Ultimate fighting Manson. Jeff Monson: Russian hero, born in the USA
Jeff Monson is a popular mixed martial arts fighter who has now retired from his career. During his time in the sport, he became a two-time world champion in wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Jeff is originally from America, but already in adulthood he decided to obtain Russian citizenship. Because he felt Russian in his soul. Throughout his career, Monson often performed to the works of Russian performers.
The beginning of the sports journey
Jeff Monson was born on January 18, 1971 in Saint Paul. As a teenager, he took up classical wrestling. Monson began performing at various youth competitions. Over time, this wrestler began to master other types of martial arts.
He spent most of his time grappling. This is a dynamic type of wrestling in which fighters try to quickly apply a painful or choke hold to their opponent. Jeff also tried to achieve high results in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
After graduating from high school, Jeff Monson entered the University of Illinois, where he received a bachelor's degree in psychology. Jeff worked in this specialty for several years, while simultaneously studying martial arts. He understood that he would not be able to combine two professions. After a successful performance at the world championship, the fighter left his job and devoted himself entirely to martial arts.
Entering the UFC
Jeff Monson came in at the age of 26. At first, things weren’t going well for him, but after that he managed to win the World Grappling Championship. After this outstanding event, Jeff signed a contract with the UFC association. But there it was difficult for this fighter to compete against experienced athletes.
Jeff Monson suffered two defeats in three fights, and the association sent him to compete in less prestigious tournaments. Jeff realized that to return to the elite he needed to work hard. This fighter began to hone his striking technique, which had previously been his weak point. After hard training, Monson's career took off. He won 13 fights and began winning tournaments. In 2006, thanks to his victories, this fighter returned to the UFC. There he was given the nickname "Snowman".
Career continuation
After returning to the UFC, fighter Jeff Monson won a landslide victory over rising martial arts star Marcius Cruz. Then he defeated several more fighters, and Jeff had to fight Tim Sylvia in the finals. Monson lost that fight. This greatly angered the athlete, and he again left to compete in less prestigious leagues, where mid-level fighters and veterans fought.
During his career, the American fighter fought over 80 fights, in which he scored 58 victories. Jeff Monson's stats are certainly not outstanding. But he could defeat any opponent. That is why this fighter is an inconvenient opponent. The audience especially noted his brilliant performance against Alexander and Fedor Emelianenko.
Fights against the Emelianenko brothers
In 2011, a significant event took place for all martial arts fans. Fighter Jeff Monson met with the legendary Fedor Emelianenko. The fight promised to be spectacular and equal. Jeff Monson weighed over 100 kilograms and had good wrestling skills. This fight was won by Fedor Emelianenko by decision of the judges.
The very next year, a fight took place in St. Petersburg in which Monson fought against Alexander Emelianenko. The American fighter was full of desire to rehabilitate himself for his defeat in Moscow from Fedor. Monson performed a successful choke hold in the fourth minute of the second round and won the fight. Alexander demanded revenge, but Monson did not give an exact answer. There was never a repeat fight between these fighters.
The American surprised all the spectators by entering the fight to the song “Lube” - “Combat”. The fans were delighted with this and applauded the athlete. This was not the first time that Monson went into battle accompanied by patriotic works of our country.
Performances in the Colosseum series
On September 16, 2013 in St. Petersburg, spectators saw a bright spectacle. The strongest heavyweights competed at the “New History” tournament of the “Colosseum” series. Jeff Monson's opponent was the well-known Denis Komkin.
The fights took place and the American fighter won by split decision. He then had another spectacular fight against Satoshi Ishii. There have always been many fans of this fighter among Russian spectators. After all, he held several spectacular fights in our country.
Problems with the law and obtaining Russian citizenship
Jeff Monson has repeatedly told reporters that he is against class hierarchy in society. In his tattoo, Jeff Monson shows his attitude to the injustice of our time. He has many anarchist tattoos. In addition, on his body you can see inscriptions in Russian, Japanese and English.
In 2009, Jeff Monson was arrested. This news immediately spread throughout the world. This athlete painted messages about peace and equality on a government facility. Long legal proceedings began. Monson temporarily suspended his fighting career. The court found Jeff Monson guilty and sentenced him to 90 days in prison and a fine of $20,000.
In 2013, popular fighter Jeff Monson announced that he plans to change his citizenship: inside he feels Russian in spirit and wants to get a Russian passport. He officially became a citizen of our country in 2015.
Personal life of an athlete
Jeff Monson got married at the age of 20. In marriage, he had a daughter, Michaela, and 3 years later a son was born, who was named Joshua. After many years of marriage, the married couple separated. In 2010, Monson walked down the aisle for the second time. His wife was flight attendant Daniela Dagan. They met in the cabin of the plane. Jeff and Danielle have a daughter, Willow. But the second marriage did not last long.
The popular fighter tries to see his children as often as possible. After the official divorce, Jeff Johnson briefly dated a Russian girl, Alesya Kartseva.
Participation in a Russian television project
Popular fighter Jeff Monson regularly gives interviews in Russia and often conducts master classes for young Russian athletes. Most recently, he took part in the show “Dancing with the Stars.” His partner in the project was a professional dancer. Jeff trained a lot to perform well on the TV show. His athletic character and hard work helped him master new movements. This popular fighter was trained in tango, Viennese waltz and other ballroom dances. Fans around the world watched with interest as their idol would perform on an unfamiliar stage.
Jeff Monson currently
The fighter did not want to end his professional career for a long time. He participated in even little-known tournaments. Jeff has stated more than once that he is a fighter and wants to fight. Although he understands that by opening his own school, he could earn more. His name would bring her a lot of attention.
Jeff Monson's biography is full of ups and downs. This fighter was forced to perform in the lower leagues of America several times. But he returned again and defeated famous opponents. Monson loved wrestling on the ground. Therefore, it was difficult for many drummers to impose their fighting style on him. Jeff Monson's stats aren't outstanding. But at the peak of his career, he won a large number of fights in a row.
- a unique phenomenon in world sports. No, he's not a record holder, he didn't break Tyson, did not overtake Bolta and didn't jump higher Bubki. His record is full of defeats. There are probably more of them than even the average fighter needs. But he continues to remain unique and holds the attention of the sports media even at 44 years old, when normal fighters are already retiring and babysitting children.
But the soul of Russian fans especially became attached to Monson - his rebellious spirit is too close to the Russian soul, always looking for something.
Russia and USSR
And Jeff himself feels this, understands it, and, unlike many, many Americans, instead of fear and hatred towards our country, he feels respect and even love.
Lately he has been visiting us often. But Monson does not come to Russia for money or fame. Between fights, he travels a lot around the country, gives master classes, free for children and paid for adults, visits schools, hospitals and orphanages, and donates to charity.
During one of his fights, which he found himself in absolutely by accident Russian President Vladimir Putin, Monson forced the Russian head of state to greet himself standing - he simply entered the ring to the anthem of the Soviet Union, which, without words, repeats the current Russian anthem. How could I not stand up here?
We love him, even though he beat one of our heroes - Alexandra Emelianenko. The latter, by the way, is now in custody on suspicion of rape. To his brother Fedor, Monson, however, lost. But he lost in his own way, not the way many others did - until the last he refused to lie down and admit defeat. To prevent Fedor from killing him, the seconds had to literally carry Jeff out of the ring.
Jeff Monson and Fedor Emelianenko. Photo: RIA Novosti / Vladimir Astapkovich
“I’ve heard the expression that “Russia is a mystery country, shrouded in mystery.” Russia combines both Europe and Asia; no other country in the world has such diversity. It's unique. There are people of different races here, they coexist together and are united into one big culture. A culture unlike any other. It is very interesting. Russians are capable of doing more difficult things than Americans, passing more difficult tests and moving on. And here's another thing, political things. America, it's trying to become an empire. We have about one hundred to one hundred and fifty military bases around the world. And we are trying to control the World. Russia's army is not of this type. It is not aimed at the World. This is also a big difference,” the portal valetudo.ru quotes the fighter.
On the shoulder of the famous American fighter, the words “fighter”, “freedom” and “solidarity” are written in mixed Russian style. On the lower leg there is a huge crossed hammer and sickle. A red and black star “burns” on the chest - a symbol of anarcho-communism. And one of the tattoos on his leg, although in English, was completed by Monson in Orenburg.
Jeff Monson. Photo: RIA Novosti / Alexey Druzhinin
Mom Anarchy
Tattoos are not just a fashion statement. In them, Monson expresses his beliefs, according to which this American is an anarchist. He is a member of anarchist international organizations, sponsors publishers of anarchist literature from his own pocket, and draws inspiration from the famous Russian philosopher and, of course, anarchist Mikhail Bakunin, whom Jeff calls his only idol from the human world.
Monson is ready to suffer for his beliefs - in 2009, a US court sentenced him to 90 days in prison for drawing a peace sign and two inscriptions “no to poverty” and “no to war” on the walls of the Capitol in Washington.
Americans continue to struggle with poverty and war today. While his native country is imposing more and more sanctions on Russia due to the events taking place on the territory of Ukraine, and is even thinking about providing military assistance to official Kyiv in the fight against the Donbass militias, Jeff donates his fees for the fight to ordinary residents of Donbass, who every day are suffering from this bloodbath.
And all of this, all of the above, coexists in one body with a sweet-hearted person who simply loves working with children, and is himself a child psychologist by training. On his right leg he has a tattoo of one of the children's cartoon characters, a cute cat. Often this tattoo is in harmony with his toenails, which Monson paints pink before each fight. This has nothing to do with his beliefs - this is a sign that came after one of the won battles. The day before the fight, Monson's daughter jokingly painted her father's toenails pink, but he did not wash off the polish. The battle was won. Since then, Jeff has gone to every fight with pink toenails and a good-natured smile on his face.
Monson competed in Division I as a wrestler at the University of Oregon, as well as the University of Illinois and was a Pac-10 champion. For several years he performed at the highest level in American wrestling. He fought three fights in the professional boxing ring. His result was two wins and a draw. He is a two-time winner of the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship and NOGI World Champion. He is the current holder of the heavyweight titles in the International Sport Karate Association and the Strength & Honor Championship. Member of the American Top Team, which is based in Coconut Creek, Florida. Jeff has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, as well as 46 wins and 13 losses in mixed martial arts statistics. Jeff has a master's degree in psychology and worked in this specialty for several years (diagnosis of crisis conditions, as well as as a family and children's counselor) before becoming a professional fighter.
He is one of the best mixed style fighters in the world in ground fighting, where he forced opponents to surrender after a choke or painful hold (28 wins). He won such competitions in NAGA, Grapplers Quest and International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles. He received the nickname "The Snowman" after performing in 1999 at the Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championship. The nickname was given to him by Brazilian fighters after Monson, unknown to the general public, defeated four Brazilians in the 88-98 kilogram weight category. As the tournament progressed, he continued to defeat opponents and was like a snowman: white, compact, rolling and becoming bigger and stronger as the tournament progressed.
Beliefs
Jeff Monson calls himself an anarchist and anarcho-communist. So, in an interview, he said: “I am an anarchist, one who wants to end the class hierarchy in society and the institutions that give rise to this inequality.” Jeff is a member of the IWW, sponsored by AK Press, and has several anarchist tattoos on his body, including (on his right shoulder) the Russian words for "freedom" and "solidarity."
On January 14, 2009, Monson was charged with first-degree malicious damage to property for vandalizing the Washington Capitol with symbols of anarchy and peace, as well as "no poverty" and "no war." The warrant was issued by the Thurston County Superior Judge when photos of Monson spray-painting appeared in ESPN magazine. On July 29, 2009, Monson pleaded guilty and received 90 days of work and a $21,894 fine.
Fights in the professional ring
November 2011
On November 20, 2011, a fight took place in Moscow between Jeff Monson and Fedor Emelianenko. At the end of three rounds, Fedor won on points. According to the press secretary of the Russian Prime Minister, after the fight the audience “hooked” at Monson leaving the hall. A number of media outlets and eyewitnesses indicate that the negative reaction and whistles were directed not at Monson, but at Vladimir Putin, who was in the ring at that moment.
June 2012
On June 21, 2012, a fight took place between Jeff Monson and Denis Komkin in St. Petersburg. Monson won by submission (north-south).
Best of the day
Also noteworthy was the fact that Monson, a US citizen, entered the fight to the USSR Anthem.
November 2012
On November 15, 2012, a fight took place between Jeff Monson and Alexander Emelianenko in St. Petersburg. Monson won via north-south choke four minutes into the second round. Immediately after the fight, while still in the ring, Alexander Emelianenko said that he wanted to have another fight with Jeff Monson. Monson responded vaguely, saying that he respects the Russian people.
True to his custom of surprising, this time Monson entered the fight to the song of the Russian group “Lube” - “Kombat”, earning applause from the audience.
Jeffrey Monson is an American and Russian athlete and mixed martial arts fighter. He is a two-time world champion in wrestling and a world champion in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
In 2018, the athlete received Russian citizenship and the post of deputy of the Krasnogorsk city council.
Childhood and youth
Jeffrey was born and spent most of his childhood in the town of St. Paul, located in Minnesota. At the age of 11, the boy became interested in classical wrestling and competed in regional competitions.
Later he switched to other types of martial arts. He was mainly involved in grappling, which aroused his interest because it is a dynamic type of wrestling, where athletes strive to quickly apply painful or choking techniques. He also devoted time to the Brazilian variety of jiu-jitsu, but in grappling Jeffrey Monson achieved outstanding results.
Jeff Monson in his youth After school, the young man enters the University of Illinois, where he receives a bachelor's degree in psychology, and then completes his master's degree at the University of Minnesota Duluth and becomes a certified child psychologist. In this specialty, the athlete worked for several years as a child and family psychologist in Lewis County.
In parallel with his work for the benefit of the mental health of the country, Monson continued to perform as a fighter, combining two professions for a long time. But in his youth, Jeff’s career in the ring was not going well. A significant victory took place in 1999 at the World Championships. After this, the fighter decides to leave psychology and focus on his sports career.
Sport
Jeff Monson made his debut in mixed martial arts at the age of 26. After he managed to win the world grappling championship, he signed a contract with one of the best world associations, the UFC. The debut there turned out to be “unsweet”: Jeff lost in two out of three fights and was sent to less prestigious tournaments.
Fighter Jeff Monson At the beginning of the 21st century, the athlete hones his striking technique, which was his weak link and, having won 13 fights in a row, wins one tournament after another. With a height of 175 cm, his weight reaches 108 kg, so the fighter often competes in the 99+ kg category. At the same time, he received the nickname Snowman, apparently due to the fact that he was one of the few white fighters among black athletes. The successes achieved in 2006 made it possible for Jeff Monson to return to the UFC.
In this most prestigious tournament by the standards of mixed martial arts, the athlete began with a bright victory over the rising star Marcia Cruz, who had previously managed to defeat the current champion. After a number of excellent fights, Jeff still lost the final fight to Tim Sylvia.
This upset the fighter so much that he again went to less serious leagues, where at one time he achieved success in fights with middle-level fighters or famous veterans who had lost their former form.
Sports fans note the high level of both opponents in an exhibition fight according to the rules of sports sambo, where Jeff was opposed by the Russian Denis Komkin. The fight against Olympic judo champion from Japan Satoshi Ishii was no less exciting. It is for the sake of such uncompromising confrontations that spectators come to watch “fights without rules,” as mixed martial arts is not entirely correctly called by people.
Jeff Monson considers himself an anarchist and advocates the complete eradication of class hierarchy in modern society. His body, judging by the photo, is painted with a huge number of tattoos of anarchist content, including the symbols of anarcho-communism. There are also inscriptions on his body in various languages, including English, Russian and Japanese. Some of them are humorous, while others carry deep philosophical implications.
Jeff Monson's Best FightsBased on his beliefs, the athlete committed an act of vandalism in 2009, painting symbols of anarchy and peace on the columns of the Washington Capitol, as well as painting the words “No to Poverty” and “No to War.” During the trial, Monson pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 90 days in prison with forced labor, and also received a fine of more than $20 thousand, which, however, he never paid.
In 2013, Jeffrey first mentioned that he would like to change his citizenship and... He stated that he felt Russian in spirit and would like to receive legal justification for this feeling. In December 2015, Monson obtained permission to obtain Russian citizenship, however, it is not known for certain whether he renounced his US passport. A year later, the American athlete received a LPR passport, as well as the title of honorary citizen of Abkhazia.
Jeffrey Monson wearing a "Communist" T-shirt Due to numerous injuries, Jeff Monson lost his license in the United States with which he could enter the ring. There are no such restrictions for MMA fighters in Russia, so Jeff has been competing in Russian tournaments since 2015. His opponents are Konstantin Skrelya and Nikolai Savilov, battles with whom end in victory for the American. In 2016, the athlete lost to Ivan Shtyrkov in Yekaterinburg, but managed to win against commentator and fighter Alex Cardo. Jeff Monson has not officially stopped his sports biography, but since 2016 he has rarely entered the ring.
Personal life
Jeffrey Monson was officially married twice. He walked down the aisle for the first time when he was about 20 years old. From this relationship, he left behind a daughter, Michaela, born in 1993, and a son, Joshua, who is 3 years younger.
In April 2010, he remarried flight attendant Daniela Dagan, whom he met in the cabin. A daughter, Willow, was born into the athlete’s family that same year, but the couple’s relationship did not last too long. However, Jeff often sees his children, and even brought his youngest to Russia.
After his divorce from Daniela, Monson dated Russian girl Alesya Kartseva for some time, but the beauty never became the third wife of the MMA fighter.
The athlete participated in the 10th anniversary season of the entertainment show “Dancing with the Stars,” where he performed in tandem with a professional dancer. Jeff has extensive training in Paso Doble, Viennese Waltz, Tango and other ballroom dances.
Jeff Monson and Maria Smolnikova in the show “Dancing with the Stars” Now Jeff lives with his Russian bride in Krasnogorsk, where he opens a mixed martial arts school. The athlete hides the name of his future wife, but told reporters that his chosen one recently gave him a daughter. To communicate with fans and friends, Jeff prefers to use
Before the fight of mega-super-duper heavyweights - Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem - the site pulls out from the archives its rating of the most pumped-up MMA fighters.
10. Jeff Monson
Height: 175 cm
Weight: 105 kg
If you're 5'10" and compete in the heavyweight division, you either know how to set a scale or you look impressive, although not quite as impressive as Jeff. His hobbies would be enough for three athletes and a couple more ordinary people. Such a colorful character is worth looking for, while Monson helps parents and children find a common language, being a family psychologist and reading political literature, without hiding his commitment to anarchism. He looks like an anarchist, a child psychologist and definitely a good fighter like this.
9. Hector Lombard
Height: 175 cm
“Yes, he’s a chemist, you don’t need to go to a fortune teller,” Alexander Sarnavsky clarified about him, after the Cuban beat off Alexander Shlemenko’s legs and fists with his liver. Surely many are interested in how many seconds a year Hector weighs the declared 84 kilograms in which he performs. At the same moments when people are knocked out by his fists, the weight of the Bellator champion is clearly greater. If there were no MMA in the world, bodybuilding would happily accept the Cuban after his basic judo.
8. Kevin Randelman
Height: 178 cm
Weight: 93-103 kg
Weighing around one hundred kilograms, Randelman’s diet is so competent that there is not a single gram of fat on his body. And even if somewhere on VKontakte they argue about the slightly strange veins in their legs, they will still watch how these legs launched Fedor Emelianenko, how they ran after the fight with Cro Cop. Quite recently, these legs came to Khabarovsk for a local tournament and trampled Russian soil, but Baga Agayev was imbued with energy from this same land, quickly twisting a temperamental guest.
7. Kimbo Slice
Height: 188 cm
Weight: 106 kg
Kimbo (and according to James Tony also Bimbo and Simbo) has a very controversial record in MMA. What did Kevin Fergusson eat when he took part in battles like this And this unknown, but when he came to mixed martial arts, namely on the TUF show, he looked as if he had just come from Greg Jackson. True, when they come from that, they often manage to take the belt soon, or at least there are no special problems with endurance, but Kimbo had problems with endurance, and with the belt, and indeed with his fighter’s career in general.
6. Todd Duffy
Height: 191 cm
Weight: 114 kg
Being over 190 cm tall, you can look different, even when you are an MMA fighter. Ask Tim Sylvia or Ben Rothwell. Duffy was fed well and looked the part. For a while, it seemed that this would not harm him: Todd had six fights without defeat and the fastest knockout in UFC history. Mike Russow ruined the picture once and for all. Duffy shot the veteran for three rounds, and then missed once and was fired. He could compete with Alistair Overeem only in size, but the Japanese were always greedy for the show and arranged a duel for these two. Duffy's defeats doubled.
5. Bob Lashley
Height: 191 cm
Weight: 123 kg
He could have looked like a poet of the third wave of emigration, if he had a slightly different face and body. On the Internet they say about such people: “Bob Lashley is Bob Lashley.” This sweet career in wrestling, where you don’t need to weigh 120 kg to go to fights, and Bobi didn’t weigh them, safely tipping the scales to some 140. Amazing action comedy with Bob Sapp, the rise of four straight fights won and the logical fall when Bobby simply tired of his body and was safely beaten by Chad Griggs did not stop the healthy lover of healthy food. He beat someone by decision and is now looking to get back into action.
4. Mariusz Pudzianowski
Height: 186 cm
Weight: 123 kg
Wow! We have our first European. We already talked about Mariusz once, but how could we possibly leave him out of this list? Moreover, he has already lost some of his 150 kg, becoming, in his own words, faster and more powerful. They said that it would be impossible to defeat him with an elbow lever, they say, with such and such biceps strength, of course! Pudzianowski didn't let it get to that point, either winning or losing to Tim Sylvia using the Bob Lashley method. This method should already be included in the official protocols - “lost out of despair.”
3. Bob Sapp
Height: 194 cm
Weight: 150 kg
In Japan, where no one bothers and forces heavyweights from God to weigh these 120 kilograms, Bob Sapp probably lived well. During most fights, he weighed as much as two St. Pierres or Frankie Edgar and Anderson Silva. A technician and a tactician, for some reason he regularly (eighteen times in total) found himself out of sight of capricious fortune. Perhaps I lacked a little flair in the fight with Filipovic, yes, he turned out to be tactically weaker than Minova, who weighed half as much, but how can one not admire this talent, this charisma. Can!? Then here it is fight with Kimo.
2. Brock Lesnar
Height: 191 cm
Weight: 127 kg
The group “Constant” has the following words: “Crucian carp, gentlemen, without three kilograms and a half centner.” How they suited Brock in his wrestling years. Lesnar now often begins to get sick, although, judging by the photographs from the hunt, he gets outdoors regularly, perhaps it’s worth adjusting his diet somehow. However, Cain Velasquez bloodily eloquently hinted that in addition to nutrition, Lesnar still has something to think about, and if the “run, hit” style works perfectly with Couture and Hirring, then Brock himself had to run from the ex-champion, revealing all his fighting coordination.
1. Alistair Overeem
Height: 195 cm
Weight: 120 kg
The person to whom we owe this rating. The steroid bull, according to some, is the most titled heavyweight today in fact and Alistair Overeem by name. About six years ago he was an ordinary light heavyweight and did not force anyone to think about his diet. Then another window was opened in the Golden Glory dining room or new exercise equipment was brought into the hall and Alistair began to grow, getting rid of the need to urinate blood (nowhere without this detail) before weighing after the cut. Today his neck is the size of Jose Aldo's waist, and on his biceps draw green stripes and they will look like a watermelon. Overeem’s technique and skills have been broken a lot, but so far he is the only person on our list with more than serious achievements.
