Paul Varelans
American martial artist (1969–2021)
Paul Varelans Born (1969-09-17 ) September 17, 1969Sunnyvale, California , U.S.Died January 16, 2021(2021-01-16) (aged 51)Atlanta, Georgia , U.S. Other names The Polar Bear Height 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) Weight 300 lb (140 kg; 21 st) Style Trapfighting , Boxing , Wrestling , Judo , Taekwondo Fighting out of Fairbanks , Alaska Years active 1995–1998 Total 18 Wins 9 By knockout 6 By submission 2 By decision 1 Losses 9 By knockout 7 By submission 1 By decision 1
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Paul Varelans (September 17, 1969 – January 16, 2021) was an American professional mixed martial artist. He competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship from 1995 to 1996, and had a worked match in Extreme Championship Wrestling in 1996.
Background
Varelans attended West Valley High School in Fairbanks, Alaska , where he participated in football and wrestling . Varelans was a walk-on athlete at San Jose State University , and he trained in a little bit of taekwondo , judo and boxing before starting his career in no holds barred.[ 1]
Career
Varelans made his UFC debut on July 14, 1995, at Ultimate Fighting Championship 6: Clash of the Titans
On June 22, 1996, at ECW's Hardcore Heaven event, Varelans faced, and was choked out by, ECW star Taz , in what was promoted as a "shoot fight". Although the event was promoted as a legitimate shoot fight, Varelans agreed beforehand to lose via submission.[ 2] Missy Hyatt, First Lady of Wrestling , Missy Hyatt claims that Varelans agreed to lose if she performed fellatio on him afterwards, but Hyatt refused saying that she did not "blow jobbers".[ 3] [ 4]
On July 29, 1997, he went to Japan for a one night appearance for Kingdom and lost a worked fight to Yoji Anjo by knockout.
Personal life and death
In December 2020, news surfaced that Varelans contracted COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Georgia , and as a result, was placed on mechanical ventilation and then put into a medically induced coma .[ 5] Atlanta, Georgia , on January 16, 2021, aged 51.[ 6] [ 7]
Championships and accomplishments
International Fighting Championship
IFC Kombat in Kyiv tournament semifinalist Ultimate Fighting Championship World Vale Tudo Championship
WVC 5 tournament semifinalist
Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
18 matches
9 wins
9 losses
By knockout
6
7
By submission
2
1
By decision
1
1
Res.
Record
Opponent
Method
Event
Date
Round
Time
Location
Notes
Win
9–9
Dick Vrij
KO (punch)
Rings Holland: The King of Rings
February 8, 1998
2
0:30
Amsterdam , Netherlands
Loss
8–9
Nick Nutter
TKO (cut)
World Vale Tudo Championship 5
February 3, 1998
1
3:42
Recife , Brazil
WVC 5 semi-finals.
Win
8–8
Waldir dos Anjos
TKO (submission to punches)
1
2:36
WVC 5 quarter-finals.
Loss
7–8
Carlos Barreto
TKO (elbows and punches)
Brazil Open '97
June 15, 1997
1
2:33
Brazil
Win
7–7
Scott Taylor
Submission (forearm choke)
Extreme Challenge 6
May 10, 1997
1
0:42
Battle Creek, Michigan , United States
Loss
6–7
Ryushi Yanagisawa
Decision (lost points)
Pancrase: Alive 4
April 27, 1997
1
15:00
Urayasu, Chiba , Japan
Loss
6–6
Mark Kerr
TKO (knees and punches)
World Vale Tudo Championship 3
January 19, 1997
1
2:06
São Paulo , Brazil
WVC 3 quarter-finals.
Loss
6–5
Kimo Leopoldo
TKO (corner stoppage)
Ultimate Ultimate 1996
December 7, 1996
1
9:08
Birmingham, Alabama , United States
Ultimate Ultimate 96 quarter-finals.
Win
6–4
Shinji Katase
TKO (submission to punches)
U-Japan
November 17, 1996
1
0:35
Japan
Loss
5–4
Igor Vovchanchyn
KO (punches)
IFC 1: Kombat in Kyiv
March 30, 1996
1
6:20
Kyiv , Ukraine
IFC 1 semi-finals.
Win
5–3
Valery Nikkolin
TKO (corner stoppage)
1
5:12
IFC 1 quarter-finals.
Win
4–3
Joe Moreira
Decision (unanimous)
UFC 8
February 16, 1996
1
10:00
San Juan, Puerto Rico
UFC 8 quarter-finals.
Loss
3–3
Dan Severn
Submission (arm-triangle choke)
Ultimate Ultimate 1995
December 16, 1995
1
1:01
Denver, Colorado , United States
Ultimate Ultimate 1995 quarter-finals.
Loss
3–2
Marco Ruas
TKO (leg kicks and punches)
UFC 7
September 8, 1995
1
13:17
Buffalo, New York , United States
UFC 7 final.
Win
3–1
Mark Hall
Submission (americana)
1
1:04
UFC 7 semi-finals.
Win
2–1
Gerry Harris
TKO (submission to elbows)
1
1:07
UFC 7 quarter-finals.
Loss
1–1
Tank Abbott
TKO (punches)
UFC 6
July 14, 1995
1
1:53
Casper, Wyoming , United States
UFC 6 semi-finals.
Win
1–0
Cal Worsham
KO (elbow)
1
1:02
UFC 6 quarter-finals.
See also
References
^ "Paul Varelans Fight News - MMA Fighting" . www.mmafighting.com .^ Williams, Scott E. (2006). Hardcore History: The Extremely Unauthorized story of ECW ISBN 978-1-59670-225-7 ISBN 978-1-59670-225-7 (soft cover), ISBN 1-59670-021-1 (hardcover)^ "Owow" . Archived from the original on August 31, 2013. Retrieved February 5, 2015 .^ "Paul "The Polar Bear" Varelans - Page 3 - Sherdog Mixed Martial Arts Forums" . www.sherdog.net . Archived from the original on September 20, 2008. Retrieved June 6, 2022 .^ Pettry, Jay (December 18, 2020). "UFC Pioneer Paul Varelans Placed on Ventilator Due to COVID-19" . sherdog.com. ^ DNA, MMA (January 17, 2021). "UFC pionier Paul "The Polar Bear" Varelans (51) overleden" . MMA DNA (in Dutch). Retrieved January 17, 2021 . ^ Doyle, Dave (January 16, 2021). "UFC pioneer, early fan favorite Paul Varelans dies after battle with COVID-19" . MMA Junkie . Retrieved January 16, 2021 .
External links
