Kimo Leopoldo

Kimo Leopoldo (born January 4, 1968), is an American retired mixed martial artist and actor. He made his MMA debut at UFC 3 in 1994, losing to Royce Gracie by submission. A professional from 1994 until 2011, he also competed in the PRIDE Fighting Championships, Cage Rage, and the World Fighting Alliance.

He dubted Ultimate Fighting Championship at UFC 3 in 1994, where he faced two-time tournament champion Royce Gracie in the opening round and lost by submission. Despite the defeat, Leopoldo's size and wrestling made him one of Gracie's toughest opponents in the early UFC tournaments, and Gracie was unable to continue in the tournament after their bout. Leopoldo became a prominent figure in the early era of mixed martial arts, competing against several of the sport's best-known fighters. He fought Ken Shamrock for the UFC Superfight Championship at UFC 8, defeated Kazushi Sakuraba on his MMA debut, drew with Dan Severn in the inaugural PRIDE event Pride 1, and later defeated Tank Abbott by submission at UFC 43. He also competed in K-1, where he faced Bob Sapp in a highly publicized heavyweight bout. He also ventured into Japanese shoot-style professional wrestling, appearing for UWF International (UWFi) against Yoshihiro Takayama in 1996.