Mac Danzig

Mac Danzig (born January 2, 1980) is an American mixed martial artist, who competed as a lightweight in several MMA promotions, most notably the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the winner of The Ultimate Fighter season six.

Background Mac Danzig was born on January 2, 1980 in Cleveland, Ohio. He is of German and Ulster Scot descent. Danzig grew up in the Greater Pittsburgh area before moving to Los Angeles, California to pursue his mixed martial arts career.

Mixed martial arts career In the past, Danzig was known for his association with R1 fight team (formerly RAW) and had been a student of Iowa wrestling standout Rico Chiapparelli and MMA fighter Frank Trigg. Since then, he trained boxing extensively at both the Wild Card gym in Hollywood, California under Freddie Roach assistant Justin Fortune, and also Gil Martinez in Las Vegas, Nevada during his time on the Extreme Couture MMA Team.

While Danzig is known as an impressive grappler, having scored 12 of his victories by submission; he has proven himself to be an adept striker, most notably with his KO victory over Joe Stevenson and his TKO victory over former lightweight champion Takumi Nakayama.

After defeating Royce Gracie black belt Buddy Clinton on August 4, 2006, Danzig increased his winning streak to 12 in a row with a unanimous decision victory over Miletich fighter John Mahlow on September 29 in Calgary, Alberta Canada.

Danzig then lost his KOTC title to Clay French on January 19, 2007, by split decision.

In his first major fight, facing Hayato Sakurai at PRIDE 33 on February 24, Danzig lost the fight by KO (punch) at the 4:01 mark of round two.

The Ultimate Fighter Mac was a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter 6, Danzig defeated Joe Scarola in a preliminary fight and later defeated John Kolosci to make it to the semifinals. He then defeated Kolosci (who had replaced an injured Matt Arroyo) again, and moved on to the finals where he submitted Tom Speer in the 1st round to become TUF Season 6 winner.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Danzig made his official UFC debut on December 8, 2007, where he won The Ultimate Fighter 6, defeating Tom Speer in the finals via rear naked choke at 2:01 of the first round. Before the fight, Danzig stated his intention to drop down in weight class to lightweight whether he won or lost, citing the size difference between himself and most of the other UFC welterweights.

Danzig made his return to lightweight by defeating Canadian Mark Bocek via third round submission at UFC 83 on April 19, 2008.

On September 17, 2008, at UFC Fight Night, Danzig lost a unanimous decision to Clay Guida, who used his wrestling to control Danzig. Danzig gave Guida some problems on the feet in the first round displaying crisp striking skills. In the second and third rounds though, Danzig succumbed to Guida's wrestling offense, as his opponent controlled him for with takedowns and top control.

At UFC Fight Night 17 he lost via triangle choke to Josh Neer. Both Danzig and Neer received Fight of the Night honors. The loss dropped Danzig to 1–2 in his post-TUF career. The two fighters exchanged on the feet quite evenly in a back and forth fight, but Neer's active guard caused Danzig problems as he was caught in the fight ending submission after getting on top following a scramble in the second round.

Danzig lost to Jim Miller at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009, at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) making it his third consecutive loss in the UFC.

Danzig defeated Justin Buchholz on February 6, 2010, at UFC 109 by unanimous decision with all three judges scoring it 29–28 for Danzig, snapping his three-fight losing streak.

Danzig was defeated by Matt Wiman via first round technical submission at UFC 115. The stoppage was considered controversial by many as Wiman had Danzig in a guillotine choke, and referee Yves Lavigne called a stoppage despite the fact that Danzig had not submitted and was still conscious.

Danzig was expected to face Wiman again on September 15, 2010, at UFC Fight Night 22, but pulled out of the fight due to a chest injury sustained during training.

Danzig then faced Joe Stevenson (season 2 Ultimate Fighter winner) on December 11, 2010, at UFC 124 and earned his first KO victory in the UFC at 1:54 of the first round. While moving backwards, Danzig landed a counter-left hook that sent Stevenson to the ground, and Danzig was subsequently awarded the Knockout of the Night bonus.

Danzig was expected to face Donald Cerrone on June 11, 2011, at UFC 131 but had to withdraw due to a chest injury.

A rematch with Matt Wiman took place on October 1, 2011, at UFC on Versus 6 with Danzig losing via unanimous decision in a bout that earned Fight of the Night honors.

Danzig faced Efraín Escudero (season 8 Ultimate Fighter winner) on April 21, 2012, at UFC 145. He defeated Escudero by unanimous decision.

Danzig faced Takanori Gomi on November 10, 2012, at UFC on Fuel TV 6, with Danzig losing in a split decision.

Danzig next fought Melvin Guillard on July 27, 2013, at UFC on Fox 8. After a close first round, Danzig lost via knockout in the second round.

Danzig faced Joe Lauzon on December 14, 2013, at UFC on Fox 9. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

After his loss to Lauzon, Danzig announced his retirement from MMA fighting on March 4, 2014. This concludes his overall record of 5-8 with the UFC. Danzig stated he retired due to concussions and accumulated brain damage.

On January 10, 2015, Danzig was awarded his Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by Andy Wang and Baret Yoshida.

Return On June 17, 2017, it was announced that Danzig would make his MMA return on August 5, 2017, to face WSOF vet Joe Condon for the CFL Junior Welterweight Championship. He won via rear naked choke in the third round to become the CFL Junior Welterweight Champion.

Other media Danzig made an appearance the 2011 documentary Forks Over Knives. He also appeared as a guest on Joe Rogan's podcast The Joe Rogan Experience in 2012.

Personal life Danzig has been a vegan since 2004 and is an animal rights advocate.

In 2015 he married fellow mixed martial artist Angela Hancock, whom he coaches and trains. They have two children.

Outside of mixed martial arts, Danzig is a semi-professional nature photographer who specializes in landscape and wildlife photography.

In June 2018, Danzig announced via his Instagram page that he and his wife would be moving from Los Angeles and opening their own gym called Danzig MMA in Bend, Oregon.

Championships and accomplishments California Fight League CFL Junior Welterweight Championship (One time) Extreme Challenge Trials 2001 Extreme Trials Eastern Regional Champion 2001 Extreme Trials National Champion Gladiator Challenge GC Lightweight World Championship (One time) International Fighting Championship IFC Mayhem In Montana Tournament Winner King of the Cage King of the Cage Lightweight World Championship (One time) Four successful title defenses Ultimate Fighting Championship Ultimate Fighter 6 Winner Fight of the Night (Three times) Knockout of the Night (One time)

Mixed martial arts record Win

Joe Condon Submission (rear-naked choke) CFL 11

Victorville, California, United States Loss

Joe Lauzon Decision (unanimous) UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Benavidez 2

Sacramento, California, United States Loss

Melvin Guillard KO (punches) UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Moraga

Seattle, Washington, United States Loss

Takanori Gomi Decision (split) UFC on Fuel TV: Franklin vs. Le

Macau, SAR, China Win

Efraín Escudero Decision (unanimous) UFC 145

Atlanta, Georgia, United States Loss

Matt Wiman Decision (unanimous) UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson

Washington D.C., United States Win

Joe Stevenson KO (punch) UFC 124

Montreal, Quebec, Canada Loss

Matt Wiman Technical submission (guillotine choke) UFC 115

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Win

Justin Buchholz Decision (unanimous) UFC 109

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Jim Miller Decision (unanimous) UFC 100

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Josh Neer Submission (triangle choke) UFC Fight Night: Lauzon vs. Stephens

Tampa, Florida, United States Loss

Clay Guida Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Diaz vs. Neer

Omaha, Nebraska, United States Win

Mark Bocek Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC 83

Montreal, Quebec, Canada Win

Tom Speer Submission (rear-naked choke) The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra Finale

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Hayato Sakurai KO (punch) Pride 33

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Clay French Decision (split) KOTC: Hard Knocks

Rockford, Illinois, United States Win

John Mahlow Decision (unanimous) KOTC: Detonator

Calgary, Alberta, Canada Win

Buddy Clinton Decision (unanimous) KOTC: Rapid Fire

San Jacinto, California, United States Win

Orlando Ruiz TKO (punches) KOTC: Karnage

Calgary, Alberta, Canada Win

Jason Ireland Decision (unanimous) KOTC: Drop Zone

Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, United States Win

Takumi Nakayama TKO (corner stoppage) KOTC: Execution Day

Reno, Nevada, United States Win

Frank Kirmse Submission (rear-naked choke) KOTC: Shock and Awe

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Win

Nick Ertl TKO (doctor stoppage) GC 42: Summer Slam

Lakeport, California, United States Win

Mike Valdez Submission (rear-naked choke) KOTC 54: Mucho Machismo

San Jacinto, California, United States Win

Luke Spencer Submission (rear-naked choke) IFC: Caged Combat

Columbus, Ohio, United States Win

Max Marin Submission (triangle choke) IFC: Mayhem in Montana

Billings, Montana, United States Win

Brandon Olsen Submission (rear-naked choke) IFC: Mayhem in Montana

Billings, Montana, United States Win

Akbarh Arreola TKO (punches) RM 5: Road to the Championship

Tijuana, Mexico Draw

Jason Von Flue Draw Gladiator Challenge 25

Porterville, California, United States Loss

LaVerne Clark Decision (unanimous) Extreme Challenge 54

Lakemoor, Illinois, United States Win

Tripstin Kersiano Submission (rear-naked choke) Gladiator Challenge 14

Porterville, California, United States Loss

Kurt Pellegrino Decision (unanimous) WEC 4

Uncasville, Connecticut, United States Win

Brandon Bledsoe Submission (rear-naked choke) Gladiator Challenge 10

Colusa, California, United States Win

Ray Totorico Submission (omoplata) Reality Combat Fighting 12

Houma, Louisiana, United States Win

Cedric Stewart Decision (split) Extreme Challenge Trials

Decatur, Illinois, United States Mixed martial arts exhibition record Win

John Kolosci Submission (rear-naked choke)

Semi-finals. Win

Quarter-finals. Win

Submission (triangle choke)

First round.

Amateur mixed martial arts record Win

Joe Jordan Decision (unanimous) ECT: 2001 US National Championships January 5, 2002

Davenport, Iowa, United States Became Extreme Trials 2001 National Lightweight MMA Champion. Win

Tim Hernandez Submission (armbar) ECT: 2001 US National Championships January 5, 2002

Davenport, Iowa, United States Win

Jason Halderman Submission (armbar) EC: Extreme Challenge Trials August 25, 2001

Great Falls, Montana, United States Won EC Regional Amateur Championship. Win

Michael Rooney Submission (heel hook) EC: Extreme Challenge Trials August 25, 2001

Cincinnati, Ohio, United States Win

Kurt Kindred Submission (calf-slicer) EC: Extreme Challenge Trials August 25, 2001

Cincinnati, Ohio, United States Loss

Kurt Pellegrino TKO (doctor stoppage) MD2: Mass Destruction 2 June 23, 2001

Springfield, Massachusetts, United States

Professional boxing record Result Record Opponent Method Round, time Date Location