Luke Rockhold is a professional mixed martial artist who competes in the middleweight category and is under contract with the United Fighting Championship (UFC) MMA promotion. He is a two-time world champion – he has won the UFC Middleweight Championship and the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship. A man of diverse talents, Rockhold is also a successful fashion designer who participated in New York Fashion Week in 2016.
Luke Rockhold Bio
Luke Skylar Rockhold was born on October 17, 1984, in the city of Santa Cruz in the Bay Area, California. His father, Steve Rockhold, comes from a family of highly talented athletes and played professional-level basketball in his heyday in Europe. His mother Diana was also an avid tennis player and his older brother Matt is a successful professional surfer. Rockhold began training in Judo at the age of 6, but finally gave up the sport when he turned 10. As a seventh-grader, he joined the wrestling team at his school, Soquel High School, and also began training in Jiu-Jitsu.
Rockhold first tried a college career in wrestling, but then decided to pursue it and chose a full-time career in mixed martial arts, which he was more interested in. In 2006 he was invited to train at the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) in San Jose, California, where he distinguished himself through his exceptional talent and kickboxing skills. He then won several BJJ tournaments before he became a professional.
Luke Rockhold made his professional debut in July 2007 as part of the MMA promotion “Melee on the Mountain” and defeated his opponent Mike Martinez in the first round using an armbar template. In his second fight in November 2007, however, he lost to Tony Rubalcava. He joined the MMA company Strikeforce at the beginning of 2008 and had a very successful run with the company where he scored 6 consecutive wins in his first 6 fights.
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Rockhold competed against Ronaldo Souza in the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship on September 10, 2011. He won the fight by unanimous decision to become the new Strikeforce middleweight champion and successfully defended his title twice in 2012. He was the last man to hold the title before Strikeforce was inducted into the UFC in January 2013.
Luke Rockhold was defeated by Vitor Belfort at his UFC debut in May 2013. He then recorded 4 consecutive victories through defeats to Costas Philippou (January 2014), Tim Boetsch (April 2014), Michael Bisping (November 2014), and Lyoto Machida (April 2015). The peak of Rockhold’s UFC career came on December 12, 2015, when he defeated Chris Weidman and won the UFC Middleweight Championship at UFC 194. He won the fight over TKO in the fourth round, ending Weidman’s unbeaten career in the UFC. Both fighters were honored with the “Fight of the Night” award.
Rockhold’s reign as UFC middleweight champion ended on June 4, 2016, at UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping 2, where he was defeated by Michael Bisping. The fight was Rockhold’s first title defense and is considered one of the greatest shocks in the history of UFC championships. He made unsuccessful attempts to regain the title as he was badly injured. In September 2017, MMA star David Branch defeated 116 at UFC Fight Night 116 after an almost 15-month break from the sport. He lost to Yoel Romero in September 2018 in UFC 221 and will play Chris Weidman in UFC 230 in November 2018.
Wife, Girlfriend, Is He Gay?
Luke Rockhold does not yet have a wife, but it is unclear whether he is currently single. The mixed martial arts star has had many relationships in the course of his career. He had his most remarkable romantic relationship with the music star Demi Lovato. The duo started their relationship in the summer of 2016 but decided to keep his romance rather reserved during the first months. In November 2016 they finally confirmed that they were a couple, but separated before the end of the year.
Rockhold’s relationship history is quite clear, and it is safe to assume that the MMA star is heterosexual. He has also never made any statements that might indicate that he has been gay throughout his career.
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Luke Rockhold Net Worth
Rockhold’s successful career as a professional mixed martial artist currently spans more than a decade. He also looks back on a flourishing career as a model, having worked for the New York-based modeling agency Soul Artist Management. In March 2018, the multi-talented star was signed as the face of Ralph Lauren’s “Polo Blue” cologne and perfume. With these and several other ventures, Luke Rockhold has accumulated a net worth of $2 million.
Height And Other Body Measurements
Luke Rockhold stands at an impressive height of 191 cm (6 feet 3 inches). He maintains his well-carved physique with a bodyweight of 84 kg (185 lb). The former middleweight champion has an arm length of 77 inches and a leg length of 45 inches. His chest measurement is 111 cm (43.5 inches) and he has a waist measurement of 81 cm (32 inches).
