LAS VEGAS, Nevada — Resurrection Fighting Alliance (RFA) announced this morning that it has signed Marc Laimon jiu-jitsu black belt turned undefeated bantamweight MMA fighter Chris Holdsworth to a 4-fight deal. This is a big signing for the RFA, which just hosted its third event 10 days ago.
As for Holdsworth, this completed a heavy recruitment process, as he had been receiving attention from multiple MMA organizations worldwide, after stopping all six of his opponents in amateur MMA and another three in professional MMA. What is even more remarkable is the fact that Holdsworth has won all 9 of those bouts (6 amateur and 3 pro) in the first round. In fact, he defeated all three of his opponents in the pro ranks in what adds up to be less than one round (total of 4 minutes and 19 seconds).
Holdsworth, like Laimon, began training at the original Gracie academy in Torrance, California. It was there that he began learning jiu-jitsu from the the likes of the first UFC champion Royce Gracie. As a teenager, Holdsworth began competing on the national jiu-jitsu and submission grappling circuit, which saw him compete at several Grapplers Quest (GQ) and World Grappling Games (WGG) tournaments, as well as the first-ever FILA recognized Grappling Trials, which were held in Las Vegas in 2007.
Holdsworth would eventually move to Las Vegas full time to train with the likes of Laimon, Simpson Go, Scott Bieri, Mark Bieri, and a number of other highly decorated jiu-jitsu players at Cobra Kai Jiu-Jitsu. It was there that Holdsworth would eventually become Laimon’s fourth black belt and he would also join the coaching staff at Cobra Kai.
During that time, he also got to train with Team Takedown, who had partnered up with Cobra Kai. This included UFC stars Johny Hendricks and Shane Roller, as well as UFC veteran Jake Rosholt. All three of those fighters are highly-decorated NCAA Division I wrestlers from Oklahoma State and gave Holdsworth the chance to incorporate his jiu-jitsu with wrestling and MMA at a very high-level on a daily basis.
In August 2010, after Holdsworth won his sixth consecutive amateur MMA fight for Tuff-N-Uff, which saw him win titles at 145-pounds and 135-pounds, he made his way to the Lone Star State. Team Takedown decided to head back to their headquarters in the Dallas, Texas area and were able to convince a few of Cobra Kai’s finest to come with them in order to supply their necessary jiu-jitsu training on a full-time basis. That included, Laimon, Adrian Ramirez, and Holdsworth. It was there that Holdsworth won his pro MMA debut by first round submission in October 2010.
Holdsworth decided to head back to his home state of California in 2011. That is where he would submit his next two opponents fighting for Gladiator Challenge and King of the Cage. After winning his last fight 12 months ago, Holdsworth would join the ranks of Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, California. This is arguably the best MMA team in the world for fighters in lower weight classes. Holdsworth spent the past year training with his new team, which like Team Takedown, happens to be stacked with former NCAA standout wrestlers who became successful MMA fighters.
Holdsworth has been training alongside UFC stars Urijah Faber, Chad Mendes, Joseph Benavidez, T.J. Dillashaw, and Danny Castillo, as well as fellow RFA fighter Lance Palmer, in preparation for his next MMA bout. That bout will take place inside the RFA in late summer or early fall.
Resurrection Fighting Alliance (RFA) was founded in 2011 and includes a number of prominent businessmen, fight promoters, matchmakers, and others with successful careers in hosting Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) shows across the United States. To learn more, check out their website at www.RFAfighting.com.