 | |
| Est. | 2011 (start) 2017 (defunct) |
|---|---|
| Primary trainers | |
| Past titleholders | |
| Training facilities | Boca Raton, Florida |
The Blackzilians was a professional team of fighters in mixed martial arts, boxing, kickboxing, amateur wrestling and catch wrestling located in South Florida. The team had included former UFC champions Rashad Evans, Vitor Belfort, Eddie Alvarez and Kamaru Usman.
Owned by Glenn Robinson, Blackzilians, started when MMA fighters Jorge Santiago, Danillo Villefort, Yuri Villefort, and Gesias Cavalcante left American Top Team. [1] The name 'Blackzilians' was coined when Strikeforce Middleweight Danillo Villefort was looking through their management's website and pointed out to Robinson that every fighter (at the time) was Black or Brazilian. [2]
It was reported on September 20, 2018, that Glenn Robinson, Blackzilians founder, had died of a suspected heart attack. [3]
As of 2017, the Blackzilians as a gym is considered defunct. [4] [5] Many of its members have left to join Sanford MMA, now Kill Cliff Fight Club (founded by Blackzilians trainers Henry Hooft and Greg Jones) which is considered a successor to the Blackzilians. [5]
Randall Duane Couture is an American actor, former United States Army sergeant, former mixed martial artist and former collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestler. During his tenures in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), he became a three-time UFC Heavyweight Champion, two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, an interim UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, making him a six-time UFC Champion and the UFC 13 Heavyweight Tournament winner. He is the first of nine fighters to hold two UFC championship titles in two different divisions.
Alistair Overeem is a Dutch former professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. He is a former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, Dream Heavyweight Champion, K-1 World Grand Prix Champion, and was the first fighter to hold world titles in MMA and K-1 kickboxing at the same time. Overeem is also a one-time challenger for the UFC Heavyweight Championship.
Rashad Anton Evans is an American mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division of Eagle Fighting Championship. Evans started his professional career in 2003, he was the Heavyweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter 2 and is also a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, and a 2019 inductee of the UFC Hall of Fame.
Valentijn Overeem is a Dutch retired professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. A professional competitor since 1996, he has previously fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, RINGS, KSW, the World Fighting Alliance, K-1, M-1 Global, Its Showtime, World Victory Road, and Strikeforce. He is the older brother of fellow MMA Superstar Alistair Overeem. Overeem has notable wins over fighters such as Randy Couture and Renato Sobral.
Sean Michael Salmon is a retired American mixed martial artist and a former columnist for MMA news site MMAjunkie.com. Salmon has competed for the UFC, Strikeforce and King of the Cage.
Matthew Peter Horwich is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor since 2003, Horwich has fought in BAMMA, Strikeforce, Bellator, the UFC, and for the Seattle Tiger Sharks of the IFL where he was the IFL Middleweight Champion.
Gregory Jackson is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) trainer who co-owns Jackson Wink MMA Academy in Albuquerque, New Mexico, widely considered one of the top MMA training centers in the world. Jackson has trained many successful fighters, including current UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones, former UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre, former UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion Holly Holm, former Light Heavyweight Champion Rashad Evans, and a roster of other UFC contenders and World Extreme Cagefighting champions.
Junior dos Santos is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former professional wrestler who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion. As a professional wrestler, dos Santos made appearances for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a member of the American Top Team stable.
Danillo Villefort is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. Villefort has fought for the UFC, WEC, IFL, World Series of Fighting, and Professional Fighters League fighting in their Middleweight division.
James Adam McSweeney is an English-Irish kickboxer and retired mixed martial artist. A professional MMA competitor since 2005, McSweeney is well known for being a cast member of Spike TV's The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights and competing in the UFC, but he has also competed in major European promotions such as KSW, Cage Rage and BAMMA.
Neil Melanson is an American submission grappling coach. Melanson specializes in catch wrestling, while drawing elements from judo, and focuses his coaching specifically on grappling in mixed martial arts. He is especially known for his guard work, leg locks and triangle chokes. He is currently the head grappling coach at Jaco Hybrid Training Center. He is the former head grappling coach at both Xtreme Couture Las Vegas, Blackzilians and Alliance MMA.
Tom Niinimäki is a Finnish professional mixed martial artist who formerly competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Kelvin Gastelum is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the welterweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Gastelum earned a contract with the UFC after winning The Ultimate Fighter 17 in 2013. Gastelum has also competed in the middleweight division. As of December 5, 2023, he is #14 in the UFC middleweight rankings.
Yuri Villefort is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 2009, he has competed for the UFC and Strikeforce. He is the younger brother of fellow mixed martial artist Danillo Villefort.
Michael “Mike” Dolce is an American trainer, strength and conditioning coach, weight-cut coach, author, nutrition and fitness expert, and motivational speaker. He is a former mixed martial artist.
Michael Lee Graves is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Welterweight division of Titan FC, where he is the former Welterweight Champion. A professional competitor since 2013, he formerly competed for the UFC and was also a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians.
Henri Hooft, also known as Harry Hooft, is a Dutch former kickboxer and trainer. He is the head trainer at Kill Cliff FC and formerly the Blackzilians.
Jackson Wink MMA Academy is a mixed martial arts gym based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The gym has been featured in several sports documentaries and has been called one of the best MMA gyms in the world by various MMA magazines.
Kill Cliff FC, officially known as Kill Cliff Fight Club is a mixed martial arts gym based in Deerfield Beach, Florida. It was originally founded in 2017 by Henri Hooft and Greg Jones as Combat Club and later Hard Knocks 365 before being rebranded to Sanford MMA in 2019 after obtaining a sponsorship deal with Sanford Health. In July 2022, the gym rebranded to Kill Cliff FC.
