Florian burst on the global scene in 2005, when he reached the final on Season 1 of “The Ultimate Fighter” before bowing out of the competition in a technical knockout loss to Diego Sanchez. Nevertheless, he signed an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract soon after and remained with the organization for the rest of the career. Florian won 12 bouts inside the Octagon and made his last appearance at UFC 136, where he lost a five-round unanimous decision to Jose Aldo and failed in his bid to capture the undisputed featherweight crown. He currently serves as a cageside analyst for the Professional Fighters League.
Now 10-plus years removed from Florian’s final outing, a look at some of the numbers that accompanied him throughout his career:
45: Years of age for Florian, who was born on May 26, 1976 in Westwood, Massachusetts—a town of some 16,000 people that sits 15 miles to the southwest of Boston.
8: Florian wins by submission, accounting for 57% of his career total (14). His methods of choice: seven rear-naked chokes and one kimura. Florian owns four other wins by knockout or technical knockout and two more by decision.
7: Seconds needed for Florian to punch out Jason Giroux in his mixed martial arts debut at Mass Destruction 10 on Jan. 25, 2003. It was the quickest stoppage of his 20-fight career.
6: First-round finishes on the Florian resume, with four having taken place inside the Octagon. He submitted Sam Stout with a rear-naked choke in 1:46 at “The Ultimate Fighter 3” Finale on June 24, 2006, struck Alvin Robinson into submission in 4:30 at UFC 73 on July 7, 2007, dispatched Din Thomas with a rear-naked choke in 4:31 at UFC Fight Night 11 on Sept. 19, 2007 and dismissed Joe Stevenson with a rear-naked choke in 4:03 at UFC 91 on Nov. 15, 2008.
9: Consecutive calendar years in which Florian fought at least once. He went 1-0 in 2003, 1-1 in 2004, 2-1 in 2005, 1-1 in 2006, 3-0 in 2007, 3-0 in 2008, 1-1 in 2009, 1-1 in 2010 and 1-1 in 2011.
33: Rounds completed by Florian as a professional. He went the distance on six different occasions, including the five-round maximum twice.
4: Divisions in which Florian fought as a member of the UFC roster. He competed in the 145-, 155-, 170- and 185-pound weight classes during his six-year run with the company. Sanchez remains the only other fighter to do so.
26: Takedowns landed by Florian across his 17 appearances in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He executed a career-best five of them in a unanimous decision over Roger Huerta at UFC 87 in August 2008.
3: Promotions in which Florian competed as a mixed martial artist. He went 12-5 in the UFC, 2-0 in Mass Destruction and 0-1 in Combat Zone.
.706: Cumulative winning percentage between the six men—Aldo, Sanchez, Gray Maynard, B.J. Penn, Sean Sherk, and Drew Fickett—who defeated Florian. They sport a combined record of 168-66-4.