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Kevin Rosier

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Kevin Rosier
Born(1962-01-06)January 6, 1962
Buffalo, New York, United States
DiedApril 14, 2015(2015-04-14) (aged 53)
Murfreesboro, Tennessee, United States
ResidenceLancaster, New York, United States
Height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight265 lb (120 kg; 18.9 st)
DivisionHeavyweight (Boxing, Kickboxing and MMA)
Reach79 in (201 cm)
StyleKarate, Boxing, Aikido, Judo
Fighting out ofTampa, Florida
Rank  Black Belt in Karate
Years active1980–1999 (Kickboxing)
1989–2001 (Boxing)
1993–2000 (MMA)
Professional boxing record
Total24
Wins7
By knockout6
Losses17
By knockout7
Kickboxing record
Total74
Wins66
By knockout66
Losses8
Mixed martial arts record
Total8
Wins2
By knockout1
By submission1
Losses6
By knockout3
By submission3
Other information
Boxing record from BoxRec
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Kevin Rosier (January 6, 1962 – April 14, 2015) was an American kickboxer, boxer and mixed martial artist. He had much success as a kickboxer, winning a number of titles, but did not transition particularly well into the world of boxing and was mostly seen as a journeyman fighter. Notably, he also took part at the inaugural Ultimate Fighting Championship event in 1993 where he reached the semi-finals.

Career

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Kickboxing and boxing

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Rosier spent the majority of his fighting career in kickboxing where he held a record of 66 wins, all by knockout, and 8 losses. He was also the 3x WKA World Super Heavyweight Champion and ISKA North American Super Heavyweight Champion.[1] His kickboxing career began in the 1980s and his last bout came in 1999 when he lost to Mike Labree in a fight for the vacant IKF International Kickboxing Federation Pro Full Contact Rules Super Heavyweight World Title on May 15, 1999 in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. At 26 seconds into round 10, LaBree caught Rosier with a short left to the head and Rosier went down to his knees and the bout was stopped.[2]

He also had a 12-year career as a professional boxer in which he held a 7–17 record. He fought between 1989 and 2001 and came up against a number of high-profile opponents including Josué Blocus, Roman Bugaj, Tye Fields, Vincent Maddalone, Joe Mesi, Nikolai Valuev, Taurus Sykes, Dan Voss Jr and Paea Wolfgramm.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

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In 1993, with only five weeks notice, Rosier elicited the help of his former student World Kickboxing Champion A.J. Verel to coach and train him for UFC 1, the very first mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship. His first match in the tournament, the second in the card, pitted him against American Kenpo expert and two-time World Kickboxing Federation super heavyweight champion Zane Frazier.[3]

Rosier opened the match knocking Frazier down with punches, knee strikes and an elbow strike to the turtled up Frazier's back,[4] but his opponent recovered and went to exchange knee strikes with him in the clinch.[3] At that moment, capitalizing on the lack of regulation about hair pulling and groin attacks, Frazier managed to take over by striking Rosier with a low blow and dragging him by the hair.[4][5] The kenpo fighter dominated the fight with striking combinations both standing and on their knees,[4] even breaking Rosier's jaw with a right hand.[5] Some minutes later, however, Frazier slowed down due to exhaustion, allowing Rosier to recover and come back with several punches that put Frazier against the fence. Rosier then pushed him down to the mat and scored multiple punches and stomps to the back of the head until Frazier's corner threw the towel.[3][4][5]

In the semifinals, Rosier came up against Dutch savate fighter Gerard Gordeau. The Dutchman targeted Rosier's knees with leg kicks and kept distance with him through jabbing. When Rosier was forced to cover down after a barrage of knees and elbows, Gordeau scored a stomp to the spleen, prompting Rosier to tap on the mat, signalling his submission.[4] Although eliminated from the tournament, Rosier praised Gordeau and expressed the desire to return.[4]

After this, he continued to compete in MMA and next fought at UFC 4 where he lost via submission 14 seconds into his bout with "The Ghetto Man" Joe Charles. He competed five more times in MMA, losing four and winning one, and retired with a record of two wins and six losses.

Later life

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After retiring from competition, Kevin suffered several bouts of illness (including open-heart surgery and a nearly fatal fall while already in intensive care). By August 2013, Kevin was in stable health & reportedly residing in a retirement resort in Nashville.

In April 2015, Rosier died of an apparent heart attack.[6]

Championships and awards

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Kickboxing

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Kickboxing record

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Kickboxing record
66 wins (66 KOs), 8 losses, 0 draws
Date Result Opponent Event Location Method Round Time Record
1999-05-15 Loss United States Mike Labree Mass Destruction: The Ultimate Night of Fighting Lowell, Massachusetts, USA TKO (left hook) 10 0:26 66-8
For the IKF World Super Heavyweight Full Contact Championship.
1994-00-00 Win United States Houston Dorr Biloxi, Mississippi, USA KO (right hook) 2 1:25
Wins the WKKC World Super Heavyweight Championship.
1990-01-20 Loss United States Maurice Smith AJKF: Inspiring Wars 1 Tokyo, Japan KO (left jab and right overhand) 2 1:42 15-4
For the WKA World Heavyweight Championship.
1989-05-14 Win United States Don Nakaya Nielsen AJKF: Knockout of the Century - Part 3 Tokyo, Japan TKO (referee stoppage/right uppercut) 6 1:05 15-2
Retains WKA World Super Heavyweight Championship.
1989-04-27 Win United States Dan Voss Jr Coors: SUPERFIGHTS Full Contact Karate - Santa Clara, CA TKO (referee stoppage) 2 1:36
Retains WKA World Super Heavyweight Championship.
Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest   Notes

Mixed martial arts record

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Professional record breakdown
8 matches 2 wins 6 losses
By knockout 1 3
By submission 1 3
By decision 0 0
Draws 0
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 2–6 Brad Gabriel TKO (punches) IFC: Battleground 2000 January 22, 2000 1 1:12 Kahnawake, Quebec, Canada
Win 2–5 Joe Bramante Submission (rear-naked choke) IFC: Fighters Revenge April 2, 1999 1 1:01 Kahnawake, Quebec, Canada
Loss 1–5 Dan Severn Submission Cage Combat 1 December 8, 1998 1 1:00 Conesville, Iowa, United States
Loss 1–4 Dan Severn TKO (knees) Extreme Challenge 15 February 27, 1998 1 0:53 Muncie, Indiana, United States
Loss 1–3 Houston Dorr Submission (guillotine choke) IFC 2: Mayhem in Mississippi August 23, 1996 1 11:10 Biloxi, Mississippi, United States
Loss 1–2 Joe Charles Submission (armbar) UFC 4 December 16, 1994 1 0:14 Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States
Loss 1–1 Gerard Gordeau TKO (corner stoppage) UFC 1 November 12, 1993 1 0:59 Denver, Colorado, United States Semifinal bout.
Win 1–0 Zane Frazier TKO (corner stoppage) 1 4:20 Quarterfinal bout.

Professional boxing record

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7 Wins (6 knockouts, 1 decision, 0 disqualification), 17 Losses, 0 Draws, 0 No Contests
Res. Record Opponent Type Rd., Time Date Location Notes
Loss 7–17 United States Carlton Johnson UD 6 (6), 3:00 01/12/2001 United States Chester, West Virginia, U.S.
Loss 7–16 France Josué Blocus TKO 1 (?), N/A 09/12/2000 France Villeurbanne, France
Loss 7–15 United States Tye Fields TKO 1 (4), 1:37 28/04/2000 United States Mashantucket, Connecticut, U.S.
Loss 7–14 United States Keith Govan UD 4 (4), 3:00 06/04/2000 United States Worley, Idaho, U.S.
Loss 7–13 United States Vinny Maddalone PTS 6 (6), 3:00 14/03/2000 United States Yonkers, New York, U.S.
Loss 7–12 Poland Roman Bugaj UD 4 (4), 3:00 02/03/2000 United States Rosemont, Illinois, U.S.
Loss 7–11 United StatesTaurus Sykes PTS 4 (4), 3:00 24/02/2000 United States New York, New York, U.S.
Loss 7–10 United States Shannon Miller UD 4 (4), 3:00 19/11/1999 United States Verona, New York, U.S.
Loss 7–9 United States Brian Hollins UD 4 (4), 3:00 17/09/1999 United States Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Loss 7–8 United States Derrick Brown PTS 4 (4), 3:00 11/06/1999 United States Verona, New York, U.S.
Loss 7–7 United States Bradley Rone PTS 4 (4), 3:00 03/06/1999 United States Mount Pleasant, Michigan, U.S.
Win 7–6 United States Dave Slaughter TKO 4 (6), 2:56 29/01/1999 United States Tampa, Florida, U.S.
Win 6–6 United States Ed Gissendanner TKO 1 (6), 1:55 27/11/1998 United States Tampa, Florida, U.S.
Win 5–6 United States Tony Velasco UD 8 (8), 3:00 30/10/1998 United States Tampa, Florida, U.S.
Loss 4–6 United States Joe Mesi TKO 2 (4), N/A 26/07/1998 United States Verona, New York, U.S.
Loss 4–5 Tonga Paea Wolfgramm TKO 1 (6), 1:12 16/01/1998 United States Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
Loss 4–4 Russia Nikolai Valuev KO 1 (?), N/A 27/09/1997 Russia Moscow, Russia
Win 4–3 Finland Christer Markusas TKO 2 (?), N/A 06/09/1997 United States Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
Win 3–3 United States Jim Ellis TKO 2 (?), N/A 27/08/1994 United States Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Win 2–3 United States Lee Moore TKO 3 (?), N/A 12/11/1990 United States Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S.
Loss 1–3 United States David Dixon TKO 1 (?), N/A 07/04/1990 United States Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Win 1–2 United States John Elacqua TKO 2 (?), N/A 0/03/1989 United States Laughlin, Nevada, U.S.
Loss 0–2 United States Curtis Jackson PTS 4 (4), N/A 28/02/1989 United States Inglewood, California, U.S.
Loss 0–1 United States Andrew Matthews TKO 1 (?), N/A 14/01/1989 United States Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.

References

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  1. ^ UFC 1 DVD
  2. ^ "Where Is He Now...IKF Takes A Look Back At KEVIN ROSIER".
  3. ^ a b c Don Beu, The Ultimate Fighting Championship: Jujutsu and Royce Gracie Reign Supreme at No-Holds-Barred Tournament, Black Belt magazine, March 1994
  4. ^ a b c d e f Scott Newman (2005-07-06). "MMA Review: #50: UFC 1: The Beginning". The Oratory. Archived from the original on 2018-07-03. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  5. ^ a b c L. Jon Wertheim (January 5, 2010). Blood in the Cage: Mixed Martial Arts, Pat Miletich, and the Furious Rise of the UFC. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 9780547347226.
  6. ^ Marc Raimondi (2015-04-14). "UFC 1 veteran Kevin Rosier dead at age 53". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2015-04-14.
  7. ^ The Ventura County Star Free Press, Oxnard Press Courier
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