Rick Roufus

Rick Roufus (right) with Josh Ekrem (left)

Rick John Roufus^[1] (born June 3, 1966) is an American kickboxer, fighting out of Pound Gyms in Scottsdale, Arizona. He is one of the most famous kickboxers in America, and has also competed professionally in boxing and mixed martial arts. An accomplished professional fighter throughout his competitive career Roufus has won multiple world championships across the globe in several weight classes, he was world champion as a super middle weight, light heavyweight and heavyweight. Roufus held titles for all the major kickboxing associations worldwide (PKA, IKF, ISKA, FFKA and KICK), and is known for his boxing skills and powerful kicks. He is the older brother of Duke Roufus who is also a kickboxer and a muay Thai and mixed martial arts instructor.

Biography and career

Rick Roufus began his lifelong practice of the martial arts at the age of 5. He learned taekwondo from his father. He quickly rose through the national point karate circuit and debuted as a professional kickboxer in his late teens. He had his first professional fight in May 1985 against J.C Owens whom he defeated by decision.

On 19 August 1989, in his tenth fight, Roufus sent shockwaves through the kickboxing community by outworking the reigning national PKC Light Middleweight champion in a unanimous decision win. In April 1987, he fought against John Moncayo for the world title of KICK at super middleweight. Roufus knocked out Moncayo in round 7 to win his first world title.

In the beginning of his career, Roufus fought under the rule of Full contact where leg kicks, elbow strikes, and knee attacks were not allowed. He changed directions on 5 November 1988 when he challenged Changpuek Kiatsongrit in a non-title fight in Las Vegas. His kickboxing record stood at a perfect 28 wins, but the Thai overcame a substantial weight difference by overwhelming Roufus with leg kicks. Roufus knocked Changpuek down twice with punches in the first round, but lost by knockout in the fifth round due to the culmination of low kicks that he was unprepared for. After the fight, the Roufus brothers sought out Thai experts to learn the art of delivering and checking leg kicks.

On 19 June 1991, Rick Roufus faced Marek Piotrowski. A rematch as Piotrowski defeated him in their first encounter. The vacant ISKA Full Contact Light World title was on the line, while Piotrowski's PKC Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title was also up for grabs. Roufus won by heavy second-round KO from a high kick that left the Polish fighter unconscious on the canvas.

On 20 December 1991, Roufus defended his ISKA Full Contact Light World Light Heavyweight title against Dutchman Rob Kaman. Roufus was initially declared the winner by decision but the match was later declared a no-contest after Kaman's corner protested that only 1 minute had been fought in the 4th round - a round that could have been critical to Kaman as he had hurt his opponent. A second bout between the pair came to fruition in February 1994 in Paris, France. The fight was sold out - 20,000 people - weeks in advance. Roufus won the rematch by KO in the second round.

On January 22, 1994 Roufus won the IKF Pro Full Contact Rules Light Heavyweight World Title when he defeated Michael McDonald of Vancouver, BC, Canada, by "KO" at :43 seconds of round 1 at Caesars Tahoe Casino in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.

On 26 March 1994 he travelled to Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where he took on Jean-Yves Thériault. Roufus won by unanimous decision after 12 rounds, defending his PKC Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title. In Paris in 1994, he met Ernesto Hoost, the WMTA and WKA World Light Heavyweight champion. Roufus lost by KO.

He later decided to enter the world of boxing. He enjoyed some success, but he was never able to fight for a world championship. In August 1996, he challenged the vacant title of WBC Continental Americas at cruiserweight. He knocked out Sean McClain, and won his first and only title in boxing. After several losses Rick Roufus returned to kickboxing. He emerged victorious at the K-1 USA held August 17, 1998 in Las Vegas quickly dispatching Pedro Fernandez and Jerome Turcan.

On May 15, 1999 in Lowell Massachusetts, he won the IKF Pro International Rules Heavyweight World title when he defeated Stan Longinidis of Box Hill, Victoria, Australia by TKO after Loniginidis suffered a broken bone in his foot at the end of round 9. Roufus was ahead on all 3 judges cards at the time, 89-81, 86-83 and 88-81.

Mixed martial arts proved to be a new challenge for Rick Roufus late in his career. In his MMA debut, Roufus lost to Maurice Smith in the first round via kimura at the Strikeforce: At The Dome event in Tacoma, Washington on February 23, 2008.^[2]

In March 2008, Roufus had his second MMA bout, this time in Newkirk, Oklahoma for Caged Combat Championship Fights. He defeated Mike Buell via unanimous decision. After a stint in several local promotions Roufus brought his mixed martial arts record to 4 wins with 6 losses.

Titles

• Kickboxing
  • 2003 K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Preliminary USA runner up
  • 2002 K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Preliminary USA runner up
  • 1999 I.K.F. International Rules Heavyweight World Champion
  • 1998 K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 champion
  • 1996 ISKA Full Contact Heavyweight World champion
  • 1994 IKF Full Contact Light Heavyweight World Champion
  • 1991-94 PKC Light Heavyweight World champion
  • 1991-94 ISKA Full Contact Light Heavyweight World champion
  • 1990 FFKA Light Heavyweight World champion
  • 1989 FFKA Super Middleweight World champion
  • 1987 KICK Super Middleweight World champion
  • 1986-89 PKC Middleweight U.S champion
  • 1986 PKC Light Middleweight U.S champion
• Boxing
  • 1996 WBC Continental Americas Cruiserweight champion

Kickboxing record

Professional Kickboxing Record

Date	Result	Opponent	Event	Location	Method	Round	Time	Record
2012-10-14	Draw	James Wilson	K-1 World Grand Prix 2012 in Tokyo Final 16	Tokyo, Japan	Decision draw	3	3:00	65-9-3
2012-09-08	Win	Mighty Mo	K-1 World Grand Prix	Los Angeles, USA	Decision (Split)	3	3:00
2011-11-22	Win	Anthony Newman	WCK Muay Thai: USA vs. China	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	KO (spinning back fist)
2006-09-09	Draw	Gary Turner	Shin Do Kumaté X	St. Petersburg, Florida, USA	Decision draw	4	3:00
2006-03-05	Win	Mehrdad Khan Moayedi	Shin Do Kumaté IX [3]	St. Petersburg, Florida, USA	TKO (kick to the body)	3
2005-04-30	Loss	Musashi	K-1 World Grand Prix 2005 in Las Vegas	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	Decision (Majority)	3	3:00
2004-08-07	Win	Akebono	K-1 World Grand Prix 2004 in Las Vegas II	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	3	3:00
2003-08-15	Win	Jeff Ford	K-1 World Grand Prix 2003 in Las Vegas II	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	3	3:00	59-7-1
2003-05-02	Loss	Carter Williams	K-1 World Grand Prix 2003 in Las Vegas Final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	TKO (Referee Stoppage)	1	2:24
Fails to qualify for K-1 World Grand Prix 2003 Final Elimination.
2003-05-02	Win	Maurice Smith	K-1 World Grand Prix 2003 in Las Vegas Semi-final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	3	3:00
2003-05-02	Win	Eduardo Maiorino	K-1 World Grand Prix 2003 in Las Vegas Quarter-final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	TKO (2 Knockdowns)	1	2:54
2002-05-03	Loss	Michael McDonald	K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Preliminary USA Final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	TKO (Corner Stoppage)	4	3:00
Fails to qualify for K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 in Las Vegas.
2002-05-03	Win	Dewey Cooper	K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Preliminary USA Semi-final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	3	3:00
2002-05-03	Win	Kurt Hasley	K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Preliminary USA Quarter-final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	3	3:00
2000-03-18	Loss	Cyrille Diabate	I.S.K.A. Championship	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	TKO (Doctor Stoppage)	3	3:00
1999-05-15	Win	Stan Longinidis	MASS Destruction	Lowell, Massachusetts, USA	TKO (Retirement)	9	3:00
Wins IKF International Rules World Heavyweight World title. (1)
1998-09-27	Loss	Francisco Filho	K-1 World Grand Prix '98 Opening Round	Osaka, Japan	KO (Right Low Kick)	3	0:15
Fails to qualify for K-1 Grand Prix '98 Final Round.
1998-08-07	Win	Curtis Schuster	K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 Final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	Gave Up (Unable to fight)	N/A	N/A
Wins K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 and qualifys for K-1 World Grand Prix '98 Opening Round.
1998-08-07	Win	Jerome Turcan	K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 Semi-final	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	KO (Right Hook)	2	0:58
1998-08-07	Win	Pedro Fernandez	K-1 USA Grand Prix '98 Quarter-final	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	KO (Left Hook)	2	1:50
1997-09-07	Loss	Jérôme Le Banner	K-1 Grand Prix '97 1st Round	Osaka, Osaka, Japan	TKO (Referee Stoppage)	3	2:05
Fails to qualify for K-1 Grand Prix '97 Final.
1996-06-01	Win	Igor Sharapov		Paris, France	TKO (Doctor Stoppage)	4	2:00
Wins ISKA Full Contact Heavyweight World title.
1995-03-25	Win	Martin van Emmen
1995-03-13	Win	Lavelle Robinson	I.S.K.A. Kickboxing	Santa Cruz, California, USA	KO (Left High Kick)	3	0:30
1994-11-12	Loss	Ernesto Hoost	Thriller in Marseille	Marseille, France	KO (Right High kick)	11	1:02
Loses ISKA Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title.
1994	Win	Dominique Valera		Paris, France	Decision (Unanimous)
1994-03-26	Win	Jean-Yves Thériault	Karatemania VIII	Montreal, Quebec, Canada	Decision (Unanimous)	12	2:00	45-2
Retains PKC Light Heavyweight World title. (1)
1994-02-05	Win	Rob Kaman		Paris, France	KO (Left Hook)	2
Retains ISKA Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title. (4)
1994-01-22	Win	Michael McDonald	International Kickboxing Federation - Karatemania	Tahoe, Nevada, USA	KO	1	0:43
Wins IKF Full Contact Light Heavyweight title.
1993-05-07	Win	Józef Warchoł		France
1993-03-26	Win	Luc Verheye		Paris, France	KO (Punches)	4
1992-12-15	Win	Jersey Long	Karatemania V	Montreal, Quebec, Canada	TKO			39-2
Retains ISKA. Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title. (3)
1992-11-13	Win	Ernesto Hoost		New York City, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	12	2:00	38-2
Retains ISKA Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title. (2)
1992-04-25	Win	Henk Pelser	Karatemania IV	Atlanta, Georgia, USA	KO	8		37-2
1991-12-20	No Contest	Rob Kaman	Les Choc Des Geants	Paris, France	No Contest	12	2:00
Roufus was initially declared the winner by decision but the match was later declared a no-contest after Kaman's corner protested that only 1 minute had been fought in the 4th Round - a round that could have been critical to Kaman as he had hurt his opponent. As a result he still retained his ISKA Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title. (1)
1991-08-24	Win	William Knorr		USA				36-2
1991-06-22	Win	Marek Piotrowski		Chicago, Illinois, USA	KO (High Kick)	2	0:59	35-2
Wins ISKA Full-Contact Light Heavyweight World Title and Piotrowski's PKC Full Contact Light Heavyweight World title.
1990-02-04	Win	Kevin Whaley		Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	10	2:00	33-2
Wins FFKA Light Heavyweight World title.
1989-08-19	Loss	Marek Piotrowski		Chicago, Illinois, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	10	2:00	31-2
Loses PKC Middleweight U.S title.
1989-07-20	Win	Andy Mayo		Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA	KO	3		31-1
Wins FFKA Super Middleweight World title.
1989-00-00	Win	Michel Mangeot
1989-00-00	Win	Manson Gibson		USA	Decision
1988-11-05	Loss	Changpuek Kiatsongrit	Super Fight Kickboxing	Las Vegas, Nevada, USA	TKO (Left Low Kicks)	5	1:23	28-1
1988-00-00	Win	Mike Steele		USA	KO (Left Hook)	1	1:15	25-0
1988-00-00	Win	Chris Getz		USA	KO (Left Hook)	1		24-0
1988-01-28	Win	William Knorr		Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA	TKO (Left Round Kick)	3
Retains PKC Middleweight U.S title.
1987-00-00	Win	Manson Gibson		USA	Decision
1987-04-16	Win	John Moncayo	Karatemania II	Atlanta, Georgia, USA	KO	7	1:04	17-0
Wins KICK Super Middleweight World title.
1987-03-13	Win	Jordan Keepers		USA				16-0
1986-11-20	Win	Rich Lopez	Nautilus American Kickboxing Championships	Lake Helen, Florida, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	9	2:00	15-0
Retains PKC Middleweight U.S title.
1986-09-10	Win	Oliver Miller		Atlanta, Georgia, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	9	2:00
Wins PKC Middleweight U.S title.
1986-05-21	Win	Larry McFadden		USA
1986-04-26	Win	Tony Smith	Karatemania I	Atlanta, Georgia, USA	KO (Left High Kick	2		12-0
Retains PKC Light Middleweight U.S title.
1986-01-08	Win	Sylvester Cash		Atlanta, Georgia, USA	Decision (Unanimous)	9	2:00
Wins PKC Light Middleweight U.S title.
1985-11-02	Win	Gerald Murphy	Kenwood U.S. Open National Karate Championships	Daytona Beach, Florida, USA	KO (Punch)	1
1985-08-16	Win	Wade Woodbury		Toledo, Florida, USA	Decision (Split)	12	3:00	6-0
1985-00-00	Win	J.C Owens		USA
1985-00-00	Win	Mike Winklejohn		USA	Decision (Unanimous)

Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest   Notes

Mixed martial arts record

Professional boxing record

13 Wins (11 knockouts, 2 decisions), 5 Losses (3 knockouts, 2 decisions), 1 Draw[4]
Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
Loss	13-5-1	"Cowboy" Dale Brown	TKO	9	30/11/2001	Montreal, Quebec, Canada	Referee stopped the bout after the ninth round.
Win	13-4-1	James Johnson	UD	4	23/02/2001	Janesville, Wisconsin, United States
Loss	12-4-1	Ismael Youla	PTS	8	21/02/1998	Paris, France
Loss	12-3-1	"King" Arthur Williams	TKO	4	22/02/1997	Condado, Puerto Rico, United States	USBA Cruiserweight Title.
Loss	12-2-1	Bobby Crabtree	TKO	7	27/09/1996	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win	12-1-1	"Irish" Sean McClain	TKO	4	10/08/1996	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	WBC Continental Americas Cruiserweight Title.
Win	11-1-1	Carlton "Speedy" Brown	KO	2	27/04/1996	Doraville, Georgia, United States
Win	10-1-1	Rogue Dooley	TKO	1	26/04/1996	Harvey, Illinois, United States
Win	9-1-1	Stan Johnson	TKO	1	16/04/1996	Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
Win	8-1-1	Rick Wilks	KO	1	30/03/1996	Waterloo, Iowa, United States
Win	7-1-1	Raymond Wilks	KO	1	29/03/1996	Dolton, Illinois, United States
Draw	6-1-1	Louis "The Facelifter" Monaco	PTS	4	26/01/1996	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	6-1	Gene Ibarra	TKO	2	04/11/1995	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	5-1	Daniel "Dino" Salcedo	TKO	2	30/09/1995	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	4-1	Jordan Keepers	KO	2	16/09/1995	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States
Win	3-1	Ron Preston	UD	4	18/08/1995	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	2-1	Dennis Weaver	TKO	2	03/08/1995	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	1-1	Mike Brainard	TKO	3	17/06/1995	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss	0-1	Ricardo Dabney	PTS	4	29/04/1990	Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States

References

External links

• Professional boxing record for Rick Roufus from BoxRec
• Professional MMA record for Rick Roufus from Sherdog
• Profile at K-1
• Rick Roufus on Myspace