What was the MMA record of Emmanuel Yarbrough, the heaviest-ever fighter in the UFC?

Emmanuel Yarbrough is the heaviest fighter in UFC history. However, he competed only once in the promotion at UFC 3. He had a UFC record of 0-1 and an overall MMA record of 1-2.

Yarbrough walked around at a whopping 600+ pounds and competed in the super heavyweight divisions of MMA organizations. Ironically, Yarbrough was nicknamed 'Tiny' in college, although he later went by the moniker 'Manny' as a fighter.

'Manny' fought only three times in MMA. His first foray into MMA was in 1994 at UFC 3, where he lost the fight via TKO to Keith Hackney via punches in the first round.

His next bout was against Tatsuo Nakano at Shooto - Shoot the Shooto XX in 1998. 'Manny' won against Nakano in the first round via submission by smothering his opponent. Yarbrough's size proved to be too much for the Japanese fighter, who weighed less than half of his opponent.

In his last MMA bout, Emmanuel Yarbrough faced Daiju Takase at Pride 3, where he lost via TKO, submitting to punches in the second round. 'Manny' outweighed Takase by more than 400 pounds but still ended up losing the fight.

Emmanuel Yarbrough had a background in amateur sumo and won the world amateur sumo competition in 1995. He was a collegiate wrestler with NCAA Division 1 credentials. He was also a brown belt in judo.

Emmanuel Yarbrough also held the Guinness World Record for the heaviest living athlete.

He passed away on December 21, 2015 from a heart attack at age 51. According to his manager, Yarbrough struggled with food addiction all his life and cited the super heavyweight athlete's own words of "being a prisoner in his own body."

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Apart from Emmanuel Yarbrough, who were the heaviest fighters in the UFC?

In the modern landscape, the heavyweight limit is set at 265 pounds. The limit was set by the New Jersey State Athletic Commission (NJSAC) in 2000, along with the new unified rules for MMA.

Prior to 2000, the UFC saw some of the heaviest athletes compete in the octagon.

Teila Tuli, a Hawaiian sumo fighter, checked in at 414 pounds at UFC 1 against Gerard Gordeau. The fight between the two made for one of UFC's all-time highlight reels, with Gordeau knocking out the American Samoan within 26 seconds of the first round. The knockout resulted in some of Tuli's teeth flying out of his mouth.

Skip to 3:09 for the fight:

Another notable name is Thomas Ramirez, who faced UFC legend Don Fry in the UFC 8 quarter-final bout. Ramirez walked into the bout weighing in at 410 pounds. Much like the aforementioned Tuli, Ramirez suffered a quick knockout in the first round at the hands of Don Fry. This time, however, the fight ended in just eight seconds.