Justin Levens - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Justin Robert Levens was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

Mixed martial arts

Mixed Martial Arts is a full contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, judo and other styles. The roots of modern mixed martial arts can be...

who fought for the UFC and, later in his career, the Southern California Condors

Southern California Condors

The Southern California Condors are an International Fight League team based in Orange County, California. Coached by MMA legend Marco Ruas, the Condors were one of four new teams established at the beginning of the 2007 season...

of the International Fight League

International Fight League

The International Fight League was an American mixed martial arts promotion billed as the world's first MMA league. It was founded on January 7, 2006 and closed on July 31, 2008...

. Levens was a participant in Ultimate Fighting Championship

Ultimate Fighting Championship

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is the largest mixed martial arts promotion company in the world that hosts most of the top-ranked fighters in the sport...

and World Extreme Cagefighting

World Extreme Cagefighting

World Extreme Cagefighting was an American mixed martial arts promotion. It was purchased by Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of Ultimate Fighting Championship , in 2006. In its final incarnation, it was made up of 3 weight classes: 135, 145 and 155 lbs. To accommodate the smaller...

but had not fought with either since 2006. Levens and his wife died from gunshot wounds in mid-December 2008. The incident is a murder-suicide, according to law enforcement officials.

Biography

Levens grew up poor in Philadelphia housing projects and was on his own from age 15. He eventually moved to Newport Beach, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, where he learned to channel his aggressive energy into organized fighting. He began training at Marco Ruas

Marco Ruas

Marco Antônio de Lima Ruas is a retired mixed martial arts fighter and instructor. Most notably, he was the UFC 7 Tournament Champion and is considered one of the earliest examples of the complete mixed martial artist, highly skilled in both striking and grappling.-Biography:Ruas is famous for...

' Vale Tudo

Vale tudo

Vale tudo are full-contact unarmed combat events, with a limited number of rules, that became popular in Brazil during the 20th century. Vale tudo has been considered a combat sport by some observers...

academy in Orange County

Orange County, California

Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...

, and became a light heavyweight

Light heavyweight

In boxing, the light heavyweight is a weight division above 168 pounds [12 Stone or 76.204 kilograms] and up to 175 pounds [12.5 stone or 79.38 kilograms]), falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight...

mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts

fighter. Levens fought from 2004 to 2008, taking the nickname "Executioner". Levens' first fight was a victory against Hector Carrilo in 2004. He had a string of wins after the Carrilo fight for almost two years. After his seventh win, he lost to Scott Smith

Scott Smith (fighter)

Bryan Scott Smith, , is an American mixed martial artist previously fighting at middleweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship making his debut at UFC 59. He also fought for EliteXC before it folded and currently fights for Strikeforce...

in January 2006. After his loss to Smith, Levens was called in by the UFC to fight former UFC Middleweight Champ Evan Tanner

Evan Tanner

Evan Loyd Tanner was an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. He was a former UFC Middleweight and USWF Heavyweight champion with a professional record of 32 wins and 8 losses...

, replacing an injured Jeremy Horn

Jeremy Horn

Jeremy Graham Horn is an American mixed martial artist. He is one of the most experienced fighters in the sport with a professional record of 88–21–5...

on short notice. He lost the fight in the first round by triangle choke. Levens next faced prospect and future top ten middleweight Jorge Santiago

Jorge Santiago

|-| Loss|align=center| 23-10| Demian Maia| Decision | UFC 136| |align=center| 3|align=center| 5:00| Houston, Texas, United States||-| Loss|align=center| 23–9| Brian Stann| TKO | UFC 130| |align=center| 2|align=center| 4:29...

at UFC Fight Night 6

UFC Fight Night 6

UFC Fight Night 6 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 17, 2006. The event took place at the Red Rock Resort Spa and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was broadcast live on Spike TV in the United States and Canada. It acted as a lead-in to the season...

. He lost the fight after getting caught by a big knee in the first round. After two straight losses he was cut from the UFC roster. He had a declining record for the remainder of his career, interspersed with a pair of back-to-back victories against Justin Hawes and Brian Warren

Brian Warren

Brian Warren is an American mixed martial arts fighter born in San Bernardino, California. He has fought in many organizations including K-1, King of the Cage, Strikeforce, Kage Kombat, and Pangea...

and 5 straight losses, 3 of which were against future UFC fighters.

His last fight was scheduled for July 2008, but did not occur due to time constraints that led to scheduling issues. Levens had tested positive for oxymorphone

Oxymorphone

Oxymorphone or 14-Hydroxydihydromorphinone is a powerful semi-synthetic opioid analgesic first developed in Germany circa 1914, patented in the USA by Endo Pharmaceuticals in 1955 and introduced to the United States market in January 1959 and other countries around the same time...

before the fight and was suspended until January 2009. Friend Tom Atencio said Levens was troubled by his declining career. Kimbo Luzano, another friend, said Levens may have been depressed about not being able to fight and money issues, as well as troubled by the suicide of fellow MMA fighter and friend Jeremy Williams

Jeremy Williams (MMA fighter)

Jeremy Williams was an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. He most notably fought for the Southern California Condors of the International Fight League.- Bio :...

.

On December 17, 2008, Levens and his wife, Sarah McLean-Levens, 25, were found dead in their home in Laguna Niguel, California

Laguna Niguel, California

Laguna Niguel is an affluent city located in southern Orange County, California. The name "Laguna Niguel" is derived from the Spanish word "Laguna" which means lagoon, and the word "Nigueli" which was the name of a Juaneño Indian village that was once located on Aliso Creek. The population was...

. Both had died of gunshot wounds; in Levens' case, to his head. The police are investigating the deaths as a possible murder-suicide

Murder-suicide

A murder–suicide is an act in which an individual kills one or more other persons before or at the same time as killing himself or herself. The combination of murder and suicide can take various forms, including:...

. No suicide note was found, but a handgun was found close to Leven's body. There were no signs of a struggle.

Fight record

|-
|Loss
|9-8
|

Kenny Ento
|Submission (Triangle Choke)
|PFC

Palace Fighting Championship

Palace Fighting Championship was a mixed martial arts organization based in the United States that was created in 2007 by Christian Printup...

4 - Project Complete
|align=center|10/18/2007
|1
|2:15
|Lemoore, California

Lemoore, California

Lemoore is a city in Kings County, California, United States. Lemoore is located west-southwest of Hanford, at an elevation of 230 feet . It is part of the Hanford–Corcoran Metropolitan Statistical Area...

, USA
|-
|Loss
|align=center|9-7
|

Las Vegas, Nevada

Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...

, USA
|
|-
|Loss
|align=center|9-6
|

Brian Foster

Brian Keith Foster was a professional American "Mid School" Bicycle Motocross racer and Dirt Jumper whose prime competitive years were from 1992–2000....

|TKO

Knockout

A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...

(punches)
|International Fight League

International Fight League

The International Fight League was an American mixed martial arts promotion billed as the world's first MMA league. It was founded on January 7, 2006 and closed on July 31, 2008...

Vladimir Matyushenko

Vladimir Vladimirovich Matyushenko is a Belarusian mixed martial artist and the first and only International Fight League light heavyweight champion...

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

, USA
|
|-
|Loss
|align=center|9-4
|

Reese Andy

Reese Andy is an American mixed martial artist. He has previously fought for Icon Sport and the IFL. After going 5-1 in the IFL, he signed a contract with the UFC. He made his UFC debut with a loss by decision to Brandon Vera at UFC: Silva vs. Irvin in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 19, 2008...

Oakland, California

Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...

, USA
|
|-
|Win
|align=center|9-3
|

Brian Warren

Brian Warren is an American mixed martial arts fighter born in San Bernardino, California. He has fought in many organizations including K-1, King of the Cage, Strikeforce, Kage Kombat, and Pangea...

Bakersfield, California

Bakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....

, USA
|
|-
|Win
|align=center|8-3
|

Justin Hawes
|TKO (strikes)
|WEC 24

WEC 24

WEC 24: Halloween Fury 5: Full Force was a mixed martial arts event held on October 12, 2006. WEC 24s main event was a championship fight for the WEC Lightweight Title between champion Hermes Franca and challenger Nate Diaz....

Lemoore, California

, USA
|
|-
|Loss
|align=center|7-3
|

Jorge Santiago

|KO (knee)
|UFC Ultimate Fight Night 5

UFC Ultimate Fight Night 5

Ultimate Fight Night 5 was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on June 28, 2006. The event took place at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, in Las Vegas, Nevada and was broadcast live on Spike TV in the United States and Canada....

Las Vegas, Nevada

, USA
|
|-
|Loss
|align=center|7-2
|

Evan Tanner

Evan Loyd Tanner was an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. He was a former UFC Middleweight and USWF Heavyweight champion with a professional record of 32 wins and 8 losses...

|Submission (triangle choke)
|UFC 59

UFC 59

UFC 59: Reality Check was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on April 15, 2006 at Arrowhead Pond, in Anaheim, California, and broadcast live on pay-per-view in the United States and Canada....

Anaheim, California

Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...

, USA
|
|-
|Loss
|align=center|7-1
|

Scott Smith

Scott Smith (fighter)

|KO (punches)
|WEC 18

WEC 18

WEC 18: Unfinished Business was a mixed martial arts event promoted by World Extreme Cagefighting on January 13, 2006 at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, California.-Results:*Josh Green vs Rafael del Real...

Lemoore, California

, USA
|WEC Light Heavyweight Championship
|-
|Win
|align=center|7-0
|

Jorge Oliveira
|KO (slam)
|WEC 17

WEC 17

WEC 17: Halloween Fury 4 was a mixed martial arts event promoted by World Extreme Cagefighting on October 14, 2005 at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, California...

Lemoore, California

, USA
|
|-
|Win
|align=center|6-0
|

Tony Lopez

Tony Lopez (fighter)

Tony Lopez is an American mixed martial artist fighting out of Huntington Beach, California with Team Wildman Vale Tudo. He is the current Gladiator Challenge Heavyweight Champion and was formerly the Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight King of the Cage Champion...

|Submission (rear naked choke)
|WEC 15

WEC 15

WEC 15: Judgment Day was a mixed martial arts event promoted by World Extreme Cagefighting on May 19th 2005 at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, California...

Lemoore, California

, USA
|
|-
|Win
|align=center|5-0
|

Porterville, California

Porterville is a city in the San Joaquin Valley, in Tulare County, California, United States. Porterville's population was 54,165 at the 2010 census. The city's population grew dramatically as the city annexed many properties and unincorporated areas in and around Porterville. Not included in the...

, USA
|
|-
|Win
|align=center|4-0
|

Tijuana

Tijuana is the largest city on the Baja California Peninsula and center of the Tijuana metropolitan area, part of the international San Diego–Tijuana metropolitan area. An industrial and financial center of Mexico, Tijuana exerts a strong influence on economics, education, culture, art, and politics...

, Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

|
|-
|Win
|align=center|3-0
|

Porterville, California

, USA
|
|-
|Win
|align=center|2-0
|

Porterville, California

, USA
|
|-
|Win
|align=center|1-0
|

Tijuana

, Mexico

Mexico

External links

Justin Levens Photo Remembrance Album

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