Twelve wins, six knockouts and just two losses. The wrestler and the martial artist in him is perhaps what made Mark Munoz the fierce fighter he is inside the octagon.
Munoz started out with as a two-time California State Wrestling Champion in high school and winning competitions particularly in the field of jujitsu.
He was also the first Filipino-American with a National Championship title from the Division 1 Level.
After coaching about 10 years, Munoz was eventually introduced into the world of mixed martial arts after attending a training camp for big-time contenders like Brandon “The Truth” Vera.
He defeated Chuck “The Reverend” Grisby by TKO during his debut at the World Extreme Cage (WEC 34) but encountered his first loss at his first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bout against Matt “The Hammer” Hamill.
It has been a series of wins since then, with just one more defeat from Yushin “Thunder” by a split decision in August 2010.
However, Munoz had to be pulled out on January from his fight against Chael “The Foreman” Sonnen this year following an injury he acquired while in training.
His extensive MMA track record has earned Munoz the ‘Filipino Wrecking Machine’ title and ranking as the number 3 middleweight fighter in the world in the latest listing of Sherdog.com.
Apart from doing MMA, Munoz is still most passionate about helping other aspiring fighters succeed in the field of mixed martial arts.
He credits most of his achievements and the commitment to giving back after having faced a lot of adversities at a young age.
Munoz has his eyes now focused on rising as a world champion as he continues to recover from his elbow injury as he prepares for his next fight in the UFC against Chris “All American” Weidman.
But Munoz is also a huge supporter of the Pacific X-Treme Combat (PXC), the biggest MMA promoter this side of the world. Munoz, who attended PXC 29 in February 2012, lauded the growing MMA community in the Philippines. He added that largely due to the PXC, Filipino fighters can become better in this sport as they face competitors from different countries.
“The MMA market here in the Philippines is great and PXC has been doing a great job building it,” Munoz said, adding that with the PXC’s continued presence in the Philippines, it won’t be long before this sport becomes a source for national pride.
