Ronny Markes (born April 21, 1988), is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2007, Markes has formerly competed for the UFC, King of the Cage, PFL, Bellator MMA, and M-1 Global. He is the current King of the Cage Super Heavyweight Champion. MMA career Early career Markes made his professional MMA debut in 2007 at an event in Spain. Markes competed mostly in his native Brazil, with a few early professional fights taking place in Europe. He amassed an impressive 11-1 prior to signing with Zuffa in 2011. Ultimate Fighting Championship Markes signed with the UFC as an injury replacement for Stephan Bonnar against Karlos Vemola at UFC on Versus 5 on August 14, 2011. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Markes dropped down to the Middleweight division and faced Aaron Simpson on February 15, 2012 at UFC on Fuel TV 1 After being dropped by an uppercut late in the first round Markes overcame adversity and defeated Simpson via split decision. In his third fight for the promotion, Markes faced Andrew Craig on January 19, 2013 at UFC on FX 7. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Markes was expected to face Derek Brunson on June 8, 2013 at UFC on Fuel TV 10. However, the bout was scrapped on the day of the weigh in as Markes was involved in a minor traffic accident. While Markes was not seriously injured, the incident prevented him from competing. For his fourth fight with the promotion, Markes faced Yoel Romero on November 6, 2013 at UFC Fight Night 31. He lost the fight via knockout in the third round. Markes faced Thiago Santos on March 23, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 38. Markes was unable to make weight for this fight. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round, and was subsequently released from the promotion shortly after. World Series of Fighting On May 15, 2014 it was announced that Markes had signed a deal with World Series of Fighting and plans to return to the Light Heavyweight division. Markes was expected to face Kelvin Tiller at World Series of Fighting 12: Palomino vs Gonzalez on August 9, 2014, However Tiller was pulled from the fight to replace injured Krasimir Mladenov Markes instead fought promotional newcomer Cully Butterfield at the event. He won the fight by unanimous decision.