1. Ian William Freeman was born on 11 October 1966 and is a retired English mixed martial artist who was the Cage Rage World Heavyweight Champion and the final Cage Rage British Light Heavyweight Champion.
24 Facts About Ian Freeman
1. 2.
Ian Freeman was the first British person to fight in the UFC, as well as the first person to beat Frank Mir.
3.
Ian Freeman fought two more times in the UFC, winning both times.
4.
Later, Ian Freeman's career hit a low point with four losses in a row, but he returned with a submission win in a rematch with Stanislav Nuschik.
5.
The heavy underdog, Ian Freeman lived up to his nickname as he systematically ground Mir down and broke his spirit, winning a first round stoppage in front of the English crowd.
6.
The match was bittersweet for Ian Freeman, having dedicated the match to his father who, unbeknown to him, had died of cancer the day before.
7.
Ian Freeman returned eleven months later to fight Ryan Robinson for the vacant Cage Rage Heavyweight title.
8.
In early 2005, Ian Freeman again appeared to ebb away from MMA, appearing as a referee in ITV's ill-fated Celebrity Wrestling game show, which was quickly relegated to Sunday mornings and subsequently cancelled.
9.
Ian Freeman was scheduled to return to the UFC to fight Forrest Griffin at UFC 55 - Fury but suffered a horse-riding accident and was unable to compete.
10.
Ian Freeman later cited the return of chronic fatigue as a factor in his layoff and subsequent retirement.
11.
Ian Freeman approached Cage Rage and was offered a match against the Cage Rage World Light Heavyweight champion Melvin Manhoef in 2006 at Cage Rage 17.
12.
Ian Freeman got a shot at British Light Heavyweight champion Mark Epstein at Cage Rage 18 on 30 September 2006.
13.
Ian Freeman overpowered Epstein with his ground-and-pound tactic, winning his second Cage Rage title.
14.
Ian Freeman then trained at the TSG MMA School under Daniel Burzotta to fight Paul Cahoon for the British Cage Rage Light Heavyweight title on 10 May 2008 at Cage Rage 26.
15.
Ian Freeman won by TKO, stopping Rodriguez at 2:06 of Round 1.
16.
Shortly after this win, Ian Freeman retired from competition, citing his age and health issues.
17.
On 1 November 2006, it was announced that Ian Freeman was due to coach a British-based team that would have participated in the International Fight League from 2008, had the promotion not shut down due to financial difficulties.
18.
In 2005, Ian Freeman was the referee on ITV's ill-fated Celebrity Wrestling gameshow.
19.
Ian Freeman starred in the 2008 British boxing action-comedy film Sucker Punch.
20.
Ian Freeman was additionally ordered to complete 120 hours community service and wear an electronic tag.
21.
Ian Freeman's wife was sentenced to a six-week community order and electronically tagged.
22.
Ian Freeman was the ring announcer for M-1 Global: Breakthrough, which took place on 28 August 2009 at Memorial Hall, in Kansas City, Kansas.
23.
Ian Freeman has recently agreed to be ring announcer for Clan Wars, Ireland's first Pro ISKA governed MMA competition.
24.
In 2010, Ian Freeman worked as spokesman for the now defunct Kudegra Fighting Championship, shortly after he parted company with the promotion.