‘Big Brother: Celebrity Edition’: Five Fast Facts About Former UFC Champion Chuck Liddell

Big Brother: Celebrity Edition will premiere in a few days. Chuck Liddell was named one of 11 celebrities who joined the cast. Many people didn’t know anything about the MMA fighter. Below are five fun facts about Chuck Liddell.

Hall Of Fame

In 2009, the UFC inducted Chuck into the Hall of Fame. According to the UFC, his career win includes 23 fights with 20 wins and three losses. Of those 20 wins, 16 was by knockout. In 2010, Liddell decided to retire after three consecutive losses by knockout.

A First For ESPN

In 2007, Chuck became the first UFC fighter to appear on the cover of ESPN the Magazine. Many people believe it helped propel the UFC into the mainstream.

SLO Kickboxing

Chuck made his first UFC debut in 1998. The following year, he partnered with a friend to open a gym called SLO Kickboxing. The gym taught kickboxing, weight training, and MMA (mixed martial arts). By the end of the first year, the gym was making $5,000 in revenue per month.

UFC Fired Him

In 2016, the UFC was acquired by WME-IMG. One of the first things they did when taking control of the company was to cut costs. The new UFC bosses decided to fire Chuck Liddell and Matt Hughes.

Chuck served as the UFC executive vice president of business development. Apparently, Chuck was not showing up for work while still collecting a paycheck. The new head honchos didn’t see why he should pay Chuck for a job he wasn’t doing.

UFC President Dana White revealed that he didn’t agree with firing Hughes and Liddell, but it wasn’t his decision. He wanted to keep them both on staff as a thank you for contributing to the UFC’s early days.

How Chuck Got The Nickname Iceman

Before Liddell was nicknamed the Iceman, they used to call him Snowman. He was named this because of his fighting style. Apparently, he would start out slow, but his intensity increased as the fight progressed.

When he joined the UFC, they dubbed him the Iceman because he was fierce in the Octagon. Joe Rogan, a UFC commentator, said that Chuck appeared to have “ice running through his veins.” In Chuck’s fights, he showed no signs of exhaustion or stress. He was calm before, during, and after. However, he was strong and remained undefeated for many years.

According to Big Brother Access, Liddell said in his Big Brother pre-season interview that training in the UFC taught him to handle anything, including the Big Brother house.

Big Brother: Celebrity Edition premeires Wednesday, February 7 on CBS.