Joel Sutton

UFC vet who competed from 1995 to 1999. Sutton was a black belt under Dean Economos in his system of 8 step Praying Mantis Kung Fu out of Buffalo, NY. A fellow student claimed the Economos taught him Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as well, but that seems less than likely considering Sutton's career and the scramble by many martial arts schools to pick up and "teach" BJJ at the time. He competed in the UFC twice, winning both times, but his second bout, won by a cut opened via headbutts and gouging, saw an end to his invitations back to the promotion. He went on to compete in several Vale Tudo events in Brazil, but never found the success of his UFC fights. As an interesting side note, he competed in Pancrase Alive 5 in May of 1997, an invitation he got after he and his gym, Kung Fu USA, played host to Pancrase vet and future champion Yoshiki Takahashi.