Tom Watson (fighter)
| Tom Watson | |
|---|---|
| Born |
13 July 1982 Southampton, England |
| Other names | Kong |
| Nationality | English |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 186 lb (84 kg; 13.3 st) |
| Division | Middleweight |
| Reach | 73.0 in (185 cm) |
| Style | Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Boxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Kyokushin Karate, Wing Chun, Savate |
| Team | Jaco Hybrid Training Center (Blackzilians) |
| Rank | Purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black prajied in Muay Thai Orange belt in Kyokushin Karate Green belt in Lau Gar Kung Fu Black belt with green stripe in Wing Chun Silver 2 glove in Savate |
| Years active | 2006-present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 26 |
| Wins | 17 |
| By knockout | 8 |
| By submission | 1 |
| By decision | 8 |
| Losses | 9 |
| By submission | 2 |
| By decision | 7 |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Tom "Kong" Watson (born 13 July 1982) is an English mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division. Watson most recently competed in the UFC. A professional competitor since 2006, he is the former BAMMA Middleweight Champion, the former UCMMA Middleweight Champion, and has also competed for Cage Rage and the MFC.
Watson began training when he was 16 years old and has an extensive boxing background, winning two awards, Amateur Boxing Standout 2006, a three-time ABA Southern Counties Champion, and Full Contact Unlicensed Boxing Champion. Watson’s nickname comes from his famous ring walks, featuring Watson wearing a gorilla mask.
Watson held a 1-0-1 amateur record before turning professional in 1991. He won his first two fights and was then given the chance to fight in the UK's top MMA promotion, Cage Rage. His first fight was against Daijiro Matsui in February 2007 at Cage Rage 20, and he lost via an armbar in the first round. He returned to the cage a month later and impressively defeated Dorlan O'Malley via KO after a slam.
After this, he was given another chance against a higher profile opponent. He took on UFC veteran Xavier Foupa-Pokam at CageRage 21: Judgement Day in April, 2007, but was submitted again. He fought a further two times that year, and recorded a win and a loss. In 2008, he began to climb the ladder again by beating Pierre Guillet and John Phillips, but Cage Rage went into liquidation and he then went to Ultimate Challenge MMA.
Watson's first Ultimate Challenge MMA bout came against Daniel Cubitt at Ultimate Challenge UK: Bad Breed in December 2008. He won the fight by knocking his opponent out less than two minutes into the first round to win the inaugural Ultimate Challenge UK title. He returned at Ultimate Challenge UK: Dynamite in October 2009 to take on Denniston Sutherland, and defeated him via split decision.
On 10 January 2010, Watson signed a three fight deal with the Maximum Fighting Championship, a Canadian promotion. His first fight was on 26 February 2010, where he took on Travis Galbraith on MFC 24: Heat XC. In the second minute of the first round, Kong knocked his opponent out with a vicious right head kick. This won him knockout of the night and put him at the top of the list for knockout of the year.
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