Brock Larson

Brock Orville Larson (born August 23, 1977) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight and Middleweight divisions. A professional competitor from 2002 until 2016, Larson has formerly competed for the UFC, the WEC, and ONE FC.

Background
Larson is from Brainerd, Minnesota, and was raised on a beef farm. Larson began competing in wrestling from a young age, continuing with the sport at Brainerd High School. Later while attending Itasca Community College, Larson was introduced to Brazilian jiu-jitsu by a friend. The two later competed in a Minnesota Martial Arts Academy submission tournament, with each winning and earning invites to train with future UFC Lightweight Champion Sean Sherk. Larson also defeated former UFC fighter Tom Speer in an all-grappling match.

Early career
Larson made his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2002 and compiled an undefeated record of 15–0 while competing in the regional circuit before being signed by the UFC.

Ultimate Fighting Championship
Larson made his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 2 on October 3, 2005, in a Middleweight bout against Jon Fitch. Larson lost via unanimous decision.

After winning his next six consecutive fights, Larson returned to the promotion at UFC Fight Night 7 on December 13, 2006, where he faced Keita Nakamura. Larson won via unanimous decision.

World Extreme Cagefighting
Larson then transitioned into the WEC, making his promotional debut at WEC 26: Condit vs. Alessio against Erik Apple on April 24, 2007. Larson won via kimura submission in the first round. Larson made his next appearance on June 3, 2007, against Kevin Knabjian at WEC 28 and won via TKO 27 seconds into the first round. With a 2-0 promotional record and a nine-fight winning streak, Larson was offered a fight for the WEC Welterweight Championship against then-champion Carlos Condit at WEC 29 on August 5, 2007, and was defeated in the first round via armbar submission.

In December 2008, the WEC Welterweight division merged with the UFC's Welterweight division after the promotion decided to focus on lower weight classes.

UFC return
Larson made his UFC return against Jesse Sanders, and won via rear-naked choke submission at UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Kampmann on April 1, 2009.

Larson then fought at UFC 98, defeating Mike Pyle by arm-triangle choke submission in round one, earning Submission of the Night honors.

At UFC 106 he fought Brian Foster. Larson had two points deducted in the first round for an illegal kick and an illegal knee before being defeated in the second round by technical knockout on November 21, 2009, at UFC 106. Following the loss, Larson was cut by the UFC.

Post-UFC
After going 3-0 in regional competition after his UFC release, Larson faced future Strikeforce Welterweight Champion Tarec Saffiedine on September 11, 2010, at Shark Fights 13 and lost via unanimous decision.

Larson next faced Gabe Wallbridge on October 29, 2010, at King of the Cage: Mainstream. He won by submission due to strikes in the first round.

ONE FC
Larson was signed by ONE FC and made his promotional debut against Melvin Manhoef at ONE Fighting Championship: Kings and Champions on April 5, 2013, and won via unanimous decision.

Larson then faced Nobutatsu Suzuki for the inaugural ONE FC Welterweight Championship on March 14, 2014, at ONE FC: War of Nations. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Legacy FC and retirement
Larson made his debut for Legacy Fighting Championship in July 2015. He challenged Derrick Krantz for the Legacy FC Welterweight Championship, but ended up losing the bout via knockout in the third round.

In his second fight for the promotion, Larson faced Travis Coyle on February 5, 2016, at Legacy FC 51. He was in trouble early on as Coyle locked on a guillotine choke; however, Larson survived the various submission attempts and ended up winning the fight via TKO in the first round. Post-fight, Larson's team awarded him with a personalized belt marking his years of competition from 2002-2016 and he retired from active MMA competition in order to concentrate on coaching.

Personal life
Larson has three children. Before fighting professionally, Larson worked in road construction. Brock currently is the head professor at START BJJ MN.

Championships and accomplishments

 * Ultimate Fighting Championship
 * Submission of the Night (One time) vs. Mike Pyle
 * World Extreme Cagefighting
 * Knockout of the Night (One time) vs. Carlo Prater