By The Numbers: David Branch

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Former two-division World Series of Fighting champion David Branch has impressed since returning to the Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2017, wins over Krzysztof Jotko and Thiago Santos offset only by a loss to Luke Rockhold. Branch will return to the cage at UFC 230, where he meets Jared Cannonier on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York.

As Branch approaches his latest obstacle, here are some of the numbers that have helped define his career:

81: Inches of arm reach. Branch stands 6-foot-1 but has owns of the longest reaches in the middleweight roster. It serves him well in the striking and grappling departments.

3: Years spent of training jiu-jitsu under Relson Gracie black belt Michael Casey, after which he trained under Renzo Gracie. After about 10 years, Branch was awarded his black belt.

11: Years as a professional mixed martial artist. Branch’s debut did not last long, as he put away Craig Simone with punches in less than two minutes at Cage Fights 6 on Sept. 29, 2007.

3: Fights on the regional circuit before Bellator MMA took notice. Branch went 3-0 before signing with the California-based organization and competing at Bellator 11.

1: Round needed to impress fans in his first Bellator appearance. Branch submitted Dennis Olson via rear-naked choke at 2:27 of Round 1.

1: Slam absorbed from Gerald Harris, the impact bringing an unceremonious end to Branch’s Octagon debut at UFC 116. The knockout came at 2:35 of the third round.

4: Fights with the UFC in his first stay with the promotion. Branch went 2-2 between July 2010 and March 2011. After his knockout loss to Harris, he posted back-to-back victories over Tomasz Drwal and Rich Attonito before a Rousimar Palhares heel hook sent him back to the drawing board.

3: Fights taken in between his UFC and World Series of Fighting stints. Branch went 2-1 after leaving the Ultimate Fighting Championship, defeating Jeremy May and Dominique Steele before losing to Anthony Johnson.

10: Appearances under the WSOF banner. Branch won all 10 of his fights with the organization and made a name for himself with a wider audience, earning high-profile victories over Paulo Filho, Jesse Taylor, Yushin Okami and Vinny Magalhaes.

2: WSOF championships held. Branch captured the promotion’s middleweight crown with a brabo choke submission of Taylor and later moved to 205 pounds, laying claim to the light heavyweight title with a rear-naked choke submission of Teddy Holder.

3: Successful defenses of the WSOF middleweight title. Branch stopped Okami with fourth-round punches, decisioned Clifford Starks and submitted Louis Taylor with a rear-naked choke in the fifth round during his reign.

1: “Performance of the Night” bonus banked in the UFC. Branch was awarded $50,000 after his first-round knockout of Santos.

1: Main event assignment in the UFC. Branch was paired with Rockhold in the UFC Fight Night 116 headliner, where he was struck into submission in the second round.

37: Years of age. Branch was born on Sept. 26, 1981.

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