This Month’s MMA Birthdays: Mark Coleman to Celebrate No. 53

No nickname in mixed martial arts history fits its subject better than “The Hammer.” Mark Coleman will turn 53 on Dec. 20.

“The Godfather of Ground-and-Pound” called it a career in March 2013 but not before leaving a lasting impression on the sport. Coleman won an NCAA wrestling championship at Ohio State University and represented the United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics, placing seventh in Barcelona, Spain. He transitioned to MMA in 1996, winning the UFC 10 and UFC 11 tournaments before later becoming the first heavyweight titleholder in Ultimate Fighting Championship history. After four consecutive defeats, Coleman packed his bags and resurrected his career in Pride Fighting Championships, winning the Japanese organization’s open weight grand prix in 2000, with victories over Masaaki Satake, Akira Shoji, Kazuyuki Fujita and Igor Vovchanchyn.

Coleman was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2008 and returned to the Octagon the following year, losing his rematch with Mauricio Rua. After a decision win over “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 1 finalist Stephan Bonnar, he made his final appearance at UFC 109 in February 2010, submitting to a rear-naked choke from former two-division champion Randy Couture.

Others in MMA celebrating a birthday during the month of December:

DEC. 1

Scott Barrett, 34
Shinsho Anzai, 32
Curtis Millender, 30
Richard Walsh, 29

DEC. 2

Dennis Hallman, 42
Billy Vaughan, 34
Marlon Vera, 25
Yadong Song, 20

DEC. 3

Vernon White, 46
Robert Hitte, 42
Seth Petruzelli, 38
Nina Ansaroff, 32
Shoki Omichi, 30

DEC. 4

Sean Daugherty, 42
Mike Rhodes, 28
Max Holloway, 26
Gianna Subba, 25

DEC. 5

Daijiro Matsui, 45
Travis Lutter, 44
Amy Davis, 43
Tetsuji Kato, 40
Kenichiro Togashi, 37
Mats Nilsson, 34

DEC. 6

Royler Gracie, 52
Jens Pulver, 43
Peggy Morgan, 38
Todd Duffee, 32

DEC. 7

Soa Palelei, 40
Ronaldo Souza, 38
K.J. Noons, 35
Dongi Yang, 33
Justin Patterson, 32
Michael Chiesa, 30
Claudia Gadelha, 29
Stephen Banaszak, 27

DEC. 8

Lucio Linhares, 44
Clay Guida, 36
Naoyuki Kotani, 36
Luiz Andrade I, 32
Pannie Kianzad, 26

DEC. 9

Chris Guillen, 45
Aaron Riley, 37
Joey Beltran, 36
Rani Yahya, 33
Terrell Hobbs, 32

DEC. 10

John Olav Einemo, 42
Andreas Kraniotakes, 36
Zoila Frausto, 34
Jamie Varner, 33
Soo Chul Kim, 26

DEC. 11

Kendall Grove, 35
Mark Drummond, 32
Amir Aliakbari, 30
Tony Martin, 28

DEC. 12

Royce Gracie, 51
Evangelista Santos, 40
Yuki Shojo, 37
Court McGee, 33
Luke Sanders, 32
Neiman Gracie, 29
Derrick Adkins, 28
Alessio Di Chirico, 28
Spencer Jebb, 28

DEC. 13

Maurice Smith, 56
B.J. Penn, 39
Amilcar Alves, 38
Dennis Bermudez, 31

DEC. 14

Valdir Arraujo, 33
Caio Magalhaes, 30
Graham Park, 29
Heili Alateng, 26
Ion Cutelaba, 24

DEC. 15

Yasubey Enomoto, 34
Jared Chaffee, 33
Ivica Truscek, 30
Poliana Botelho, 29

DEC. 16

Narantungalag Jadambaa, 42
Elaina Maxwell, 39
James Thompson, 39
Adriano Martins, 35
Takeya Mizugaki, 34
Won Sik Park, 31
Cody McKenzie, 30

DEC. 17

Chuck Liddell, 48
Kiyoshi Tamura, 48
David Loiseau, 38
Francisco Trevino, 36
Joe Ray, 33
Matt Dwyer, 28
Aline Sattelmayer, 27

DEC. 18

Kim Couture, 42
Evan Dunham, 36
Roland Delorme, 34
Bojan Velickovic, 29

DEC. 19

Davis Sylvester, 44
Michihiro Omigawa, 42
Satoshi Ishii, 31
Darrion Caldwell, 30
Jack Marshman, 28
Steve Montgomery, 27
Tatiana Suarez, 27

DEC. 20

Mark Coleman, 53
Steve Granieri, 43
Taiyo Nakahara, 35
Tristan Johnson, 34
Alexei Kudin, 33
Robert Whittaker, 27

DEC. 21

Mark Kerr, 49
Masakatsu Ueda, 40
Mike Bannon, 35
Brad Tavares, 30

DEC. 22

David Branch, 36
Bentley Syler, 35
Norman Parke, 31
Stephen Langdown, 25

DEC. 23

Francisco Bueno, 45
Fabricio Camoes, 39
Iony Razafiarison, 33
Joanne Calderwood, 31

DEC. 24

Drew Fickett, 38
Jason Miller, 37
Cyril Asker, 32
Tim Elliott, 31
Aisling Daly, 30
David Khachatryan, 30

DEC. 25

Rafael Natal, 35
Damien Brown, 33
Jordan Smith, 33
Rolando Velasco, 31
Dustin Ortiz, 29

DEC. 26

Joe Angel Zamora, 46
Jerome Le Banner, 45
Alex Stiebling, 41
Dan Hornbuckle, 37
Jesus Martinez, 34
Gregor Gracie, 31
Advin Omic, 31
Albert Tumenov, 26

DEC. 27

Liron Wilson, 45
Daniel Acacio, 40
Cale Yarbrough, 31
Joe Pingitore, 27

DEC. 28

Gerald Lovato, 39
Richard Knepp, 34
Matt Bessette, 33
Katlyn Chookagian, 29

DEC. 29

Rumina Sato, 44
Mitsuhiro Ishida, 39
Sheila Gaff, 28
Camila Lima, 28

DEC. 30

Shannon Gugerty, 36
Nick Osipczak, 33
Wagner Prado, 31
Magomed Alhasov, 27

DEC. 31

Ian Freeman, 47
Diego Sanchez, 36
Randy Steinke, 31
Chidi Njokuani, 29