead and that jews were their own worse abusers in camps.), I will take the word of the canadian soldier over this douche.

  • RampageFan says:

    Aleksander Emelianko went to jail for armed robbery.

  • Eric says:

    How can you say that a mixed martial artist is a more noble professional than a policeman?

  • Hates Joe Friday and Eric says:

    Dudes, relax. It’s called sarcasm, geez. Call your broker and invest in a sense of humor. It’s not like he said NYC Police weren’t noble. 911 was like 8 years ago, let it go guys…let it go.

  • Geoff Edwards says:

    Just off the subject slightly, but how many steroids did Lesnar take to get that overblown in size.A fucken lot im guessing. How has he not been caught? Not tested? Good masking drugs? Learnt how to beat it in wwe?

  • falseinformation.com says:

    crocop isnt in the croatian FOOTBALL team hahahaha he wished he was casue then he prob would make a shit load more of money

  • grytr says:

    anderson silva worked at mcdonald’s. now he is the top fighter ever. go figure.

    wanderlei used to help out at his father’s lame cheap bar, dragging beer boxes and whatnot, before getting into pride.

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