UFC 293: Who is Charlie Radtke?
By Anwesha Nag
Charlie Radtke, a former CFFC champion, is going to make his promotional debut on the early prelims card at UFC 293. He is set to fight New Zealand's Mike Mathetha with a 3-2 record.
Hailing from Lake Forest, Illinois, the 33-year-old associated with Evolution MMA Naples currently holds 7 wins and 3 losses in MMA. Radtke made his professional debut in November 2012 at XFO 46 against Jimmy Kim and won the fight via first-round triangle choke. He followed it up with another pro victory - this time against Jeffrey Pelton with a knockout - before dropping two decisions to Austin Hubbard and Christopher Gonzalez.
He had two more professional fights before signing with CFFC - one decision win over Geralbert Castillo at XMMA and one KO loss to Justin Montalvo at Triton Fights.
Radtke had his first fight in Cage Fury Fighting Championships in September 2021 at CFFC 100. He amassed a 3-0 record in the organization, with knockout wins over Brandon Lopez and Caleb Crump and a split decision victory against Jonathan Piersma. It was not long before the back-to-back wins earned him a title shot against the then-reigning welterweight champion, Raheam Forest.
Charlie Radtke clashed with Raheam Forest at CFFC 118 on April 1, 2023. Despite a layoff of over 8 months, he showed no signs of ring rust inside the cage. With an absolutely dominant display, he dethroned the champion with a clinical first-round rear-naked choke submission at the 4:20 mark.
Speaking on his personal life, Radtke detailed his childhood and upbringing in a 2022 episode of Lee Haight's podcast. He revealed that he grew up on a bison ranch with his grandfather, which is also the origin of his fighting nickname, 'Chuck Buffalo'.
He also spoke on how he would fare in a potential fight against Jake Paul. "I would destroy Jake Paul," Radtke said immediately with confidence.
Charlie Radtke at UFC 293
The impressive championship victory over Raheam Forest paved the way to the UFC for Charlie Radtke. After the win, he took to Instagram to send a message to Dana White and Sean Shelby. "I'll fight anyone, anytime, anywhere..." he wrote tagging the two. "Just waiting on the call."
UFC Roster Watch announced on X (formerly Twitter) on July 6 that Radtke had been officially added to the promotion's roster. He did not have to wait long for his first fight, that too against a City Kickboxing prospect like Mathetha, which shows the faith the UFC has in this Illinois native.
When asked to comment on the matchup with the debutant at the UFC 293 media scrum, Mathetha was respectful of Radtke.
"He's a great opponent. He's in the UFC for a good reason," he said. "I didn't take that lightly but I focus more on what I can do. The last couple of fights, I was too fixated on my opponents, like trying to see what they can do."
UFC 293 goes down on Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023, at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, New South Walkes, Australia. The card is headlined by a middleweight title fight between Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland.
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