Wes Sims

Last updated
Wes Sims
Born (1979-10-12) October 12, 1979 (age 44)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Other namesThe Project (previously)
A Whole Show (currently)
Height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Weight258 lb (117 kg; 18 st 6 lb)
Division Heavyweight
Reach81 in (206 cm)
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of Lancaster, Ohio, United States
Team Team Hammer House
Years active2001–2016
Mixed martial arts record
Total42
Wins24
By knockout13
By submission9
By disqualification1
Unknown1
Losses15
By knockout6
By submission5
By decision3
By disqualification1
Draws1
No contests2
Other information
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Wesley Sims (born 12 October 1979) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist. A professional from 2001 until 2016, he competed in the UFC, the WEC, Strikeforce, K-1 and the IFL.

Contents

Background

Sims was born in Cleveland and raised in Amanda, Ohio. He was a star center on the basketball team at Amanda-Clearcreek High School, and went on to Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati. However, he dropped out after only one semester to pursue a career in professional wrestling, moving back to Columbus to train. He soon met legendary UFC and PRIDE FC fighter Mark Coleman who had a better plan for the young Sims which was to become a mixed martial artist, believing that Sim's huge size advantage would be significant against opponents. Sims helped Coleman prepare for his bout with Ricardo Morais at PRIDE 8, before embarking on his own career in the sport.[ citation needed ]

Sims has been friends, since before UFC 47, and former training partners with former UFC Hall of Famer Mark Coleman and the deceased Kevin Randleman; they were all very close and described by MMA Weekly in an interview with Randleman, with Sims present, as the 3 Amigos. [1] When Coleman was suffering from issues related to hip replacement injuries and training fighters on the Ultimate Fighter (he was the wrestling coach on B.J. Penn's team on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Edgar vs. Team Penn), Sims set up a GoFundMe page for Coleman without his knowledge to help pay him for his medical expenses. Thanks to Sims, donations raised over $51,000, including a $5,000 donation from fellow Pride FC and UFC fighter Mark Hunt, for Coleman's medical expenses, halfway meeting the goal of $100,000. [2]

Mixed martial arts career

Frank Mir rivalry

In 2003, Sims fought a controversial fight against Frank Mir at UFC 43. At the very beginning of the fight, Mir put out his hand to touch gloves and Sims rushed past Mir's outstretched hand and into a quickly maneuvered takedown by Mir. In the first round, after slamming Mir to prevent an armbar, Sims got up while Mir was on his back against the fence and proceeded to stomp Mir's face several times while holding the fence for extra balance. The fight was stopped and Sims was disqualified.

This started a rivalry between the two and they met again in 2004 at UFC 46. Mir easily took control of the first round with an arm triangle attempt. Near the end of the second round Mir hit Sims with knee strikes to the face and then punches to knock Sims out.

Mike Kyle bite incident

Sims fought again in the UFC at the UFC 47 against Mike Kyle. Sims took the fight on less than a weeks notice after Kyle's original opponent got injured. Kyle dominated the entire first round and knocked Sims out at 4:59. Sims protested after the fight that Kyle had bitten him on the chest. [3] During the post fight interview, a bite mark could clearly be seen on Sims' left pectoral muscle. This marks the first time a bite has ever happened in a UFC fight since its UFC 1 in 1993, when Gerard Gordeau bit Royce Gracie in the championship match. When asked in the cage after the fight to explain the bite, Kyle told commentator Joe Rogan "he's a dirty bastard anyways, look at all the stuff he's done..." Kyle denied any wrongdoing.

After losing to Kyle he was released by the UFC.

Tim Sylvia rivalry

Wes Sims faced former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia at SuperBrawl 38. Sylvia was coming off a title loss against Frank Mir, a fight in which he broke his right arm and needed a titanium plate inserted. The two did not touch gloves and Wes began the fight by sprinting towards Sylvia and then backing away. Sylvia got a takedown early and passed through to mount almost right away, but accidentally mounted his knee on top of Sims' shoulder, seriously injuring it. Wes was unable to defend himself with the injury and Sylvia won by strikes in the first round. Tim and Wes had a heated exchange after the fight when Sylvia called Sims out and said he did not deserve to stand in front of him. Wes ran up to Sylvia and trainers had to separate the two. Wes and Tim were supposed to have their rematch for the International Fighting Championships (IFC) Heavyweight title June 6 but Sylvia was injured and the fight was cancelled. [4]

The Ultimate Fighter

Sims returned to the UFC as a cast member on the tenth season of The Ultimate Fighter , which began filming in June 2009. [5] Sims was defeated by castmate Justin Wren via arm triangle in the first round of Sims' first fight in the house. Despite his early exit from the competition, Sims was seen regularly on the show and may have earned a reputation for being one of the bullies of the household due to his constant childlike taunting of Matt Mitrione and Zak Jensen.

Strikeforce

Sims made his Strikeforce debut against Bobby Lashley on January 30, 2010, at Strikeforce: Miami. [6] Sims came up short and was defeated by Bobby Lashley by TKO. Sims was taken down at the beginning of the first round by the decorated wrestler, who then used the ground and pound technique on the 6'8 UFC veteran. The referee stopped to the fight much to the dismay of Sims, who believed that the stoppage was premature. Sims was expected to fight former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia in Ohio outside of Strikeforce but the Ohio State Athletic Commission did not sanction the bout, citing that the fight was "non-competitive". [7]

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
42 matches24 wins15 losses
By knockout136
By submission95
By decision03
By disqualification11
Unknown10
Draws1
No contests2
Res.RecordOpponentMethodEventDateRoundTimeLocationNotes
Loss24–15–1 (2)George OilerSubmission (armbar)Dugout Summer ThrowdownAugust 13, 201612:15 Parkersburg, West Virginia, United States
Win24–14–1 (2)Ruben VillarealSubmission (guillotine choke)Gladiator Challenge: Hammer TimeSeptember 1, 201310:37 Lincoln, California, United States
Loss23–14–1 (2)Lyubomir SimeonovSubmission (heel hook)Maxfight 27June 16, 201221:05 Sofia, BulgariaSimeonov was given more than the allowed time to recover on the stool in between rounds 1 & 2. [8]
Loss23–13–1 (2) Bobby Lashley TKO (punches) Strikeforce: Miami January 30, 201012:06 Sunrise, Florida, United States
Win23–12–1 (2)Jason DeAngeloKO (punches)FCFS 29: Battlefield 2November 28, 200810:18 Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States
Win22–12–1 (2)Clifford CoonSubmission (kneebar)FCFS 26: Beach-N-BrawlJune 28, 200811:32 Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States
Win21–12–1 (2)William CliffordSubmission (guillotine choke)FCFS 26: Beach-N-BrawlJune 28, 200812:12 Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States
Loss20–12–1 (2) Steve Bossé Submission (toe hold)TKO 34: Sims VS BosseJune 7, 200813:05 Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Loss20–11–1 (2) Travis Fulton Decision (unanimous)FF: Capitol PunishmentSeptember 29, 200735:00 Columbus, Ohio, United States
Loss20–10–1 (2)Chris GuillenTKO (corner stoppage)IFO: Fireworks in the CageJuly 7, 200725:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win20–9–1 (2)Daniel LongTKO (punches)FCFS 12: BloodsportJune 16, 200714:01 Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States
Loss19–9–1 (2)Chris GuillenDecision (unanimous)UAFC: Art of War 2May 11, 200735:00 Dallas, Texas, United States
NC19–8–1 (2)Van PalacioNCPFC 2: Fast and FuriousMarch 22, 200710:54 Lemoore, California, United States
Win19–8–1 (1)William JaggersTKO (submission to punches)FCFS 7: Fight ClubFebruary 10, 200710:28 Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States
Win18–8–1 (1)Albert PalmerTKO (submission to punches)FOG: Fists of FurryDecember 9, 200610:54 Richmond, Indiana, United States
Win17–8–1 (1)Anton CanoDQ (groin kick)MMA: MexicoOctober 27, 200620:08 Monterrey, Mexico
Win16–8–1 (1) Kimo Leopoldo TKO (referee stoppage)Extreme Wars 5: BattlegroundsOctober 6, 200611:13 Honolulu, Hawaii, United States [9]
Win15–8–1 (1)Robert HoganKO (punches)FCFS 3: Full Contact Fight SeriesSeptember 16, 200611:07 Auburn, Indiana, United States
Win14–8–1 (1)Jabari HawthorneKO (knees)HHCF 27: Rumble at the Rodeo 2September 2, 200610:36 Chillicothe, Ohio, United States
Win13–8–1 (1)Joel SurprenantSubmission (triangle choke) WEC 22: The Hitmen July 28, 200610:28 Lemoore, California, United States
Win12–8–1 (1)Paul BowersSubmissionUFS 2: Ultimate Fight Series 2June 17, 200610:39 Auburn, Indiana, United States
Loss11–8–1 (1) Daniel Gracie Technical Submission (standing rear-naked choke) IFL: Championship 2006 June 3, 200612:42 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win11–7–1 (1)Buddy ButlerTKO (submission to punches)UFS: Ultimate Fight SeriesApril 15, 200610:50 Auburn, Indiana, United States
Draw10–7–1 (1) Daniel Gracie Technical DrawGFC: Team Gracie vs Team Hammer HouseMarch 3, 200625:00 Columbus, Ohio, United States
Win10–7 (1)Jyunpei HamadaSubmission (triangle choke)RFN 2: Ryukyu Fight Night 2November 13, 200513:07 Okinawa, Japan
Win9–7 (1)Dustin SuttonTKO (punches)HHCF 22: Rumble at the RodeoSeptember 3, 200510:36 Chillicothe, Ohio, United States
Win8–7 (1)Shane LightleKO (punch)HHCF 21: RedemptionAugust 26, 200511:54 Columbus, Ohio, United States
Loss7–7 (1) Tim Sylvia TKO (punches)SB 38: SuperBrawl 38December 12, 200411:32 Honolulu, Hawaii, United States
Loss7–6 (1) Antoni Hardonk Submission (americana) K-1 Fighting Network Rumble on the Rock 2004 November 20, 200414:24 Honolulu, Hawaii, United States
Win7–5 (1)Joe MellotteTKO (submission to punches)EFC 9: Extreme Fighting Challenge 9September 10, 200411:00 Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Loss6–5 (1)Ricardeau FrancoisTKO (punches)APEX: GenesisSeptember 5, 200420:26Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Loss6–4 (1) Mike Kyle KO (punch) UFC 47 April 2, 200414:59 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss6–3 (1) Frank Mir KO (knee and punches) UFC 46 January 31, 200424:21 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss6–2 (1) Frank Mir DQ (kicking a downed opponent) UFC 43 June 6, 200312:55 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win6–1 (1)Conan SilveiraTKO (punches)HOOKnSHOOT: Absolute Fighting Championships 1December 13, 200222:13 Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States
NC5–1 (1)Edwin AllseitzNCHHCF 3: Unfinished FuryOctober 19, 2002N/AN/A Lancaster, Ohio, United States
Win5–1Mike ShepardSubmission (guillotine choke)WEF 12: World Extreme Fighting 12May 11, 200213:00 Steubenville, Ohio, United States
Win4–1John HarmonSubmission (triangle choke)HHCF 1: Backyard BrawlMay 4, 20021N/A Lancaster, Ohio, United States
Win3–1Joe MellotteSubmission (triangle choke)OCF: Ohio Cage FightsMarch 23, 2002N/AN/A Delaware, Ohio, United States
Win2–1Josh MuellerN/AUW: St. Cloud 1May 15, 200211:18 St. Cloud, Minnesota, United States
Win1–1Mike PaduanoTKO (forfeit)RSF 7: Animal InstinctJanuary 26, 200210:01 Lakeland, Florida, United States
Loss0–1 Dan Severn DecisionRSF 2: Attack at the TrackJune 23, 200134:00 Chester, West Virginia, United States

Mixed martial arts exhibition record

Res.RecordOpponentMethodEventDateRoundTimeLocationNotes
Lose0–1 Justin Wren Technical Submission (arm-triangle choke) The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights N/A1N/A Las Vegas, Nevada Preliminary bout.

See also

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References

  1. "A Look Back: Kevin Randleman, Wes Sims, and Frank Trigg at UFC 47". YouTube .
  2. "Fans Help Hammer Fight Medical, Financial Hardship". 15 April 2015.
  3. "Hawaii Martial Arts News & Rumors - Dedicated to Hawaii-Specific Martial Arts News & Rumors". Onzuka.com. Retrieved 2015-06-12.
  4. Archived June 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  5. Archived June 12, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Bobby Lashely vs. UFC vet Wes Sims (finally) set for "Strikeforce: Miami"". mmajunkie.com. 2010-01-22.
  7. "Ohio commission turns down Sims vs. Sylvia at "Adrenaline MMA IV" (Updated)". MMAjunkie.
  8. "Interview with Wes Sims after MaxFight 27". YouTube .
  9. "10 Kimo Leopoldo vs Wes Sims : Hawaii MMA". YouTube .