Matt Ghaffari
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Birth name | Siamak Ghaffari | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | November 11, 1961 (age 62) Tehran, Iran | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Cleveland State University ’84 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years active | 1984–2000 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | Template:Unit weight | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country |  United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Amateur wrestling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | Greco-Roman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University team | Cleveland State Vikings (1981–84) Fairleigh Dickinson Knights (1979–80) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Sunkist Kids | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Siamak "Matt" Ghaffari (/ɡəˈfɑːri/ gə-FAR-ee;[1] Persian: سیامک غفاری, Persian pronunciation: [siːɒːmæk-e ɢæˈffɒːɾiː]; born November 11, 1961 in Tehran, Iran) is an Iranian-American amateur wrestler and professional wrestler. He was a two-time Olympic team member, obtaining a silver medal in the 1996 Summer Olympics.
Early life
Ghaffari attended Paramus High School in Paramus, New Jersey.[2]
Amateur wrestling career
Representing the United States at the 1996 Summer Olympics, Ghaffari reached the final of the Men's Greco-Roman 130 kg, where he lost to Russia's Aleksandr Karelin. In total, he won four World and Olympic Medals.[2]
Mixed martial arts career
| Matt Ghaffari | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Division | Heavyweight |
| Years active | 2002 |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 1 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Losses | 1 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
In 2002, Ghaffari fought a mixed martial arts bout in Universal Fighting-Arts Organization against world judo champion Naoya Ogawa. Ghaffari managed to take Ogawa down and attack him with a brief ground and pound, but back to standing, Ogawa landed a punch which shifted Matt's left eye contact lens and forced him to quit.[3]
Mixed martial arts record
| 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 |
Professional wrestling career
| Matt Ghaffari | |
|---|---|
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Matt Ghaffari[4] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 5 in (196 cm)*[4] |
| Billed weight | 280 lb (130 kg)[4] |
| Debut | 8 December 2002[4] |
In 1996, Ghaffari was scouted by professional wrestling promotion World Championship Wrestling and was featured in several vignettes, but did not sign up with the company.[5]
After his stint in MMA, Ghaffari stated to work in in Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE, where he won the NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship with Tom Howard on December 15, 2002 by defeating Shinya Hashimoto and old opponent Naoya Ogawa.[6] They held the championship until April 29, 2003, when they lost it to Hashimoto and Ogawa.[6]
In 2004, Ghaffari made an apparition for HUSTLE, pinning Ogawa after a beatdown from the heel faction Monster Army (Mark Coleman, Kevin Randleman, Dusty Rhodes Jr., Giant Silva and Dan Bobish).[7]
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Ghaffari Press (Running splash)[8]
- Signature moves
- Entrance themes
- "Imperial March" by John Williams
Championships and accomplishments
- Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE
- NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tom Howard[6]
- ZERO-ONE O-300 Super Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[10]
References
- ^ "Matt Ghaffari". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
- ^ a b Robbins, Liz. "OLYMPICS; Wrestler Two Victories From Dream", The New York Times, June 24, 2000. Accessed October 17, 2007. "To advance, Ghaffari had to pull out a trick he first used two decades ago at Paramus High School in New Jersey.... At 38, and a loss away from retirement, Ghaffari is still crafty and accomplished, compiling more Olympic and world championship medals than any other Greco-Roman wrestler with four."
- ^ Hawaii Martial Arts News & Rumors – August News Part 2
- ^ a b c d "Matt Ghaffari". wrestlingdata.com. Retrieved November 11, 2014.
- ^ Dimitri Groell, Jan Niedbala, La face cachée du catch: Ring, Coulisses & Business
- ^ a b c "NWA Intercontinental Tag Team Champions". Pro Wrestling ZERO-1. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
- ^ "HUSTLE Results: 2004" (in German). PuroLove.com. Retrieved 2014-10-12.
- ^ "Pro-Wrestling ZERO-ONE - "01 DIVISION 2003"" (in German). PuroLove.com. Retrieved 2013-10-27.
- ^ "Pro-Wrestling ZERO-ONE - "EPICENTER 2002"" (in German). PuroLove.com. Retrieved 2013-10-27.
- ^ "NWA ZERO-ONE O-300 Super Heavyweight Champions". cagematch.net. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
External links
- 1961 births
- American people of Iranian descent
- American sport wrestlers
- Living people
- Olympic competitors from Iran who represented other countries
- Olympic silver medalists for the United States in wrestling
- Olympic wrestlers of the United States
- Paramus High School alumni
- People from Paramus, New Jersey
- Wrestlers at the 1992 Summer Olympics
- Wrestlers at the 1996 Summer Olympics
- American male sport wrestlers
- Iranian emigrants to the United States
- Iranian mixed martial artists
- American male professional wrestlers
- Iranian professional wrestlers
- World Wrestling Championships medalists
- Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics
- Pan American Games gold medalists