Matt Ghaffari | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | Siamak Ghaffari (1961-11-11)November 11, 1961 (age 63) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Cleveland State University | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years active | 1984–2000 2002–2004 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sports career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Amateur wrestling | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | Greco-Roman | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University team | Cleveland State Vikings(1981–84) Fairleigh Dickinson Knights(1979–80) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Sunkist Kids | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Martial arts career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Division | Heavyweight | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mixed martial arts record | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Losses | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| By knockout | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mixed martial arts record fromSherdog | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Siamak "Matt" Ghaffari (/ɡəˈfɑːri/gə-FAR-ee;[1]Persian:سیامک غفاری,Persian pronunciation:[siːɒːmæk-eɢæˈffɒːɾiː]; born November 11, 1961, inTehran,Imperial State of Iran) is an Iranian-bornAmericanGreco-Roman wrestler, MMA Fighter andprofessional wrestler. Ghaffari was a two-time USA Olympic team member, obtaining a silver medal at the1996 Atlanta Summer Olympic Games. Ghaffari finished his career with the mostGreco-Roman World and Olympic medals by a United States wrestler. Ghaffari is considered the greatest Greco-Roman wrestler in American history,[2] and is regarded as the standard for Greco-Roman wrestling in the United States.[3]
In all, he won six national championships,[4] four World Cups, two Pan-American Games, seven Pan-American championships (including titles in 1990 and 1992 infreestyle wrestling), and 13 Grand Prix tournament titles.[1][5] He further represented his adopted country six times in World Championships and was twice named the United States Olympic Committee Greco-Roman Wrestler of the Year, in 1996 and 1998.[6]
Born in Tehran, Iran, Ghaffari came to the United States at a young age, he attendedParamus High School inParamus, New Jersey.[7]
He was runner-up toAleksandr Karelin at the 1995 Karelin Cup.[8] While representing the United States at the1992 Barcelona Summer Olympic Games and1996 Atlanta Summer Olympic Games, Ghaffari reached the final of the heavyweightMen's Greco-Roman 130 kg division at the latter, where he lost 0–1 to Russian overwhelming favorite Aleksandr Karelin in overtime.[7] Ghaffari was a six-time United States wrestling champion and a two-time USA Olympic Committee Greco-Roman Athlete of the Year, in 1996 and 1998.[3] Ghaffari ended with a 0–23 record against Karelin.[9][10]
Ghaffari is currently the only American to win a combined four World and Olympic medals in Greco-Roman. Also, he holds 3 American Records the Most World and Olympic total medals, plus he was 4-time World Cup Champion, also 9-time Pan-American Champion. Ghaffari is the 2-time US Olympian and 2-time US Olympic team alternate.
In 2013, Ghaffari was inducted in theNational Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member.[11]
In 2002, Ghaffari fought in the Tokyo Dome in front of 28,000 spectators at amixed martial arts bout in UFO- Universal Fighting-Arts Organization againstjudo Olympic Silver MedalistNaoya Ogawa. Ghaffari managed to take Ogawa down and attack him with a briefground and pound, but back to standing, Ogawa landed a punch which shifted Matt's left eyecontact lens and forced him to quit.[12]
| 1 match | 0 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 0 | 1 |
| By submission | 0 | 0 |
| By decision | 0 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 |  Naoya Ogawa | TKO (punch) | UFO Legend | August 8, 2002 | 1 | 0:56 | Tokyo,Japan |
| Matt Ghaffari | |
|---|---|
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Matt Ghaffari[13] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 5 in (196 cm)[13] |
| Billed weight | 280 lb (130 kg)[13] |
| Debut | 8 December 2002[13] |
In 1996, Ghaffari was scouted byprofessional wrestling promotionWorld Championship Wrestling and was featured in severalvignettes, but did not sign up with the company.[14]
After his stint in MMA, Ghaffari started to work in the Japanese promotionPro Wrestling ZERO-ONE, where he won theNWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship withTom Howard on December 15, 2002, by defeatingShinya Hashimoto and old opponentNaoya Ogawa.[15] They held the championship until April 29, 2003, when they lost it to Hashimoto and Ogawa.[15]
In 2004, Ghaffari made an appearance forHUSTLE, pinning Ogawa after a beatdown from theheel faction Monster Army (Mark Coleman,Kevin Randleman,Dusty Rhodes Jr.,Giant Silva andDan Bobish).[16] He retired from wrestling in 2004.
