Sherdog Prospect Watch: Edwin Cooper Jr.

At the upcoming PFL Challenger Series 4, Edwin Cooper Jr. will attempt to secure a Professional Fighters League contract as he locks horns with Troy Lamson. The 29-year-old Cooper is competing in the featherweight division, where he has scored five losses and one defeat. His opponents’ combined record consists of 16 wins, 13 losses and one draw, resulting in a .550 winning percentage. In victory, the Jackson-Wink MMA standout has stopped three foes inside the distance with punches.

Cooper grew up in Joliet, Illinois, and took up wrestling at a young age. His results include two Illinois high school state championships and a junior college national title. On top of that, he fell short of capturing the NCAA Division II title and represented the University of Iowa at the 2016 NCAA Division I tournament. After graduation, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he joined forces once again with Chicago wrestling coach Israel Martinez. The 6-foot-tall Cooper relies on his wrestling pedigree to move the action to the canvas, where he can tame his adversaries with punches. His arsenal includes some eye-catching suplexes. On the feet, he mostly strikes from afar with overhand punches and some unorthodox elbows.



In 2018, Cooper successfully transitioned to professional mixed martial arts as he stopped his first two opponents with punches. He received a call from Legacy Fighting Alliance for his third fight, where he clashed with Sean Cerveny and suffered the only loss of his career, though not without controversy. Cooper stunned his opponent with a head kick right out of the gate, dropped him to the canvas and continued to land ground-and-pound as Cerveny defended with an armbar. Cooper fought through the submission attempt with more punches as he constantly worked to improve his position. Cooper’s relentless shots left their mark on Cerveny’s face as he started bleeding. With only 40 seconds left in Round 1, Cerveny fired another armbar attempt, taking advantage of the fact that Cooper was trapped with his back against the fence and had very little room to maneuver. It was indeed a sticky situation for Cooper, as he fought downwards to get out of it. The images aren’t self-explanatory, and it’s hard to say whether he submitted or not. Still, the referee perceived a tapout and stopped the action at the 4:25 mark.

America Needs Fighters#LFA109 pic.twitter.com/Guagho5jn1

— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) June 5, 2021

Cooper jumped back on track at LFA 94, where he outwrestled Ethyn Ewing en route to a unanimous decision. His next victim was Robson Junior, who met his doom in the second frame at LFA 109. Cooper moved the action on the floor as soon as possible, landing big shots as his opponent wriggled to get back up. Cooper survived many submission attempts as he proved that he learned his lesson, especially when it came to armbars. Round 2 was similar to the first frame, except that Cooper secured a dominant position from where he fired plenty of punches. When Junior didn’t seem to be defending himself intelligently anymore, the referee stepped in and the match ended at the 1:31 mark.

Cooper’s latest appearance dates back to LFA 115 in September. As usual, he dominated his opponent on the canvas for three rounds before taking home a unanimous decision. Now, it appears that Copper is ready for a step up in competition. Initially, he was supposed to face Aaron Blackie, but the match fell off the card after the Australian withdrew.