Ben Rothwell, born on October 17, 1981, is an American mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxer. He competes as a Heavyweight and is the current BKFC Heavyweight World Champion. Rothwell is from Kenosha, Wisconsin, and both of his parents work in the restaurant business; they own a catering company. He is of Norwegian and Irish descent.
Since his departure from the UFC in 2022, Rothwell has competed in the Heavyweight division of the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, where he is the current BKFC Heavyweight Champion.
Early Life and Career Beginnings
Rothwell was an active child but suffered a bout with spinal meningitis when he was six years old. He was in a coma and temporarily blind, while the disease made him almost obese. The young Rothwell, who struggled with his weight and identity in his adolescent years, was also troubled growing up and was often involved in fighting and violence at Westosha Central High School in Paddock Lake.
By the time he was a junior in high school, Rothwell knew that he enjoyed fighting, and in 1999, at the age of 17, he began learning self-defense. In July of that same year, after he had been in three professional fights, he and a friend were involved in a car accident with a drunk driver. Rothwell's friend, who was 19 years old, died two weeks later, and Rothwell suffered a significant head injury, in addition to broken ribs.
Rothwell attended Waukesha County Technical College, where he earned a technical degree in collision repair.
Early MMA Career
Rothwell made his professional debut in early 2001 in his home state of Wisconsin and dominated his opponent, winning by TKO only 21 seconds into the fight. He then won his next three fights, all under two minutes into the first round and all with strikes. Rothwell was handed his first career loss in a decision after facing future two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion and fellow Miletich Fighting Systems fighter, Tim Sylvia.
After defeating former King of the Cage Super Heavyweight Champion, Dan Bobish by knockout, Rothwell was soon invited to compete in the International Fight League to fight for the Quad City Silverbacks, coached by the legendary Pat Miletich.
International Fight League (IFL)
On April 29, 2006, Rothwell made his IFL debut against future UFC veteran, the Polish-Canadian fighter, Krzysztof Soszynski. In the first round, Soszynski surprisingly decided to exchange strikes with Rothwell, and landed a left uppercut and held his own until he was knocked down by a short left hook from Rothwell, who then slammed Soszynski to the canvas. After working from side control and then standing again, Rothwell landed a series of punches at the end of the round, that knocked down Soszynski, and then followed this up with more punches to his downed opponent.
His next fight was a rematch from almost five years earlier against veteran Travis Fulton, owner of 195 career victories. Rothwell then met Krzysztof Soszynski in a rematch of his IFL debut. After controlling the fight and displaying superior striking, Rothwell won the fight via unanimous decision. His last fight in the IFL came against former UFC Heavyweight Champion, Ricco Rodriguez in the team finals. However, the Silverbacks fell short of a victory and lost the championship to Renzo Gracie's New York Pitbulls.
He most notably had a 17 bout stint in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and competed for the Quad Cities Silverbacks of the IFL where he held an undefeated 9-0 record before leaving the promotion due to a contract dispute. He has also had one-fight stints in Affliction, M-1 Global, and King of the Cage. He also competed for the World Series of Fighting and Absolute Championship Berkut.
Ben Rothwell’s BKFC Knockout Was SO FAST It Left Fans Speechless!
Affliction
After leaving the IFL, Rothwell joined Affliction where he appeared in only one bout, against former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski, Rothwell lost the fight via knockout due to an uppercut in the final round.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)
Rothwell made his UFC debut on October 24, 2009, at UFC 104 against undefeated Cain Velasquez losing via TKO one minute into round two. The stoppage was controversial because Rothwell seemed to be getting to his feet as Steve Mazzagatti stopped the fight.
Rothwell then faced Brendan Schaub on April 21, 2012, at UFC 145. He won the fight via knockout in round one. Rothwell faced Gabriel Gonzaga on January 19, 2013, at UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Rothwell faced Brandon Vera at UFC 164 on August 31, 2013. He won the fight via TKO by punches in round three. Subsequent to the bout, Rothwell tested positive for elevated testosterone levels.
The bout with Werdum was rescheduled and expected to take place on May 13, 2017, at UFC 211. However, the bout was canceled due to Rothwell failing a drug test. Rothwell faced Stefan Struve on December 7, 2019, at UFC on ESPN 7. He won the fight via technical knockout in round two. The finish was controversial as Rothwell had accidentally hit Struve in the groin twice and was docked one point for these infractions in the second round.
Rothwell faced Ovince Saint Preux at UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Rothwell was scheduled to face Philipe Lins on March 13, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 187. However, during the week leading up to the event the bout was removed from the card due to undisclosed reasons. The pairing remained intact and the bout was rescheduled on May 8, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 24. While Rothwell made weight without issue, Lins never showed up to the weigh-ins and withdrew from the bout due to an illness. The bout was rescheduled again for May 22, 2021, at UFC Fight Night: Font vs.
UFC Record
Here's a summary of Ben Rothwell's UFC fight record:
| Date | Event | Opponent | Result | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 13, 2021 | UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs. Rodríguez | Marcos Rogério de Lima | Loss | TKO (punches) |
| May 22, 2021 | UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Garbrandt | Chris Barnett | Win | Submission (guillotine choke) |
| October 11, 2020 | UFC Fight Night: Moraes vs. Sandhagen | Marcin Tybura | Loss | Decision (unanimous) |
| May 13, 2020 | UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Teixeira | Ovince Saint Preux | Win | Decision (split) |
| December 7, 2019 | UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Rozenstruik | Stefan Struve | Win | TKO (punches) |
| July 20, 2019 | UFC on ESPN: dos Anjos vs. Edwards | Andrei Arlovski | Loss | Decision (unanimous) |
| March 9, 2019 | UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. dos Santos | Blagoy Ivanov | Loss | Decision (unanimous) |
| April 10, 2016 | UFC Fight Night: Rothwell vs. dos Santos | Junior dos Santos | Loss | Decision (unanimous) |
| January 30, 2016 | UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Bader | Josh Barnett | Win | Submission (guillotine choke) |
| June 6, 2015 | UFC Fight Night: Boetsch vs. Henderson | Matt Mitrione | Win | Submission (guillotine choke) |
| September 5, 2014 | UFC Fight Night: Jacare vs. Mousasi | Alistair Overeem | Win | TKO (punches) |
| August 31, 2013 | UFC 164: Henderson vs. Pettis | Brandon Vera | Win | TKO (punches) |
| January 19, 2013 | UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Bisping | Gabriel Gonzaga | Loss | Submission (guillotine choke) |
| April 21, 2012 | UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans | Brendan Schaub | Win | KO (punches) |
| September 24, 2011 | UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage | Mark Hunt | Loss | Decision (unanimous) |
| October 24, 2009 | UFC 104: Machida vs. Shogun | Cain Velasquez | Loss | TKO (punches) |
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC)
In his third fight for the promotion, Rothwell was scheduled to face Todd Duffee at BKFC 56 on December 2, 2023. Since his departure from the UFC in 2022, Rothwell has competed in the Heavyweight division of the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, where he is the current BKFC Heavyweight Champion.
Currently, Rothwell and his wife own Rothwell Mixed Martial Arts in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Rothwell MMA, established in 2011, teaches MMA, kickboxing, boxing, Muay Thai, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wrestling, self-defense, yoga, and fitness to children and adults of all ages and experience levels. Rothwell is also the head coach for an MMA competition team of 30 amateur and professional MMA fighters.
Achievements
- Knockout of the Night (One time) vs.
- Performance of the Night (Two times) vs.
- 2014: Ranked #5 Upset of the Year vs.
- 2016: Submission of the Year vs.
- 2016 Submission of the Year vs.
- Knockout of the Night (Two times) vs.