Mark Kerr (fighter)
4ms
Mark Kerr, born December 21, 1968, is an American former wrestler and mixed martial artist. His MMA career saw him crowned a two-time UFC Heavyweight Tournament Champion, a World Vale Tudo Championship tournament winner, and a PRIDE FC competitor. In collegiate wrestling, he was an NCAA Division I champion. He also claimed gold and silver medals at the World Cup and a silver at the Pan American Games in freestyle wrestling. In submission wrestling, Kerr is a four-time ADCC World Champion, with two wins in his weight class, a victory in the absolute division, and the Superfight Championship title.
In 2002, his life and MMA journey were chronicled in the HBO documentary, "The Smashing Machine," which explored his fights in Vale Tudo, the UFC, and PRIDE, as well as his struggles with substance abuse, personal relationships, and his friendship with Mark Coleman. A biographical film of the same name, starring Dwayne Johnson as Kerr, is slated for release on October 3, 2025.
Mark Kerr was born in Toledo, Ohio, to Tom and Mary Kerr, his father Irish and his mother Puerto Rican. From a young age, he envisioned a career in the World Wrestling Federation, staging backyard bouts with his siblings. His wrestling journey began in 1983 as a freshman at Bettendorf High School in Iowa, sharing the wrestling room with future UFC champion Pat Miletich. Following his freshman year, the Kerr family relocated to Toledo, Ohio, where he became a high school state champion for Toledo Waite.
At Syracuse University, Kerr achieved Division I championship status at 190 pounds and was an All-American in 1992, defeating Randy Couture decisively in the final. He was also a three-time EIWA champion at 190 lbs and a runner-up in 1988, earning the Fletcher Award for scoring the most team points in 1991 and 1992. In 1992, Kerr placed second at the World Cup, ahead of Kurt Angle. He secured victories at the USA World Team Trials in both 1993 and 1994, finishing seventh at the 1993 World Championships. In 1994, he captured gold at the World Cup in Edmonton and the USA Senior Freestyle Championship, though he did not medal at the World Championships that year. Kerr won silver in freestyle at the 1995 Pan American Games. After narrowly missing out on the 1996 Olympics, losing to Kurt Angle, Kerr made the pivotal decision to shift his focus to mixed martial arts.
While pursuing amateur wrestling, Kerr developed an interest in mixed martial arts as a means to earn income. He, along with his long-time friend and training partner Mark Coleman, and Tom Erikson, were initially scouted by Richard Hamilton. Hamilton, who had previously managed UFC fighter Don Frye, was offering a spot in UFC 10 against him. However, this opportunity did not materialize, and Coleman ultimately pursued the chance himself. Eventually, Kerr and Hamilton arranged for Kerr to train with Coleman and compete at the Brazilian event, World Vale Tudo Championship 3, in January 1997. His debut was highly anticipated, given the existing recognition of wrestlers like Coleman and Erikson within the MMA community, though some doubted Kerr's raw abilities. Kerr himself harbored doubts, to the extent that Hamilton felt compelled to pressure him into fighting, warning of potential unrest from the Brazilian crowd if he failed to appear.
Kerr made his MMA debut at WVC 3 against UFC veteran Paul Varelans. The bout concluded in two minutes, with Kerr executing a takedown, mounting Varelans, and delivering punches and knee strikes for the stoppage. His next opponent, Mestre Hulk, a capoeira police instructor known for defeating Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighter Amaury Bitteti, met a similar fate. After losing two teeth to Kerr's ground and pound, Hulk exited the ring, resulting in a disqualification. Kerr then advanced to the finals, where he faced jiu-jitsu fighter Fabio Gurgel. This fight evoked comparisons to the bout between Erikson and Gurgel's teammate, Murilo Bustamante, earlier that year.
Fighting with a broken hand from his bout with Hulk, Kerr held a 50-pound advantage over Gurgel. He secured a takedown, easily passed Gurgel's guard, and inflicted damage with a variety of strikes. The fight, which had no time limit, continued for 19 minutes, with the Brazilian attempting armlocks and triangle chokes from the bottom. Kerr evaded them while continuing to land punishment. At the 30-minute mark, observing Gurgel's inability to defend further, the judges stopped the fight and awarded the win to Kerr.
Following his success in Brazil, Mark Kerr received an invitation to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Kerr had previously been informed about the UFC by Coleman, who was himself a UFC tournament winner and champion by this point. Kerr's inaugural UFC bout occurred at UFC 14 in the heavyweight tournament. His first opponent was krav maga representative Moti Horenstein, whom Kerr defeated by technical knockout at 2:22 of the first round. This victory propelled Kerr into the tournament finals, where he submitted Dan Bobish with a chin-to-eye submission at 1:38 of the first round, earning him the UFC 14 Heavyweight tournament title.
Building on his success at UFC 14, Kerr was invited to compete in the subsequent UFC tournament, UFC 15. In this tournament, Kerr's first opponent was Greg Stott, whom he defeated in just 17 seconds with a knee to the head, securing a knockout victory. Advancing to the finals, Kerr faced Dwayne Cason and finished his opponent within the first minute of the opening round, winning the UFC 15 Heavyweight tournament. Kerr's triumph in the UFC 15 tournament marked his final appearance for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Following this win, Kerr opted to fight in Japan for the Pride Fighting Championships, citing the UFC's promotional challenges and Pride's more lucrative compensation.
After considering an offer from Japanese promotion Shooto, Kerr signed with Pride for a matchup against fellow UFC champion Royce Gracie at Pride 2 in 1998. As per Gracie's stipulations, the match was to be without time limits or referee stoppages. However, Royce withdrew after the fight had been advertised. Kerr was then slated to face Branco Cikatic. Kerr employed his signature ground-and-pound fighting style, taking opponents to the mat and utilizing strikes and submissions to secure finishes. Kerr was regarded as an improved version of Mark Coleman, demonstrating proficiency in wrestling, submissions, and takedowns, coupled with good cardio and an evolving striking game under the tutelage of Bas Rutten. Around the time of Kerr's entry into PRIDE, he was considered one of the top MMA Heavyweight fighters globally.
Kerr secured four victories between Pride 2 and Pride 6. However, his standing was soon called into question after his first bout with Igor Vovchanchyn at Pride 7, where he was knocked out by illegal knee strikes. Although the loss was later overturned to a "No Contest" ruling, Kerr admitted that the initial defeat had been a difficult reality to confront. Following his fight against Vovchanchyn, Kerr participated in the Pride Grand Prix 2000 Opening Round, defeating Enson Inoue. This victory earned him a spot in the Pride Grand Prix 2000 Finals, where he faced Kazuyuki Fujita and lost by decision. Kerr required stitches for a split chin immediately after the fight due to hard knees to the face. At Pride 10 - Return of the Warriors, Kerr defeated Igor Borisov by submission. Four months later, at Pride 12 - Cold Fury, he lost by decision in a rematch with Vovchanchyn. Kerr then suffered a TKO loss to Heath Herring at Pride 15. With his second consecutive defeat, Kerr decided to take a hiatus from MMA.
In 2004, Kerr made a return to PRIDE, facing Yoshihisa Yamamoto at Pride 27. Just 40 seconds into the fight, Kerr attempted a double leg takedown but accidentally spiked his head into the canvas, stunning him. Yamamoto quickly capitalized with punches, ending the fight. This third straight loss under the PRIDE FC banner prompted Kerr to leave the organization.
Reflecting on Kerr's time fighting in Japan, Mark Coleman stated, "Every time a fight came around he was pretty scared. He was intimidated by the whole situation and that is probably what led to him using pain killers."
Following his loss to Yoshihisa Yamamoto, Kerr was scheduled to make his comeback against Wes Sims in the American Championship Fighting (ACF) on May 6, 2006, at the Denver Coliseum, but was not medically cleared to fight due to a hand injury.
On February 11, 2007, Kerr faced Mustafa Al Turk at Cage Rage 20: 'Born 2 Fight'. Kerr lost his footing after an attempted roundhouse kick, was mounted, stunned by a series of blows, and submitted within the first round. Kerr was slated to fight Sean O'Haire on August 17 in the Global Fighting Championships' inaugural show at the Mohegan Sun Arena, but the bout was canceled due to his high blood pressure, and his license was suspended indefinitely.
Mark Kerr competed in the World Cage Fighting Organization (WCO) in November 2007, winning his bout against Steve Gavin by Americana submission at 1:39 of the first round.
In 2008, Kerr embarked on a comeback. In March, Mark defeated Chuck Huus by Submission (Keylock/Americana) at CCCF – Battle on the Border. In April, he lost to Oleg Taktarov in one round by kneebar. Two months later, Kerr was choked out in the opening round by deaf fighter Tracy Willis at a C-3 Fights show in Cocho, Oklahoma. On July 26, Ralph Kelly stopped Kerr in the first round at Xp3. On September 27, 2008, Kerr lost to fellow heavyweight Jeff Monson by rear-naked choke, in a contest between two former ADCC champions.
On August 28, 2009, Kerr faced fellow wrestler Muhammed Lawal at an M-1 Global event. Kerr was taken down and subsequently pounded into unconsciousness in just 25 seconds, absorbing several blows to the head after he was clearly unable to defend himself. This led the event's TV commentators to openly speculate that Kerr's fighting career was over. Guy Mezger, in the post-fight discussion, suggested it was time for Kerr to "find another vocation." Kerr had only won four of his 15 fights since 2000 and lost his last five contests.
During the UFC 316 broadcast in June 2025, Kerr was announced as the next inductee into the "pioneer wing" of the UFC Hall of Fame during International Fight Week festivities in Las Vegas.
Kerr achieved significant success at the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships. At the 1999 tournament, he claimed the +99 kg division by defeating Carlos Barreto, Josh Barnett, Chris Haseman, and Sean Alvarez. Kerr returned for the 2000 tournament, winning the +99 kg division again, as well as the absolute division. In the +99 kg division, he defeated Josh Barnett once more, Anthony Netzler, Rigan Machado, and Ricco Rodriguez. In the absolute division, he overcame Léo Vieira, Mike van Arsdale, Ricardo Almeida, and Sean Alvarez again. This earned him a Superfight Championship match in 2001 against Mário Sperry, which Kerr won. He lost the Superfight Championship to Ricardo Arona at the 2003 edition. In recognition of his achievements, Kerr was among the inaugural inductees into the ADCC Hall of Fame in 2022.
In 2002, HBO aired a documentary titled "The Smashing Machine: The Life and Times of Extreme Fighter Mark Kerr," directed by John Hyams, which delved into the life and career of Mark Kerr. The program chronicled Kerr's addiction to painkillers and the "no holds barred" nature of early mixed martial arts competition. Kerr's then-girlfriend, Dawn Staples, and mixed martial artists Bas Rutten, Kevin Randleman, and Mark Coleman also appeared in the film. Rutten stated during the documentary that due to Kerr's ability to end fights quickly, Pride tournament directors were removing all of Kerr's 'weapons,' notably head-butts and knees to the head of a grounded opponent, in an effort to extend fight durations for television and crowd satisfaction. On December 13, 2023, it was announced that A24 would produce a biopic of Kerr titled "The Smashing Machine," borrowing its title from the HBO documentary. Dwayne Johnson is set to star as Kerr, and Emily Blunt as Staples, with Benny Safdie directing. The film is scheduled for release on October 3, 2025.
Kerr married Dawn Staples in 2000. The couple share a son. By 2015, Kerr and Staples were no longer together. As of 2010, Kerr considered himself "99.9 percent retired" and was pursuing a degree with aspirations in pharmaceutical sales. As of 2015, he was working at a Toyota dealership. In June 2019, on a GoFundMe page, Kerr disclosed that he had been battling peripheral neuropathy since 2016.
**Championships and Accomplishments:**
**Collegiate Wrestling:**
* National Collegiate Athletic Association: NCAA Division I Champion - 1992 at 190 lb (Syracuse University)
* Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association: Champion - 1989, 1991, 1992 at 190 lb (Syracuse University); Runner-up - 1988 at 190 lb (Syracuse University); Fletcher Award - 1991, 1992 for scoring the most team points.
**Freestyle Wrestling:**
* United World Wrestling (FILA): 1992 World Cup - Silver medalist at 100 kg; 1994 World Cup - Gold medalist at 100 kg; 1995 Pan American Games - Silver medalist at 100 kg.
* USA Wrestling: 1993 World Team Trials - Winner at 100 kg; 1994 World Team Trials - Winner at 100 kg; 1994 Senior Freestyle Championship - Winner at 100 kg.
**Mixed Martial Arts:**
* Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC): UFC Hall of Fame (Pioneer wing, Class of 2025); UFC 14 Heavyweight Tournament Champion; UFC 15 Heavyweight Tournament Champion; UFC Encyclopedia Awards: Knockout of the Night (Two times) vs. Moti Horenstein and Greg Stott; Submission of the Night (One time) vs. Dwayne Cason.
* World Vale Tudo Championship: WVC 3 Heavyweight Tournament Champion.
**Submission Wrestling:**
* ADCC World Championships: Champion - 1999 at +99 kg; Champion - 2000 at +99 kg; Champion - 2000 at Absolute; Superfight Champion, defeated Mario Sperry.
* ADCC Hall of Fame - 2022, inaugural class.
Copied!
Mark Kerr (born December 21, 1968) is an American former wrestler and mixed martial artist. During his MMA career, he was a two-time UFC Heavyweight Tournament Champion, World Vale Tudo Championship tournament winner, and a PRIDE FC competitor. In collegiate wrestling, Kerr was an NCAA Division I champion. In freestyle wrestling, he won gold and silver medals at the World Cup and silver at the Pan American Games. In submission wrestling, Kerr is a four-time ADCC World Champion, winning his weightclass twice along with the absolute division and the Superfight Championship.
In 2002, Kerr was the subject of an HBO documentary titled The Smashing Machine, which detailed his MMA career fighting in Vale Tudo, the UFC and PRIDE. The Smashing Machine also focused on Kerr's struggle with substance abuse, his relationships with his then-girlfriend, various training partners, and friendship with Mark Coleman. A film of the same name by A24, starring Dwayne Johnson as Kerr, is set to be released on October 3, 2025.
== Early life ==
Mark Kerr was born in Toledo, Ohio to Tom and Mary Kerr. His father was Irish, and his mother was Puerto Rican. From early childhood, he would dream of being in the World Wrestling Federation and would hold mock fights with his younger siblings in the back yard.
In 1983, Kerr began his wrestling career in Bettendorf, Iowa as a freshman at Bettendorf High School where he shared the wrestling room with future UFC champion Pat Miletich, a senior at the time. After his freshman year at Bettendorf, Kerr and his family moved to Toledo, Ohio where he became a high school state champion for Toledo Waite.
=== College and post-graduate career ===
At Syracuse University, Kerr was the Division I champion at 190 pounds and an All-American in 1992, defeating Randy Couture 12–4 in the final. He was also a three-time EIWA champion at 190 lb. (1989, 1991, 1992) and a runner-up in 1988, and won the Fletcher Award for scoring the most team points in 1991 and 1992. In 1992, Kerr came second at the World Cup, ahead of Kurt Angle. Kerr won the USA World Team Trials in 1993 and 1994, finishing 7th at the 1993 World Championships. In 1994, he won gold at the World Cup in Edmonton along with the USA Senior Freestyle Championship but did not medal at the World Championships. Kerr won silver in freestyle at the 1995 Pan American Games. After missing out on the 1996 Olympics, losing to Kurt Angle, Kerr decided to focus on MMA.
== Mixed martial arts career ==
While training as an amateur wrestler, Kerr became interested in mixed martial arts as a way to earn money. He, his long-time friend and training partner Mark Coleman and Tom Erikson were initially scouted by Richard Hamilton, who had managed Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter Don Frye until a falling out and was now offering a place in UFC 10 against him. However, nothing came from it, and Coleman ended up hunting down the chance. Eventually, Kerr and Hamilton arranged for the former to train with Coleman and fight at the Brazilian event World Vale Tudo Championship 3 in January 1997. His appearance was highly anticipated, as other wrestlers like Coleman or Erikson were already known in the MMA community, though there were doubts about Kerr's true skills. Kerr himself was doubtful about it, to the point Hamilton had to force him to fight under the threat the Brazilian crowd might riot and kill him if he didn't show up.
=== World Vale Tudo Championship ===
Kerr made his debut in MMA at WVC 3 against UFC veteran Paul Varelans. The bout lasted two minutes, with Kerr slamming Varelans with a takedown, mounting him and landing punches and knee strikes for the stoppage. The same happened to his next opponent, Mestre Hulk, a capoeira police teacher who had become known for besting Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighter Amaury Bitteti. After losing two teeth to Kerr's ground and pound, Hulk crawled out of the ring, getting disqualified. Kerr then reached the finals, where he was pitted against jiu-jitsu fighter Fabio Gurgel. Again, the fight would bring echoes, this time those of the bout between Erikson and Gurgel's teammate Murilo Bustamante, which happened the same year.
Kerr went to the fight with a broken hand from the Hulk fight, but he had 50 pounds over Gurgel. He took Gurgel down, passed his guard with ease and bloodied him with multiple kinds of strikes. The situation prolonged itself by 19 minutes, with the Brazilian trying armlocks and triangle chokes from the bottom, but Kerr avoided them and kept landing punishment. The fight had no time limit, but at the 30 minute mark, seeing that Gurgel was unable to defend anymore, the judges stopped the fight and gave Kerr the win.
=== Ultimate Fighting Championship ===
Following his success in Brazil, Mark Kerr was invited to fight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Kerr had previously been told of the event by Coleman, who was himself a UFC tournament winner and champion by this point. Kerr's first bout in the UFC came at UFC 14 where he fought in the heavyweight tournament. His first fight was against krav maga representative Moti Horenstein, and Kerr defeated his opponent by technical knockout at 2:22 of the first round. With this win Kerr advanced to the finals of the tournament where he beat Dan Bobish with a submission (chin to the eye) at 1:38 of the first round; Kerr's win over Bobish earned him the UFC 14 Heavyweight tournament title.
Following his success at UFC 14, Kerr was invited to compete at the next UFC tournament — UFC 15. In this tournament, Kerr's first opponent was Greg Stott whom he defeated in 17 seconds from the opening of the fight, winning by way of knockout with a knee to his opponent's head. Advancing to the finals, Kerr fought Dwayne Cason and finished his opponent within the first minute of the opening round, winning the UFC 15 Heavyweight tournament. Kerr's winning of the UFC 15 tournament was his last fight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Following his win of UFC 15, Kerr decided to fight in Japan for the Pride Fighting Championships due to the UFC's promotional difficulties and Pride's larger paychecks.
=== Pride Fighting Championships ===
After considering an offer from Japanese promotion Shooto, Kerr signed up with Pride for a matchup against fellow UFC champion Royce Gracie at Pride 2 in 1998. The match, as per Gracie's demands, would have been without time limits or referee stoppages. However, Royce pulled out after the fight had been advertised. Kerr was then slated to fight Branco Cikatic. Kerr utilized the same ground-and-pound fighting style from his previous fights, taking his opponent onto the mat and then using strikes and submissions to try to finish the fight. Kerr was said to be an improved version of Mark Coleman because he was proficient in wrestling, submissions, and take downs, with good cardio and an ever-improving striking game under his tutelage with Bas Rutten. Around the time that Kerr entered PRIDE, some considered Kerr to be one of the top MMA Heavyweight fighters in the world.
Kerr won four bouts between Pride 2 and Pride 6. However, his status was soon questioned after his first bout with Igor Vovchanchyn at Pride 7, in which he was knocked out by illegal knee strikes. Even though the loss was overturned and changed to a "No Contest" ruling, Kerr admitted that the initial loss had been a difficult decision for him to face. Following his fight against Vovchanchyn, Kerr fought in the Pride Grand Prix 2000 Opening Round and won over Enson Inoue. His win against Inoue earned him a place at the Pride Grand Prix 2000 Finals, where he fought Kazuyuki Fujita and lost by decision. Kerr underwent stitching for a split chin immediately after the fight due to the hard knees to the face. At Pride 10 - Return of the Warriors Kerr defeated Igor Borisov by submission. Four months later, at Pride 12 - Cold Fury, he lost by decision in the rematch with Vovchanchyn. Kerr then lost to Heath Herring at Pride 15 via TKO. With his second loss in a row, Kerr decided to take time away from MMA.
In 2004, Kerr returned to PRIDE, fighting Yoshihisa Yamamoto at Pride 27. Just 40 seconds into the fight, Kerr attempted a double leg takedown, but accidentally spiked his head into the canvas, stunning him with Yamamoto quickly following up with punches to end the fight. With his third straight loss under the PRIDE FC banner, Kerr quit PRIDE.
Speaking of Kerr's time fighting in Japan, Mark Coleman said, "Every time a fight came around he was pretty scared. He was intimidated by the whole situation and that is probably what led to him using pain killers."
=== Later career ===
After his loss to Yoshihisa Yamamoto, Kerr was supposed to make his comeback against Wes Sims in the American Championship Fighting (ACF) on May 6, 2006, at the Denver Coliseum, but was not medically cleared to fight due to a hand injury.
On February 11, 2007, Kerr fought Mustafa Al Turk at Cage Rage 20: 'Born 2 Fight'. Kerr lost his footing after an attempted roundhouse kick and he was mounted, stunned with a series of blows and submitted within the first round. Kerr was supposed to fight Sean O'Haire on August 17 in the Global Fighting Championships first show at the Mohegan Sun Arena but was cancelled due to his high blood pressure and his license was suspended indefinitely.
Mark Kerr fought in the World Cage Fighting Organization (WCO) in November 2007, winning his bout against Steve Gavin by Americana after 1:39 of the first round.
In 2008, Kerr launched a comeback. In March, Mark beat Chuck Huus by Submission (Keylock/Americana) at CCCF – Battle on the Border. In April, he lost to Oleg Taktarov in one round by kneebar. Two months later, Kerr was choked out in the opening round by deaf fighter Tracy Willis at a C-3 Fights show in Cocho, Oklahoma. On July 26, Ralph Kelly stopped Kerr in the first round at Xp3. On September 27, 2008, Kerr lost to fellow heavyweight Jeff Monson by rear-naked choke, in a battle of former ADCC champions.
On August 28, 2009, Kerr faced fellow wrestler Muhammed Lawal at an M-1 Global event. Kerr was taken down and subsequently pounded into unconsciousness in just 25 seconds, receiving several blows to the head after he was clearly unable to defend himself. This led the event's TV commentators to openly speculate that Kerr's fighting career was over. Guy Mezger, in the post-fight discussion, suggested that it was time for Kerr to "find another vocation". Kerr only won four of his 15 fights since 2000 and lost his last five fights.
==== Hall of Fame ====
During UFC 316's broadcast in June 2025, Kerr was announced as the next "pioneer wing" UFC Hall of Fame inductee during International Fight Week festivities in Las Vegas this June.
== Submission wrestling career ==
Kerr was successful at the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships. At the 1999 tournament, he won the +99 kg division by defeating Carlos Barreto, Josh Barnett, Chris Haseman, and Sean Alvarez. Kerr returned for the 2000 tournament, winning the +99 kg division again as well as the absolute division. In the +99 kg division, he defeated Josh Barnett again, Anthony Netzler, Rigan Machado, and Ricco Rodriguez. In the absolute division, he defeated Léo Vieira, Mike van Arsdale, Ricardo Almeida, and Sean Alvarez again. This earned him a Superfight Championship match in 2001 against Mário Sperry, which Kerr won. He lost the Superfight Championship to Ricardo Arona at the 2003 edition.
In recognition of his accomplishments, Kerr was one of the inaugural inductees into the ADCC Hall of Fame in 2022.
== In popular culture ==
In 2002, HBO aired a documentary titled The Smashing Machine: The Life and Times of Extreme Fighter Mark Kerr, directed by John Hyams, which dealt with the life and career of Mark Kerr. The program chronicles Kerr's addiction to painkillers and the "no holds barred" aspect of early mixed martial arts competition. Kerr's then-girlfriend, Dawn Staples, and mixed-martial artists Bas Rutten, Kevin Randleman and Mark Coleman also appear in the film. Rutten states during the documentary that due to Kerr's ability to end fights quickly, the Pride tournament directors were removing all of Kerr's 'weapons' (notably head-butts and knees to the head of a grounded opponent) in an attempt to make the fights last longer for television and crowd satisfaction.
On December 13, 2023, it was announced that A24 will produce a biopic of Kerr titled The Smashing Machine, borrowing its title from the HBO documentary. Dwayne Johnson is set to star as Kerr, and Emily Blunt to star as Staples, with Benny Safdie set to direct. The film is set to be released on October 3, 2025.
== Personal life ==
Kerr married Dawn Staples in 2000. The couple share a son. By 2015, Kerr and Staples were no longer together.
As of 2010, Kerr considered himself "99.9 percent retired" and was pursuing a degree with an eye on pharmaceutical sales. As of 2015, he was working at a Toyota dealership.
In June 2019 on a GoFundMe page, Kerr revealed that he had been battling peripheral neuropathy since 2016.
== Championships and accomplishments ==
=== Collegiate wrestling ===
National Collegiate Athletic Association
NCAA Division I Champion - 1992 at 190 lb out of Syracuse University
Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association
Champion - 1989, 1991, 1992 at 190 lb out of Syracuse University
Runner-up - 1988 at 190 lb out of Syracuse University
Fletcher Award - 1991, 1992 for scoring the most team points
=== Freestyle wrestling ===
United World Wrestling (FILA)
1992 World Cup - Silver medalist at 100 kg
1994 World Cup - Gold medalist at 100 kg
1995 Pan American Games - Silver medalist at 100 kg
USA Wrestling
1993 World Team Trials - Winner at 100 kg
1994 World Team Trials - Winner at 100 kg
1994 Senior Freestyle Championship - Winner at 100 kg
=== Mixed martial arts ===
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)
UFC Hall of Fame (Pioneer wing, Class of 2025)
UFC 14 Heavyweight Tournament Champion
UFC 15 Heavyweight Tournament Champion
UFC Encyclopedia Awards
Knockout of the Night (Two times) vs. Moti Horenstein and Greg Stott
Submission of the Night (One time) vs. Dwayne Cason
World Vale Tudo Championship
WVC 3 Heavyweight Tournament Champion
=== Submission wrestling ===
ADCC World Championships
Champion - 1999 at +99 kg
Champion - 2000 at +99 kg
Champion - 2000 at Absolute
Superfight Champion, defeated Mario Sperry
ADCC Hall of Fame - 2022, inaugural class
== Mixed martial arts record ==
== Submission wrestling record ==
== References ==
== External links ==
Mark Kerr at UFC
Mark Kerr at IMDb
Professional MMA record for Mark Kerr from Sherdog
Mark Kerr at National Wrestling Hall of Fame
Home
Languages