Amir Khillah (born August 15, 1979) is an Egyptian-American mixed martial artist. Amir has a professional record of 9-4, currently fighting in the lightweight division and previously in the welterweight division. He is a former member of The H.I.T. Squad, the team of former UFC welterweight champion, Matt Hughes. He now owns and operates his own gym, Lighting Kicks MMA, while training full time at Jeremy Horn's Elite Performance.

Biography[link]

Khillah was born in Egypt and lived there for six years until he and his family moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. For high school, he attended Battle Creek Academy, graduating in 1997. To further his studies, Amir attended Western Michigan University and obtained a degree in Exercise Science from the Health, Physical Education, and Recreation Department.

Khillah is currently teaching an MMA college credit class for the fall semester of 2011 at Western Michigan University.^[1]

Mixed martial arts[link]

Amir made his professional debut against The Ultimate Fighter 9 contestant, Mark Miller. Amir lost the fight in the first minute after Miller applied an armbar. Amir lost his second straight fight after being defeated late in the third round against Charles Wilson.

On August 5, 2007, he got his first win by defeating Devin Sprecher via a first round submission. He had accumulated a 3-2 record before fighting Pat Curran, the young cousin of seasoned veteran Jeff Curran. During the fight, Amir broke his hand but still managed to continue. He lost via split decision, with many spectators believing Khillah had won the fight. Amir bounced back winning two straight before losing to Alex Carter, a fighter with over 50 professional fights.

Amir's next victory was a 17 second technical knockout win over Brad McRae at Jeremy Horn's Elite Fight Night 9. While training Amir suffered a right shoulder tear causing him to require surgery.

He was a part of the third IFL draft held in Chicago, Illinois.^[2] He was put in the pool of starters and alternates for the 2008 IFL season but never got his opportunity to compete. Amir tried out for season five of the Ultimate Fighter, making it to the final round of cuts before being disqualified because he tried out with a broken arm. He also tried out for season nine but was cut again in the final round.^[3]

Amir finally was selected to be a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter reality show. He appeared on The Ultimate Fighter 12. He lost in the elimination round to Cody McKenzie via technical submission by way of McKenzie's own modified submission. The loss sent Amir home, not getting a chance for the six figure contract. Aside from the Ultimate Fighter, Khillah has been featured on two episodes of Spike TV's Knockout Sportsworld.

After his appearance on TUF, Amir returned to competition against Sergio Lopez at Cage Raisers 3. Amir won the fight via TKO midway through round one. Six months later he fought for Jeremy Horn's promotion, winning his fight via arm-triangle choke submission in round one.

Awards and accomplishments[link]

• State Championships (Gold medalist)
• National Championships
• Olympic Training Center athlete
• Pan-Am Cup (Silver medalist)
• World University Games
• Olympic Trials
• 2004 U.S. National Collegiate National Champion (welter weight)

Mixed martial arts record[link]

Result	Record	Opponent	Method	Event	Date	Round	Time	Location	Notes
Win	10-4	Dom O'Grady	Decision (unanimous)	Donofrio Entertainment	02012-02-18February 18, 2012	3	5:00	Auburn Hills, Michigan, United States
Win	9-4	Jay Little	TKO (punches)	Upper Peninsula Cagefighting	02011-09-10September 10, 2011	2	1:04	Baraga, Michigan, United States
Win	8-4	James Francis	Submission (arm-triangle choke)	Elite Fight Night 13	02011-03-18March 18, 2011	1	2:23	Lehi, Utah, United States
Win	7-4	Sergio Lopez	TKO (punches)	Cage Raisers 3	02010-09-18September 18, 2010	1	2:09	Grand Junction, Colorado, United States
Win	6-4	Brad McRae	TKO (punches)	Elite Fight Night 9	02009-06-26June 26, 2009	1	0:17	Layton, Utah, United States
Loss	5-4	Alex Carter	Decision (unanimous)	Take That Promotions 3	02009-04-11April 11, 2009	3	5:00	Bethalto, Illinois, United States
Win	5-3	Aaron Wise	Submission (rear-naked choke)	PB MMA: Return to Glory	02009-03-28March 28, 2009	1	2:01	Fort Smith, Arkansas, United States
Win	4-3	Zach Lennon	Decision (unanimous)	Headhunter Productions 1	02009-02-07February 7, 2009	3	3:00	Columbia, Missouri, United States
Loss	3-3	Pat Curran	Decision (split)	Xtreme Fighting Organization 25	02008-08-09August 9, 2008	3	5:00	Island Lake, Illinois, United States
Win	3-2	Dave Cochran	Submission (rear naked choke)	Crossroads Combat Challenge 3	02008-05-06May 6, 2008	2	1:10	Effingham, Illinois, United States
Win	2-2	Lazar Stojadinovic	Submission (rear naked choke)	Power Fights 2	02007-12-08December 8, 2007	1	2:15	Cicero, Illinois, United States
Win	1-2	Devin Sprecher	Submission	Bonecrunch Fighting	02007-08-05August 5, 2007	1	N/A	Sarasota, Florida, United States
Loss	0-2	Charles Wilson	Submission (strikes)	Pure Force V	02007-03-31March 31, 2007	3	4:23	Tinley Park, Illinois, United States
Loss	0-1	Mark Miller	Submission (armbar)	Total Fight Challenge 6	02006-09-09September 9, 2006	1	0:41	Hammond, Indiana, United States

References[link]

External links[link]

• Professional MMA record for Amir Khillah from Sherdog

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2009)

Dan Severn
Severn in the ring at a 2010 event
Born	(1958-06-08) June 8, 1958 (age 54) Coldwater, Michigan, United States
Other names	The Beast
Nationality	American
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight	250 lb (113 kg; 17 st 12 lb)
Division	Heavyweight (265 lb)
Style	Wrestling
Fighting out of	Coldwater, Michigan
Rank	5th degree black belt in Judo(citation needed)
Wrestling	NCAA Division I Wrestler
Years active	1994 - 2012
Mixed martial arts record
Total	127
Wins	101
By knockout	17
By submission	60
By decision	24
Losses	19
By knockout	3
By submission	9
By decision	7
Draws	7
Other information
University	Arizona State University
Website	http://www.the-beast.com/
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: March 10, 2010 (2010-03-10)

Daniel DeWayne Severn (born June 8, 1958) is an American mixed martial artist and professional wrestler, notable for his success in the early years of Ultimate Fighting Championship tournaments. Severn has fought and wrestled for many mixed martial arts and professional wrestling promotions, including King of the Cage, PRIDE FC, Cage Rage, WEC, RINGS, and the World Wrestling Federation. He holds a professional MMA Record of 100–18–7 and is a UFC Hall of Famer and a former UFC Superfight Champion.

In professional wrestling Severn is a two-time world champion, having won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship twice. As of January 2011, at age 52+, Severn still competes in MMA Competition and pro wrestling. Along with competition, Severn also makes special appearances and autograph signings. He also travels the globe instructing seminars in MMA, grappling, and amateur wrestling. More importantly, Severn is focused on getting his Law Enforcement Training (Danger Zone: LET) developed into more police departments, corrections facilities and the military.

Career[link]

Wrestling[link]

Severn has a long history in Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling. He was a two time All-American at Arizona State University,^[1] the original Sunkist Kid of the Sunkist Kids,^[2] and a wrestling coach at both his alma mater Arizona State and Michigan State. In addition to his home country, he has wrestled in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, England, and several other countries.

Severn failed to win in Olympic trials in 1984 and 1988 (he was a finalist in the trials). In his long career, he has held many national and international titles. He was often introduced to the UFC Octagon as holding more than 100 in total. Severn also held the US national record for victories by pin from 1976 to 1992.

Severn began his career in the fight game as a Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestler. He quickly became a top high school and collegiate wrestler capturing many titles, honors, and several national and world titles. As a high school wrestler Severn was a two-time national champion and set eight national records in his career. Severn was inducted into Arizona State University's wrestling hall of fame at the end of his collegiate career.

After completing his degree program and graduation Severn entered numerous competitions from 1982 to 1994 that took him to Japan, Hungary, Cuba, France, and Turkey. On each trip, Severn captured another title. He also secured 13 National AAU wrestling championships during those years. The Beast also tried his hand at coaching wrestling at ASU and Michigan State University as he continued to compete and excel after his collegiate career.

Severn has been profiled in the press around the world in such publications as USA Today, People, Karate and Kung Fu Illustrated, Black Belt Magazine, MAD, Full Contact Fighter, and many of the pro wrestling publications. Severn also runs a wrestling product company and holds annual wrestling clinics for kids of all ages. He has appeared on 48 Hours, 20/20, The Gordon Elliot Show, Nash Bridges, and many commercials.

Severn has developed a 10,000-square-foot (930 m²) training facility on his property called "Michigan Sports Camps" in Coldwater, Michigan. This facility is able to house and train individuals for mixed martial arts, boxing, kickboxing, amateur wrestling and professional wrestling.

Mixed martial arts[link]

In 1994, Severn started competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championships. He was the first world-class wrestler to enter the UFC, foreshadowing the period of dominance by wrestlers such as Don Frye in UFC 8 and 9 and Mark Coleman in UFC 10 and 11. Severn entered the UFC in 1994 at UFC 4: Revenge of the Warriors, where he impressed many UFC fans by executing two impressive back suplexs on Anthony Macias. In the finals of UFC 4, Severn was defeated by Royce Gracie who secured a triangle choke for the victory. The submission loss came after Severn was in Gracie's guard for almost 15 minutes.

He soon returned to mixed martial arts competition, defeating several opponents to capture the tournament championship at UFC 5: Return of the Beast. Severn's first fight was with Russian Oleg Taktarov at UFC 5. He won by TKO after the referee stopped the fight due to a cut.

After winning UFC 5, Severn was matched up with Ken Shamrock at UFC 6 to determine the first UFC Superfight Champion, but was defeated by Shamrock early in the fight via submission.

Severn then entered the UFC's Ultimate Ultimate 1995, which at the time was the toughest and most competitive tournament in UFC history, consisting of past UFC tournament champions and runner ups. Severn defeated Paul Varelans, David "Tank" Abbott, and UFC 6 tournament winner Oleg Taktarov all in the same night to capture the tournament title.

With this win, Severn earned a rematch and title shot against then current UFC champion Ken Shamrock for the UFC Superfight Championship. Severn won a split decision in what most fans regard as one of the worst fights in MMA history, mainly due to legal issues surrounding the event. With the win, Severn captured his third title for the promotion.

Severn managed his friend and fellow UFC champion Don Frye during UFC 8. In 1999, Severn founded a new mixed martial arts promotion intended to provide a platform for amateur fighters, called The Danger Zone, in which Severn has also fought. Severn has also trained and became a mentor to notable mixed martial artists including former UFC light-heavyweight champion Rashad Evans, The Ultimate Fighter competitor Luke Zachrich, Sean Sherk, and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.^{[citation needed]}

Severn was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame at UFC 52.^[3]

Dan Severn, one of the earliest and most legendary stars of the UFC, continued his MMA career on 29 January 2011 by racking up his 97th, and 8th straight, victory in a win over Scott Fraser. In doing so he won the Elite 1 Heavyweight championship. The end came at 4:59 of Round 2 as Fraser tapped to Severn’s arm triangle which he has used to secure his last three victories. The event took place at the Casino New Brunswick in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada.^[4]

Former NWA World Champion and current UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn successfully defeated Cal Worsham again, this time via unanimous decision in the main event of Legends Collide 2 on 20 February 2011. Held under the long running Gladiator Challenge promotion in San Jacinto, California, Severn picked up his 9th straight win to improve his record to 98-16-7.^[5]

MMA legend, Dan "The Beast" Severn, earned his 100th career victory on April 16, 2011 with a submission victory over Aaron Garcia at KOTC: Texas.^[6]

Professional wrestling[link]

Severn is an accomplished professional wrestler, having worked for UWF International in Japan, the National Wrestling Alliance, and the World Wrestling Federation.

He entered the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in 1995, and defeated Chris Candido for his first NWA World Heavyweight Championship on a Smoky Mountain Wrestling card. Severn would go on to win the UFC Superfight Heavyweight Championship that year, making him the first and only man to hold an MMA and a professional wrestling championship simultaneously. Severn would go on to hold the NWA Championship for four years, the longest reign in over two decades and currently the third-longest reign in the belt's history.

As NWA champion, Severn appeared in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) during a storyline where the NWA invaded the WWF. During his one year tenure, he competed in the Brawl for All tournament, beating The Godfather in the first round. However, he withdrew prior to the quarterfinals, allowing The Godfather to advance by default. He would also take part in the 1998 King of the Ring tournament, only to lose to The Rock in the Semi-Finals. Later that year he was involved in a storyline with Owen Hart, where Hart caused an injury to the neck of Severn, via a piledriver.^[7] He was part of the 1999 Royal Rumble being the 8th entrant lasting almost 6 minutes before being eliminated by Mabel. He feuded with old MMA rivial Ken Shamrock, where the WWF played up their history in UFC.

Severn appeared in 2000 in the short-lived WXO promotion. In 2001, he again won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, this time from Shinya Hashimoto in Japan. This title reign was controversial and short-lived, as the title was stripped from Severn when he was unable to appear on the inaugural NWA-TNA pay-per-view to defend his title; the belt was won that evening by Ken Shamrock.

Severn founded Price of Glory Wrestling based out of Coldwater, Michigan in June 2004. Utilizing the many students at his pro wrestling school Michigan Sports Camps, they created the now popular promotion running on a monthly basis. Severn has competed many times on Price of Glory Wrestling against the likes of Jimmy Jacobs, N8 Mattson, CJ Otis, Johnny Dynamo and more.

It was revealed on November 15, 2011 that Severn was (in kayfabe) training Eddie Edwards for his match with Davey Richards at Ring of Honor's Final Battle 2011, to take place on December 23, 2011 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City.

Retirement[link]

On October 20, 2011, Severn announced he would retire from fighting in 2012. Wanting to finish his long career on a win he is looking for one last fight in 2012 against a larger named fighter hopefully Royce Gracie or Tim Sylvia.^[8]

Personal life[link]

Severn has a son named David Severn, who is a two-time state wrestling champion at Bronson High School.

In professional wrestling[link]

• Finishing moves
  • Armbar
  • Beast Choker (Dragon sleeper with body scissors)

• Signature moves
  • Back to belly piledriver, sometimes transitioned into an armbar
  • Belly to belly suplex
  • Guillotine choke
  • Heel hook
  • Key lock
  • Rear naked choke

• Nicknames
  • The Beast^[7]

• Managers
  • Jim Cornette^[9]

Championships and accomplishments[link]

Amateur wrestling[link]

• Arizona State University wrestling Hall of Famer
• 1980 Summer Olympic team alternate
• 13 National AAU wrestling championships from 1982 to 1994
• 1984 Summer Olympic team alternate
• 1985 Canada Cup Gold Medalist^[10]
• 1988 Summer Olympic team alternate

Mixed martial arts[link]

• Elite-1 MMA
  • Elite-1 MMA Heavyweight Championship (one time, current)
• Continental Freefighting Alliance
  • CFA Super Heavyweight Championship (one time, current)
• Gladiator Challenge
  • Gladiator Challenge Superfight Heavyweight Championship (one time, current)
• The Danger Zone
  • Undefeated in Danger Zone single bout competition
• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • UFC 5 Tournament Winner
  • Ultimate Ultimate 1995 Tournament Winner
  • UFC Superfight Championship (one time, last)
  • UFC 4 Tournament Runner Up
  • UFC Hall of Fame
  • UFC Viewer's Choice Award ^[11]
• World Extreme Cagefighting*
  • Headlined and Won the main event of WEC 1

Professional wrestling[link]

• Great American Mat Endeavors
  • GAME Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[12]

• Global Wrestling Alliance
  • GWA Heavyweight Championship (3 times)^[12]

• National Championship Wrestling
  • NCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[12]

• National Wrestling Alliance
  • NWA United Kingdom Heavyweight Championship (one time)
  • NWA World Heavyweight Championship (two times)

• Price of Glory Wrestling
  • PoG Heavyweight Championship (one time)

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI ranked him #35 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1995^[13]
  • PWI ranked him #252 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003^[14]

Mixed martial arts record[link]

References[link]

1. ^ http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/asu/sports/m-wrestl/auto_pdf/allamericans.pdf
2. ^ "Mat Stars Open Quest Of Olympics". The Sunday Oklahoman. 18 March 1984. 
3. ^ Dan Severn to Join UFC Hall of Fame, UFC, 14 April 2005, http://modules.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=news.detail&gid=1214 
4. ^ http://insidefights.com/2011/01/31/52-year-old-dan-severn-wins-8th-straight-fight/
5. ^ http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1298557579
6. ^ http://www.mmanews.com/forums/general-mma-forum/48237-dan-severn-picks-up-his-100th-career-win-past-weekend.html
7. ^ ^{a b} Shields, Brian; Sullivan, Kevin (2009). WWE Encyclopedia. DK. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-7566-4190-0. 
8. ^ "UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn Battling Bullies, Will Call It Quits After 2012". MMA Weekly. http://mmaweekly.com/ufc-hall-of-famer-dan-severn-battling-bullies-will-call-it-quits-after-2012. Retrieved 2011-10-20. 
9. ^ "Jim Cornette". Online World of Wrestling. http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/columns/managerscorner/01.html. Retrieved 2009-11-20. 
10. ^ McHale, Stephen (25 November 1985). "Canadian wrestlers third, Cubans grapple to victory". The Globe and Mail. 
11. ^ http://www.fighttimes.com/magazine/magazine.asp?article=856
12. ^ ^{a b c} Royal Duncan & Gary Will (4th Edition 2000). Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4. 
13. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated Top 500 - 1995". Wrestling Information Archive. http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/pwi/pwi50095.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-14. 
14. ^ "Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Top 500 Wrestlers of the PWI Years". Wrestling Information Archive. http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/pwi/pwi500yr.htm. Retrieved 2010-09-15. 

External links[link]

Professional wrestling portal

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Dan Severn

• Official website
• Professional MMA record for Dan Severn from Sherdog
• Website of the film 'Catch - the hold not taken', featuring Dan Severn, a documentary on the impact of Wrestling in the UFC
• Interview on Genickbruch.com
• Dan Severn at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame
• Dan Severn's interview with John Kline of Elevation Radio
• MuscleSport Radio interview with Joe Pietaro, 6/16/09

Achievements
Preceded by Ken Shamrock	2nd UFC Superfight Champion May 17, 1996 - February 7, 1997	Final Superfight

v t e NWA World Heavyweight Champions Orville Brown · Lou Thesz · Leo Nomellini · Whipper Billy Watson · Édouard Carpentier · Dick Hutton · Pat O'Connor · Buddy Rogers · Bobo Brazil · Gene Kiniski · Dory Funk, Jr. · Harley Race · Jack Brisco · Giant Baba · Terry Funk · Dusty Rhodes · Tommy Rich · Ric Flair · Kerry Von Erich · Ron Garvin · Ricky Steamboat · Sting · Tatsumi Fujinami · Masahiro Chono · The Great Muta · Barry Windham · Shane Douglas · Chris Candido · Dan Severn · Naoya Ogawa · Gary Steele · Mike Rapada · Sabu · Steve Corino · Shinya Hashimoto · Ken Shamrock · Ron Killings · Jeff Jarrett · A.J. Styles · Raven · Rhino · Christian Cage · Abyss · Adam Pearce  · Brent Albright · Blue Demon, Jr. · Colt Cabana (current) · The Sheik

Persondata
Name	Severn, Dan
Alternative names	Severn, Daniel DeWayne (full name); The Beast (nickname)
Short description	American wrestler
Date of birth	June 8, 1958
Place of birth	Coldwater, Michigan, United States
Date of death
Place of death