King of the Cage

King of the Cage
Company type	Private
Industry	Mixed martial arts promotion
Founded	1998; 26 years ago
Founder	Terry Trebilcock
Headquarters	Rancho Cucamonga, California, United States
Website	http://www.kingofthecage.com

King of the Cage (KOTC) is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Southern California, United States.

History

KOTC was founded in 1998 by Terry Trebilcock Jr.^[1] KOTC features mostly amateur as well as up and coming MMA stars and former mainstream combat fighters.

KOTC has promoted a majority of its events at Native American casinos throughout the United States. KOTC also promotes events in Canada, Australia & Japan. King of The Cage events are also broadcast on most national pay-per-view platforms.

In September 2007, Trebilcock Jr. sold KOTC to ProElite.^[2] Two years later, in July 2009, he reacquired 100% ownership of KOTC and simultaneously entered into a joint venture agreement with Mark Burnett Productions ("Survivor", "Apprentice", "Celebrity Apprentice" and "The Contender") to begin the development of a reality television program. Bully Beatdown, a Burnett produced program, aired three seasons on MTV and featured several KOTC competitors.

On January 30, 2010, it was announced that KOTC would begin airing monthly shows on Mark Cuban's HDNet channel.^[3] The initial deal was for 36 events to air. The announcers included Michael Schiavello, Jason "Mayhem" Miller and Maria Kanellis. The most recent event on HDNet aired on September 17, 2010 with No Mercy. There has been no further news regarding King of the Cage events on the channel. Only 6 events aired from February 2010 to September 2010.

In November 2012, MAVTV struck a 5-year deal with King of the Cage.

Current champions

The weight division system of KOTC is in accordance with the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts, but KOTC names its 145-pound division Bantamweight (instead of Featherweight), its 135-pound division Flyweight (instead of Bantamweight) and its 125-pound division Light Flyweight (instead of Flyweight). The only three weight classes not in accordance with the Unified Rules are a 165-pound division (Light Welterweight), a 195-pound division (Super Middleweight), and a 230-pound division (Cruiserweight).

Division	Upper weight limit	Champion	Nationality
Men's divisions
Super Heavyweight	No limit	Ronny Markes	Brazil
Heavyweight	265 lb (120.2 kg; 18.9 st)	Tony Lopez	United States
Cruiserweight	230 lb (104.3 kg; 16.4 st)	Tomar Washington	United States
Light Heavyweight	205 lb (93.0 kg; 14.6 st)	Jason Butcher	United States
Super Middleweight	195 lb (88.5 kg; 13.9 st)	Vacant
Middleweight	185 lb (83.9 kg; 13.2 st)	Matt Lagler	United States
Welterweight	175 lb (79.4 kg; 12.5 st)	Buddy Clinton	United States
Light Welterweight	165 lb (74.8 kg; 11.8 st)	Richie Palomino	United States
Lightweight	155 lb (70.3 kg; 11.1 st)	Blaze Gill	United States
Bantamweight	145 lb (65.8 kg; 10.4 st)	Juan Beltran	Mexico
Flyweight	135 lb (61.2 kg; 9.6 st)	Vacant	United States
Light Flyweight	125 lb (56.7 kg; 8.9 st)	Chris Quiroga	United States
Women's divisions
Women's Flyweight	135 lb (61.2 kg; 9.6 st)
Women's Light Flyweight	125 lb (56.7 kg; 8.9 st)	Nicco Montano	United States
Women's Strawweight	115 lb (52.2 kg; 8.2 st)	Loveth Young	United States
Women's Atomweight	105 lb (47.6 kg; 7.5 st)	Jayme Hinshaw	United States