Kevin Rosier

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.

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
NationalityAmerican
Height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight265 lb (120 kg; 18.9 st)
DivisionHeavyweight (Boxing and MMA)
Super Heavyweight (Kickboxing)
Reach79 in (201 cm)
StyleKickboxing, Boxing
Fighting out ofTampa, Florida
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

Career

Kickboxing and boxing

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 and Paea Wolfgramm.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In 1993, with only 5 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 superheavyweight 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

After retiring from competition, Kevin suffered several bouts of illness (including open-heart surgery and a nearly fatal fall while already in intensive care). As of 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

Kickboxing
  • 1994 WKKC (World Karate and Kickboxing Council) World Superheavyweight Champion
  • 1990 WKA (World Karate Association) World Superheavyweight Champion (above the waist)
  • 1990 ISKA (International Sport Karate Association) North American Superheavyweight Champion
  • 3X WKA (World Kickboxing Association) World Superheavyweight Champion
  • 1989 All-Japan World Champion
  • 1987 United States Kung-Fu Karate National No-Rules Tournament Champion

Kickboxing record
Kickboxing record
66 wins (66 KOs), 8 losses, 0 draws
DateResultOpponentEventLocationMethodRoundTimeRecord
1999-05-15Loss Mike LabreeMass Destruction: The Ultimate Night of FightingLowell, Massachusetts, USATKO (left hook)100:2666-8
For the IKF World Super Heavyweight Full Contact Championship.
1994-00-00Win Houston DorrBiloxi, Mississippi, USAKO (right hook)21:25
Wins the WKKC World Super Heavyweight Championship.
1990-01-20Loss Maurice SmithAJKF: Inspiring Wars 1Tokyo, JapanKO (left jab and right overhand)21:4215-4
For the WKA World Heavyweight Championship.
1989-05-14Win Don Nakaya NielsenAJKF: Knockout of the Century - Part 3Tokyo, JapanTKO (referee stoppage/right uppercut)61:0515-2
Retains WKA World Super Heavyweight Championship.

Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest   Notes

Mixed martial arts record
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 (head stomps) UFC 1 November 12, 1993 1 4:20 Denver, Colorado, United States Quarterfinal bout.

Professional boxing record
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 Carlton Johnson UD6 (6), 3:00 01/12/2001 Chester, West Virginia, US
Loss 7-16 Josué Blocus TKO1 (?), N/A 09/12/2000 Villeurbanne, France
Loss 7-15 Tye Fields TKO1 (4), 1:37 28/04/2000 Mashantucket, Connecticut, US
Loss 7-14 Keith Govan UD4 (4), 3:00 06/04/2000 Worley, Idaho, US
Loss 7-13 Vinny Maddalone PTS6 (6), 3:00 14/03/2000 Yonkers, New York, US
Loss 7-12 Roman Bugaj UD4 (4), 3:00 02/03/2000 Rosemont, Illinois, US
Loss 7-11 Taurus Sykes PTS4 (4), 3:00 24/02/2000 New York, New York, US
Loss 7-10 Shannon Miller UD4 (4), 3:00 19/11/1999 Verona, New York, US
Loss 7-9 Brian Hollins UD4 (4), 3:00 17/09/1999 Buffalo, New York, US
Loss 7-8 Derrick Brown PTS4 (4), 3:00 11/06/1999 Verona, New York, US
Loss 7-7 Bradley Rone PTS4 (4), 3:00 03/06/1999 Mount Pleasant, Michigan, US
Win 7-6 Dave Slaughter TKO4 (6), 2:56 29/01/1999 Tampa, Florida, US
Win 6-6 Ed Gissendanner TKO1 (6), 1:55 27/11/1998 Tampa, Florida, US
Win 5-6 Tony Velasco UD8 (8), 3:00 30/10/1998 Tampa, Florida, US
Loss 4-6 Joe Mesi TKO2 (4), N/A 26/07/1998 Verona, New York, US
Loss 4-5 Paea Wolfgramm TKO1 (6), 1:12 16/01/1998 Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
Loss 4-4 Nikolai Valuev KO1 (?), N/A 27/09/1997 Moscow, Russia
Win 4-3 Christer Markusas TKO2 (?), N/A 06/09/1997 Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
Win 3-3 Jim Ellis TKO2 (?), N/A 27/08/1994 Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, US
Win 2-3 Lee Moore TKO3 (?), N/A 12/11/1990 Baton Rouge, Louisiana, US
Loss 1-3 David Dixon TKO1 (?), N/A 07/04/1990 Las Vegas, Nevada, US
Win 1-2 John Elacqua TKO2 (?), N/A 0/03/1989 Laughlin, Nevada, US
Loss 0-2 Curtis Jackson PTS4 (4), N/A 28/02/1989 Inglewood, California, US
Loss 0-1 Andrew Matthews TKO1 (?), N/A 14/01/1989 Las Vegas, Nevada, US
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References
  1. UFC 1 DVD
  2. "Where Is He Now...IKF Takes A Look Back At KEVIN ROSIER".
  3. Don Beu, The Ultimate Fighting Championship: Jujutsu and Royce Gracie Reign Supreme at No-Holds-Barred Tournament, Black Belt magazine, March 1994
  4. Scott Newman (2005-07-06). "MMA Review: #50: UFC 1: The Beginning". The Oratory. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  5. 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.
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