Zelg Galešić (born 16 February 1979) is a Croatian mixed martial artist. A professional competitor who began his career in 2004, he fought for Bellator MMA, Cage Rage, PRIDE, DREAM, UCMMA, the SFL, and K-1 Hero's. He is the former Cage Rage British Middleweight Champion.[1]
| Zelg Galešić | |
|---|---|
| Born | Zelg Galešić 16 February 1979 Pula, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia |
| Other names | Benkei |
| Residence | Pula, Croatia |
| Nationality | Croatian |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Weight | 209 lb (95 kg; 14.9 st) |
| Division | Light Heavyweight Middleweight |
| Reach | 72 in (180 cm) |
| Style | Karate, Boxing, Taekwondo, Muay Thai, Jiu-Jitsu, Wrestling |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Fighting out of | Pula, Croatia |
| Team | London Shootfighters |
| Rank | 4th Dan Black Belt in Taekwondo |
| Years active | 2004–2013 |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 20 |
| Wins | 11 |
| By knockout | 9 |
| By submission | 2 |
| Losses | 9 |
| By knockout | 2 |
| By submission | 7 |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Background
Galešić began Tae Kwon Do when he was ten years old and is a master of the sport, being a three-time ITF European Champion, two-time ITF World Champion, and two-time ITC Full Contact World Champion. He was undefeated in amateur rules in the UK at the Combat Sports Open Trials, where all but one of his fights were won in under a minute.[2]
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
His first professional MMA bout was on 12 September 2004 at Ultimate Combat 11: Wrath of the Beast, where he won against Jim Bentley when the referee stopped the fight after 16 seconds.[3]
On 30 August 2007, while Cage Rage British Middleweight Champion, he was made an offer to fight for K-1 Hero's, which he accepted. He lost against Yoon Dong-sik.[4]
DREAM
His first fights with DREAM, in 2008, were victories against Magomed Sultanakhmedov then Taiei Kin. However, in Galešić's most recent fights he has lost to Ronaldo Souza[5] and Kazushi Sakuraba.[6]
Having lost to former PRIDE veteran Kazushi Sakuraba, Galešić took 15 months off. He returned to fight on Liverpool's OMMAC promotion, where he took on a local fighter, Lee Chadwick. Galešić won the fight with a knockout in the first round.[7]
Bellator
Galešić competed in the eight man Bellator Season 5 Middleweight Tournament. In the quarter-finals at Bellator 50 he lost to Alexander Shlemenko by guillotine choke in the first round.[8]
He next competed on India's Super Fight League's third event, SFL 3, against former WEC Light Heavyweight Champion Doug Marshall.[9] He won the fight via KO early into the first round due to a flying knee.[10]
Galešić moved to Light Heavyweight in order to compete in the Bellator 2012 Heavyweight Tournament.[11] He was beaten by Attila Vegh at Bellator 71 in the quarter-finals via a submission in the first round.
He fought Linton Vassell for UCMMA Light Heavyweight Championship on 2 February 2013.[12] Zelg lost the fight on the ground, by first round TKO.
Kickboxing career
Zelg made his kickboxing debout against #12 Glory ranked fighter Makoto Uehara at the R.I.S.E. 100 event on 12 June 2014. He dropped Uehara early in round one with punches and knees but rushed it and lost by KO at 1:25 of the first round.[13]
Championships and accomplishments
Kickboxing record
| 0 Wins, 1 Loss | ||||||||
| Date | Result | Opponent | Event | Location | Method | Round | Time | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-07-12 | Loss |  Makoto Uehara | RISE 100 [14] | Tokyo, Japan | KO (Right Hook) | 1 | 1:25 | 0–1 |
| Kickboxing debut. | ||||||||
| Legend: Win Loss Draw/No contest Notes | ||||||||
Mixed martial arts record
| 20 matches | 11 wins | 9 losses |
| By knockout | 9 | 2 |
| By submission | 2 | 7 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 11–9 | Ricco Rodriguez | Submission (armbar) | Final Fight Championship 8 | 25 October 2013 | 1 | 2:10 | Zagreb, Croatia | Catchweight 95 kg. |
| Loss | 11–8 | Linton Vassell | TKO (punches) | UCMMA 32 | 2 February 2013 | 1 | 4:31 | London, England | For UCMMA Light Heavyweight Championship. |
| Loss | 11–7 | Attila Vegh | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Bellator 71 | 22 June 2012 | 1 | 1:00 | Chester, West Virginia, United States | Light Heavyweight debut; Bellator 2012 Light Heavyweight Tournament Quarterfinal. |
| Win | 11–6 | Doug Marshall | KO (flying knee) | SFL 3 | 6 May 2012 | 1 | 0:34 | New Delhi, Delhi, India | |
| Loss | 10–6 | Alexander Shlemenko | Submission (standing guillotine choke) | Bellator 50 | 17 September 2011 | 1 | 1:55 | Hollywood, Florida, United States | Bellator 2011 Middleweight Tournament Quarterfinal. |
| Win | 10–5 | Lee Chadwick | KO (punch) | OMMAC 9: Enemies | 5 March 2011 | 1 | 2:40 | Liverpool, England | |
| Loss | 9–5 | Kazushi Sakuraba | Submission (kneebar) | DREAM 12 | 26 October 2009 | 1 | 1:40 | Osaka, Japan | |
| Loss | 9–4 | Ronaldo Souza | Submission (armbar) | DREAM 6: Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 Final Round | 23 September 2008 | 1 | 1:27 | Saitama, Saitama, Japan | DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix Semifinal. |
| Win | 9–3 | Taiei Kin | TKO (elbow injury) | DREAM 4: Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 Second Round | 15 June 2008 | 1 | 1:05 | Yokohama, Japan | DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix Quarterfinal. |
| Win | 8–3 | Magomed Sultanakhmedov | Submission (armbar) | DREAM 2: Middleweight Grand Prix 2008 First Round | 29 April 2008 | 1 | 1:40 | Saitama, Saitama, Japan | DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix Opening Round. |
| Win | 7–3 | Taiei Kin | TKO (doctor stoppage) | HERO'S 2007 in Korea | 28 October 2007 | 1 | 0:36 | Seoul, South Korea | Catchweight 95 kg. |
| Loss | 6–3 | Yoon Dong-sik | Submission (armbar) | Hero's 10 | 17 September 2007 | 1 | 1:29 | Yokohama, Japan | |
| Loss | 6–2 | Makoto Takimoto | Submission (kimura) | PRIDE 34 | 8 April 2007 | 1 | 5:40 | Saitama, Saitama, Japan | |
| Win | 6–1 | Mark Weir | KO (punches) | Cage Rage 19 | 9 December 2006 | 1 | 0:50 | London, England | Won Cage Rage British Middleweight Championship. |
| Win | 5–1 | James Evans-Nicolle | TKO (stomp and punches) | Cage Rage 18 | 30 September 2006 | 1 | 2:02 | London, England | |
| Win | 4–1 | Curtis Stout | Submission (armbar) | Cage Rage 17 | 1 July 2006 | 1 | 1:10 | London, England | |
| Win | 3–1 | Michael Holmes | TKO (punches) | Cage Rage 15 | 4 February 2006 | 1 | 1:41 | London, England | |
| Win | 2–1 | John Flemming | KO (punches) | Urban Destruction 2 | 30 July 2005 | 1 | N/A | Bristol, England | |
| Loss | 1–1 | Paul Taylor | TKO (punches) | Urban Destruction 1 | 10 April 2005 | 3 | 1:42 | Bristol, England | |
| Win | 1–0 | Jim Bentley | KO (punch) | UC 11: Wrath of the Beast | 12 September 2004 | 1 | 1:16 | Bristol, England |
