Melvin “No Mercy” Manhoef is a man to be reckoned with inside the arena. Not only is he a Dutch-Surinamese professional mixed martial artist, but he’s also a professional kickboxer as well. As a kickboxer, he’s won awards such as the It’s Showtime Champion. As an MMA fighter, he’s won the Cage Rage Light Heavyweight Champion. He currently ranks 9th in the middleweight division of GLORY and holds one of the highest percentage of knockouts among any MMA fighter, with 28 out of 30 wins due to knockouts.
Although Manhoef was born in Suriname, they moved to the Netherlands when he was only three years old. He played soccer as a youth and was later on introduced to Muay Thai by his younger brother. Manhoef’s earliest fight was only when he was 18 years old. He won his first fight by decision. In 2004, when Manhoef entered the Cage Rage promotion, he won the British Cage Rage Light Heavyweight Champion against Fabio Piamonte and was able to defend his title for two years.
As a professional MMA fighter, Manhoef has competed in several promotions including Bellator, Strikeforce, DREAM, RINGS, K-1, ONE FC, KSW, and It’s Showtime. Some of the most memorable fights that Manhoef has been in include his bout with Mark Hunt in Dynamite!! 2008. Regardless of the size difference, he defeated Hunt by knockout, giving Hunt his first ever loss via knockout. Manhoef has also fought in the welterweight division, his debut against Evangelista Santos, a very much anticipated fight, were Manheof won by TKO early in round 1. In 2014, Bellator MMA announced that they signed Manhoef into the promotion. His debut fight in the Bellator was a victorious one, beating out Doug Marshall during a middleweight bout. His last fight was in May 2016, where Manhoef lost to a controversial fight against Rafael Carvalho.
Melvin “No Mercy” Manhoef stands at 5’8” and weighs 170 lbs. He currently fights at the welterweight division. His record is still as 30 wins, 13 losses, 1 draw, and 2 no contest.
