Taking up judo as an adolescent, he went on to excel in high school wrestling competition, Rockhold captured first place in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League and eventually reaching the California State Championships. Toward the end of his high school career, though, Rockhold began to gravitate towards Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the combat art that utilizes choke holds and joint locks to finish opponents.

Just three years into his professional mixed martial arts career, Jesse Taylor has experienced a roller coaster ride while trying to beat back his inner demons and take advantage of the talent he was born with. He is attempting to notch his eighth consecutive win and continue the upswing that he set in motion after becoming one of the sport's most infamous characters courtesy of reality television.

A former NCAA Division I wrestling star for Cal State Fullerton, Taylor ranked as high as number three in the Pac-10 conference before deciding to try his hand at MMA. A trip to with the star-studded, Oregon based fight squad Team Quest eventually led Taylor to a successful audition for Spike TV's seventh season of "The Ultimate Fighter" reality show.

Taylor's success continued on the series as the California native won all three of his elimination bouts to secure a place in the season finale. Before his scheduled appearance in the live Spike TV championship, Taylor's reckless behavior in Las Vegas one night before the event cost him his hard-earned spot and the opportunity to launch his career into the next stratosphere.

Since the incident, Taylor has claimed that he has matured and re-dedicated himself to becoming a fighting champion. Thus far, he has backed up his words, stopping Drew "The Master" Fickett in the first round (1:42) of action on October 2, 2008 and competing successfully nearly every month since January of this year.

On Aug. 15, Taylor suffered his first defeat after seven consecutive wins, losing to former International Fight League (IFL) champion, Jay Hieron at Strikeforce: Carano vs Cyborg at San Jose, California's HP Pavilion.

Also on Nov. 6, former Fresno State wrestling star and Fresno native Casey "The Underdog" Olson (11-3) will return to action in the cage in a lightweight matchup against an opponent to be determined.