Mark Schultz Grappling

BE A WARRIOR IN LIFE

I am the first person in America to combine wrestling with Brazilian jiu-jitsu, creaAng my own style.

JIU-JITSU School IN USA

Breaking Turk's Arm

Olympic Podium

Best(cropped)

Animal Crouch

After Breaking Turks Arm

ABOUT Mark Schultz

Mark started his career in gymnastics and won the 1975 Northern California All-Around Gymnastics Championship. In 1976 he switched to wrestling as a high school junior at 130 lbs at Ashland High, Ashland, OR. He was kicked off the varsity squad half-way through his junior year then transferred to Palo Alto High School halfway through the season. He was declared ineligible and finished his junior year with a 4-6 record. Over the summer Mark gained 30 lbs and started his senior year for Palo Alto High at 159 lbs. During Mark’s senior year Palo Alto High scheduled three 16-team tournaments. Mark broke his toe and missed the first tournament. At the Alisal Invitational he lost his 1st match and was eliminated. At the Monta Vista Invitational he took 3rd. However, in his last 4 tournaments at the end of his senior year he went undefeated. In the California State qualifiers he won the league (9 schools), the region (20 schools), the Central Coast Section (90 schools). On his way to the CCS title he defeated defending CCS champion Joe Guillory, in the Finals and was voted “Outstanding Wrestler”. With over 900 wrestling teams California is the biggest state by population and is the only state where all teams compete in the same division. At State Mark defeated 3 undefeated wrestlers. After only competing 16 months of wrestling training he won the 1978 California State Wrestling Championships. Mark is still the only California High School State Wrestling Champion to never win a high school tournament prior to the state qualifiers. Mark was voted Palo Alto High School “Athlete of the Year”

He earned a full ride to UCLA his freshman year and and his brother Dave Schultz, the greatest high school wrestler in history, transferred to UCLA to be with Mark. Mark went 18-8. Four losses came at 150 lbs. The rest of his matches were at 158 lbs. In the summer of 1979 the Schultz brothers made the junior world team and Mark took 7th at the Jr. Worlds in Ulan Bator, Mongolia. Then the Schultz brothers transferred to Oklahoma University in Norman, Oklahoma. At Oklahoma Mark won the 1981, 1982, and 1983 NCAA Championships. In the NCAA Finals Mark Defeated 3 Iowa Hawkeyes coached by legendary coach Dan Gable. In 1981 Mark beat 4 time All-American Mike DeAnna 10-4 at 167 lbs. In 1982 Mark met one of the greatest wrestlers in U.S. history in the finals, Ed (The Horse) Banach. His match with Banach was the first full-length collegiate wrestling match shown on ABC’s Wide World of Sports. The NCAA and others consider this one of the most entertaining matches in NCAA history. Banach was a 2-time NCAA Champion at 177 lbs and was on his way to becoming the first 4-time NCAA Champion in history. Mark moved up a weight to 177 lbs to challenge Banach. In the finals Mark beat Banach 16-8 and was voted the NCAA Outstanding Wrestler. The next year Banach would move up to 190 lbs and win his 3rd NCAA title. Mark and Banach both made the 1984 Olympic Team at 180.5 and 198 respectively and both won Olympic Gold Medals. Mark and Ed both became the first Olympic Champions to win 3 NCAA titles in 51 years. Dave Schultz and Lou Banach also won gold medals. This was the first time in history 2 sets of brothers would win Olympic gold medals. In the book “The Golden Era of Amateur Wrestling: the 1980’s” by Reginald Rowe, Mark was voted by his peers “Best College Wrestler of the Decade”. He was the only wrestler to appear on every ballot. The wrestler that took 2nd in the balloting was Ed Banach.

Two weeks after the 1982 NCAA’s Mark would help the U.S. beat the Russians by winning the World Cup defeating the Tblisi Russian National Champion Vagit Kasibekov. In 1983 Mark won his 3rd NCAA Championship by defeating his 3rd Iowa Hawkeye in the finals 4-time finalist and NCAA Champion Duane Goldman. Mark went 27-0 his senior year and set the Oklahoma record for “Most wins in a single season without a loss”. He was also voted Oklahoma Student/Athlete of the year. After college Mark would go on to win 4 U.S. Open Freestyle Championships in 1984, 1985, 1986, and 1987. Mark went undefeated in America for 4 years. In 1984 Mark’s first match was against Olympic favorite European Champion Resit Karabajak, from Turkey. The first move of the match the Turk grabbed Mark’s leg and Mark countered with a double-wrist lock, then threw the Turk on his head, broke his arm, and pinned him. 8 hours later he was disqualified from the match but beat the rest of his opponents to win the gold medal. 1985 Mark became the only 1984 Olympic Champion to win the 1985 World Championships by defeating every country that boycotted the 1984 Olympics. By winning the 1987 World Championships Mark would become first U.S. Olympic Champion to win 2 world titles. Mark also won in 3 National Sports Festivals and the Pan Am Games. Mark retired from wrestling in 1988 then came out of retirement 8 years later when a new sport came to America called the Ultimate Fighting Championships. With only one day’s notice he’d go on to win UFC IX making him the first Olympic Champion to compete in the octagon under no-holds-barred rules.

Other Distinctions

1991 Mark was included in the Guinness Book of World Records for “Most U.S. World Titles”. He is a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, the California Wrestling Hall of Fame, the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame, and the San Mateo Peninsula Sports Hall of Fame. He earned his Bachelors of Science at Oklahoma and a Masters in Exercise Physiology at BYU. He was the Head Wrestling Coach of Brigham Young University and was voted 1997 Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. Mark has a Black Belt under Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Master Pedro Sauer.

Mark made 6 World and Olympic Teams and the Schultz brothers won more NCAA, World and Olympic Titles than any brothers in US history and are the only U.S. brothers to win the Olympics and World Championships. Since retiring from athletics Mark speaks to companies all over the world. A speech by Mark is on youtube at: https://youtu.be/hYn9dL0QiY0 His autobiography “Foxcatcher” is an Amazon Editor’s Pick and a New York Times best-seller. His life story was the subject of 5-time Oscar nominated major motion picture “Foxcatcher” where he was played my People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive” Channing Tatum, co-starring Steve Carrell and Mark Ruffalo. Mark made a cameo and worked as a consultant and Associate Producer. In 2022 Mark was the subject of the animated “Fight Lore” documentary “Wrestling Demons, Mark Schultz’s Ultimate Victory” starring Chael Sonnen, Dave Beneteau, Pedro Sauer, and Gary “Big Daddy” Goodridge. UFC President Dana White was an Executive Producer. It’s available in the “Originals” section on ufcfightpass.com.