Childhood & Early Life
Travis Browne was born on July 17, 1982 in Oahu, Hawaii, US. There’s not much information about his mother. His father was an alcoholic and also participated in local gang culture.
It was traumatic for young Travis to deal with his father’s issues. He claims that living in Hawaii isn’t easy because you may get caught in the drug culture.
At the tender age of 10, Travis lost his father, and moved to San Diego to live with his mother. As much as he loved his father, his father’s battle with drugs led him to difficult times.
He attended ‘San Dieguito Academy High School’. His frustrations often came out in school when he got embroiled into fights. He claims that he had a lot of difficulty in dealing with his father’s death. He even broke a person’s jaw and nearly went to jail for it.
His aggressiveness was somehow turned into positivity when he started channeling all his energy into learning mixed martial arts. However, before he began his career in MMA, he played a lot of basket ball.
After completing High School in San Diego, Travis went on to study in ‘Palomar College’. Travis played basketball for two years while he was in college, but eventually dropped off to pursue mixed martial arts training.
Until the age of 26, Travis had no experience in martial arts. He began his formal training in MMA in 2009, and in 2010, he fought his first professional match.
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Early Career
Before becoming a professional mixed martial artist, Travis wanted to play basketball, and was good at it. It was his friend who introduced him to mixed martial art (jiu-jitsu).
At first, he was doubtful about leaving basketball and jumping to mix martial arts, but his passion made him follow his destiny. He started learning it, and within three months he started winning tournaments he participated in. His vigour and passion was so ferment that it seemed like he was already a pro at it.
He started training for mixed martial arts to become a professional artist. He continued participating in matches like ‘Bellator Fighting Championship’, ‘Gladiator Challenge and ‘King of the Cage’. His streak was so strong that he went on winning nine straight matches (9-0).
In February 2009, he defeated Evan Langford in ‘Cage of Fire’ within 43 seconds.
Career in UFC
In March 2010, Ultimate Fighting Championship signed Browne, (one year after he started training), and he made his debut against James McSweeney at ‘The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz Finale’. Browne came out winner.
In ‘UFC 120’, Browne tied a match with UFC’s veteran Cheik Kongo after a grappling tournament, in a three-round fight, Cheik got penalized for grabbing Browne’s shorts, and thus, the match resulted in draw.
In May 2011, Brown punched Stefan Sturve and earned ‘Knockout of the Night’ bonus at ‘UFC 130’.
In September 2011, he won by a unanimous decision when he faced Rob Broughton at ‘UFC 135’.
In April 2012, he defeated newcomer Chad Giggs by submission at ‘UFC 145’. The match also earned him the title of ‘Submission of the Night’.
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In October 2012, he faced Antonio Silva at the main event of ‘UFC on FX5’. This was the first defeat of Browne in his professional career.
In April 2013, he defeated Gabriel Gonzaga at the ‘Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale’ and earned ‘Knockout of the Night’ honour. His honour as challenged by the Gonzaga. His elbow hit on Gonzaga’s head was scrutinized, and later the latter’s claims were denied. *In August 2013, he defeated Alistair Overeem by knocking him out in the first round at ‘UFC Fight Night 26’. His punches and kicks brought him another ‘Knockout of the Night’ title.
In December 2013, he faced Josh Barnett at ‘UFC 168’. Browne earned his third ‘Knockout of the Night’ honour as he defeated Barnett within a minute of the match.
In April 2014, he lost to Fabricio Werdum by unanimous decision at ‘UFC on Fox 11’. This defeat hit him hard because he was the favorite player of the audience. He claimed that his performance went down because he suffered with a dislocated shoulder and broken ribs and hand.
In May 2015, he faced Andrei Arlovski at ‘UFC 187’, and even though he lost to his opponent, Browne earned his first ‘Fight of the Night’ bonus award. This match was one of the best round fights in the UFC history.
In January 2016, he faced Matt Mitrione at ‘UFC Fight Night 81’. His win against Matt was controversial as Browne poked him in the eye all through the match.
Travis faced several defeats starting July 2016. He fought against Cain Velasquez, Fabricio Werdum and Derrick Lewis.
In February 2017, he earned his second ‘Fight of the Night’ title against Derrick Lewis, even though he was defeated.
In July, 2017, he faced a major defeat against Oleksiy Oliynyk at ‘UFC 213’. His constant defeats directed the world to believe that maybe it’s time for him to leave MMA.
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Awards & Achievements
In 2000, he became the ‘Coastal North League Player (Basketball) of the Year’.
In February 2010, he won Interim Gladiator Challenge Heavyweight Championship.
In February 2010, he also won VFC Heavyweight Championship
In 2013, he won MMA Awards for ‘Breakthrough Fighter of the Year’ and ‘Comeback of the Year’ (against Alistair Overeeam)
In 2015, his match against Andrei Arlovski became ‘Fight of the Month’.
In May 2011, he won his first ‘Knockout of the Night’ bonus against Stefan Sturve at ‘UFC 130’.
In April 2012, he won ‘Submission of the Night’ against had Chad Giggs at ‘UFC 145’.
In April 2013, he won his second ‘Knockout of the Night’ bonus gainst Gabriel Gonzaga at the ‘Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale’.
In August 2013, he won his third ‘Knockout of the Night’ bonus ainst Alisair Overeem ‘UFC Fight Night 26’.
In May 2015, he won his ‘Fight of the Night’ title against Andrei Arlovski at ‘UFC 187’.
In February 2017, he won his second ‘Fight of the Night’ title against Derrick Lewis.
Personal Life & Legacy
He married Jenna Renee Webb in January 2015, and has two sons; Kaleo and Keawe, with her. However, this marriage didn’t last long. Renee accused Browne of domestic violence as she posted pictures of her bruised body on Instagram in July 2015.
Browne was removed from UFC’s International Fught Week, but was reinstated when evidence found against him wasn’t convincing enough.
He divorced his wife on 21st February, 2016, and got into a relationship with former Women’s Bantamweight Champion, Ronda Rousey. They announced their engagement on April 20, 2017, and eventually married on August 28, 2017 in Hawaii.
