Background and career
Brett Charles Rogers (born February 17, 1981) is an American former mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2005, Rogers has fought in EliteXC, Strikeforce, and Bellator.
Rogers was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up in the south and west sides of the city, also living in the Cabrini Green housing project, a notoriously dangerous and gang-infested neighborhood. Rogers also grew up in this area during the crack cocaine epidemic, which made the neighborhood especially dangerous. He would often come to the aid of one of his younger brothers during street fights and, because of his imposing size, Rogers was often recruited to be in gangs, but turned down the offers. When he was twelve years old, Rogers moved to Minnesota with his grandmother. Rogers attended Harding High School in Saint Paul, Minnesota where he played football and basketball. Rogers then went on to attend a junior college and began practicing Tae Kwon Do during this time. Before becoming a professional fighter, he had a job changing tires in a garage. Rogers had fifteen "Tough Man" bouts before going into professional mixed martial arts. Rogers began his MMA training with Team Bison in Bloomington, MN, in the garage of head trainer Mike Reilly. Currently, Rogers trains with "Ambition MMA" in a state-of-the-art training facility formed by Reilly and his partners in 2008. Rogers continues to train on a daily basis with Reilly. Rogers was charged in early 2011 with third degree assault on his wife and was immediately released from his Strikeforce contract.
In the EliteXC: Primetime post-fight press conference, Rogers called out internet sensation Kimbo Slice, stating that Kimbo's match with James Thompson was "garbage" and that Rogers believed Kimbo tapped to a guillotine choke in the first round. Kimbo Slice then stood up, telling Rogers, "That sounds like a challenge, big dog." Rogers then barked back, "It is. In the cage." EliteXC folded later that year, and a match between the two was never consummated.
In February 2009, Rogers signed with Strikeforce. On June 6, 2009, at Strikeforce: Lawler vs Shields, he defeated former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski by TKO after 22 seconds of the opening round. This victory launched Rogers to the top of the list of heavyweights in Strikeforce and he agreed to fight MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko on CBS in Fedor vs Rogers on November 7. In the second round Fedor hit Rogers with a hard overhand right that dropped Rogers to the ground and John McCarthy quickly stopped the bout, breaking Brett's undefeated record with a KO loss. Rogers was scheduled to face Alistair Overeem on May 15, 2010, at Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery. After a great deal of discussions on whether or not the bout would be for Overeem's Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship, it was confirmed on March 29 that the title would indeed be on the line. On May 15, 2010, Rogers lost to Overeem via TKO (strikes) at 3:40 of round one, landing only one punch in the entire fight according to CompuStrike. Rogers picked up a win against Ruben Villareal by decision in the W-1 promotion. Brett Rogers was defeated via a one arm triangle choke submission by Josh Barnett on June 18, 2011, at Strikeforce: Dallas as part of an eight-man heavyweight tournament.
Rogers made his return to MMA at Titan Fighting Championships 20 against UFC veteran Eddie Sanchez. He lost the fight via split decision. Rogers was expected to fight Dave Keeley at M-1 Global - Korea on August 17, 2013. The fight didn't happen because the event was cancelled for unknown reasons.
On June 5, 2012, it was announced that Rogers had signed a deal with Bellator Fighting Championships. He made his debut on June 22, 2012, at Bellator 71 against Kevin Asplund and won the bout by TKO after Asplund's eye closed up between rounds, prompting the referee to stop the fight. Rogers competed in the Bellator season seven heavyweight tournament and faced Alexander Volkov in the quarter finals at Bellator 75. Volkov dominated the fight by making the most of his reach advantage. Rogers lost via unanimous decision. It was later revealed that Rogers had broken his arm during the fight, leading to his poor performance. Rogers was scheduled to face Eric Prindle at Bellator 93 on March 21 but the fight was cancelled when Prindle pulled out.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
