Phil Ryan Cardella (born July 9, 1976) is an American mixed martial arts fighter. He formerly fought as a lightweight in the World Extreme Cagefighting organization. All but one of Cardella's triumphs have come by first-round submission.

He holds a 3rd degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Relson Gracie, as well as a 3rd degree black belt in Taekwondo and a 2nd Degree black belt in Hapkido.

He served as an assault amphibious vehicle crewman in the United States Marine Corps from 1994 to 1998, during which he also taught primary marksmanship and combat water safety. Today he continues to work with various branches of the U.S. Military to train them in hand-to-hand combatives using Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Phil was the first American fighter to represent the Relson Gracie Team in MMA competition. Relson Gracie has been in Phil's corner during many of his MMA matches. Phil is the founder of the Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu associations in Texas, and has since moved to Florida to lead his team and community there as the Head Instructor of , a martial arts school specializing in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

WEC career

While his record for the WEC reads 0–2, Cardella was a winner in the minds of several fans and critics after his fight against Danny Castillo ended a split decision.[failed verification] In his fight with Castillo, he became the first fighter in the WEC to win more than one round on a judge's scorecard, purely by scoring points with an offensive guard. He made his WEC return at WEC 42 on August 9, 2009, losing to Ed Ratcliff by unanimous decision.

Coaching

Cardella has been known to coach a number of professional MMA fighters, including UFC contender Kamal Shalorus, Strikeforce top title contender Tim Kennedy, former UFC star Roger Huerta, and Bellator fighter Chris Spicer.

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
13 matches8 wins5 losses
By knockout02
By submission71
By decision12
Res.RecordOpponentMethodEventDateRoundTimeLocationNotes
Loss8–5Ran WeathersKO (punch)Shark Fights 6: Stars & StripesSeptember 12, 200910:36Amarillo, TX, United States
Loss8–4Ed RatcliffDecision (unanimous)WEC 42:Torres vs. BowlesAugust 9, 200935:00Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win8–3Johnny FloresSubmission (armbar)Shark Fights 4: Richards vs SchoonoverMay 2, 200910:48Lubbock, Texas, United States
Loss7–3Danny CastilloDecision (split)WEC 39: Brown vs. GarciaMarch 1, 200935:00Corpus Christi, Texas, United States
Win7–2Rafael DiasDecision (unanimous)GFC - EvolutionMay 19, 200735:00Columbus, Ohio, United States
Win6–2Patrick HornerSubmission (armbar)GFC - Team Gracie vs Team Hammer HouseMarch 3, 200614:20Columbus, Ohio, United States
Loss5–2Steve KinnisonKO (slam)FFC 6 - No LoveJuly 11, 200311:35Biloxi, Mississippi, United States
Win5–1Rocky LongSubmission (armbar)REF - Renegades Extreme FightingOctober 12, 200210:49Houston, Texas, United States
Win4–1Jose SantibanezSubmission (guillotine Choke)REF - Renegades Extreme FightingOctober 12, 200210:27Houston, Texas, United States
Win3–1Richard RosasSubmission (strikes)WFC 2 - World Fighting Championships 2August 16, 20021N/AEl Paso, Texas, United States
Win2–1Casey ErwinSubmission (triangle Choke)WFC 1 - World Fighting Championships 1June 26, 20021N/ASan Antonio, Texas, United States
Loss1–1Randall EbarbSubmission (armbar)REF - Renegades Extreme FightingNovember 17, 200111:02Texas, United States
Win1–0Chris WinchesterSubmission (armbar)REF - Renegades Extreme FightingNovember 17, 200110:24Texas, United States

External links