# Tommy Sauer

Thomas Sauer (November 11, 1970 — March 24, 2020) was an American mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1998 to 2012, he competed for RINGS and the World Fighting Alliance.

## Background

A native of Cleveland, Sauer moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1981 at the age of 11. From a young age, he began wrestling and karate.

## Mixed martial arts career
### Early career

Having made his debut in 1998, Sauer quickly moved to 3–0 with a win over Jeff Monson before being handed his first professional defeat at the hands of Travis Fulton.
After five more wins followed by consecutive defeats to Bobby Hoffman and John Dixson, respectively, Sauer began competing for the RINGS promotion.

### RINGS

Sauer made his RINGS debut on May 20, 2000, winning via first-round submission. After another win followed by a knockout of Valentijn Overeem, Sauer was defeated via doctor stoppage from a cut against Vladimir Matyushenko.
Sauer would go 6–5 in his next 11 fights before facing off against Enson Inoue at SuperBrawl 35 on April 16, 2004. Sauer won via first-round TKO in arguably the biggest win of his career.

### Independent promotions

Sauer went 7–3 in the last ten fights of his career, last defeating Ruben Villareal via first-round submission in 2012.

## Personal life

Sauer founded his own gym, "Team Trauma" in 1998 in Ocala, Florida.
Sauer was a firefighter and EMT from 1996 until his retirement in 2019.
Sauer also had his own aluminum construction company in Ocala, FL.
Following his death in 2020, Sauer was inducted into the Florida MMA Hall of Fame.
In his community, he was famous for his big heart as well as strong hands. He constantly and without hesitation helped friends and strangers alike, be it an uplifting conversation, meal, or surprise Christmas gifts. Sauer was happily married to the love of his life, Sherrie Sauer for 10 years with whom he just built his dream home at the unexpected time of his death. Sauer had 4 children and 2 stepchildren who were the pride and joy of his life.
He lived his life with Tourette Syndrome, and made light of the situation often. He would often make an off the wall or humorous statement then say that no one could be upset with him for it because no one would want to pick on the man with Tourette's. Living with the disorder was a struggle for him as a child, but ultimately led him to his professional fighting career. He found peace in the control fighting offered him.
Professional record breakdown :
| 37 matches | 25 wins | 12 losses |
| By knockout | 11 | 10 |
| By submission | 13 | 2 |
| Unknown | 1 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| Win | 25–12 | Ruben Villareal | Submission | R.F.C. 26: Legends Return | April 28, 2012 | 1 | 0:40 | Ocala, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 24–12 | Jimmy Ambriz | TKO (punches) | AOF 13: Amaya vs. Lawrence | September 10, 2011 | 1 | 4:03 | Estero, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 23–12 | Liron Wilson | TKO (punches) | AOF 7: Payday | April 3, 2010 | 2 | 0:54 | Tampa, Florida, United States | |
| Loss | 22–12 | Marcio Cruz | TKO (punches) | AOF 4: Damage | August 22, 2009 | 2 | 3:43 | Tampa, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 22–11 | Mike Hueser | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Southern Fight League: Smoky Mountain Brawl | May 9, 2009 | 1 | 2:52 | Asheville, North Carolina, United States | |
| Win | 21–11 | Rocky Batastini | Submission (guillotine choke) | AOF 2: Rumble at Robarts 2 | April 25, 2009 | 1 | 0:17 | Sarasota, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 20–11 | Matt Thomas | Submission (armbar) | WEF: WEF 8 | August 10, 2007 | 2 | 2:12 | Kissimmee, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 19–11 | Leo Sylvest | TKO (submission to punches) | CFC 2: Combat Fighting Championship 2 | September 23, 2006 | 1 | 0:13 | Orlando, Florida, United States | |
| Loss | 18–11 | Branden Lee Hinkle | TKO (punches) | WEF: Sin City | May 20, 2005 | 1 | 2:19 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Loss | 18–10 | Andy Montana | KO (punch) | IFC 20: Eve Of Destruction | March 5, 2005 | 1 | 1:29 | Salt Lake City, Utah, United States | |
| Win | 18–9 | Enson Inoue | TKO (punches) | SB 35: SuperBrawl 35 | April 16, 2004 | 1 | 4:14 | Honolulu, Hawaii, United States | Return to Heavyweight. |
| Loss | 17–9 | Bill Mahood | TKO (punches and elbows) | IFC 17: Battleground Boise | October 25, 2003 | 2 | 3:10 | Boise, Idaho, United States | |
| Win | 17–8 | Allan Sullivan | Submission (arm triangle choke) | IFC 16: Global Domination | September 6, 2003 | 2 | 0:39 | Denver, Colorado, United States | |
| Win | 16–8 | Sean Gray | Submission (guillotine choke) | IFC 16: Global Domination | September 6, 2003 | 1 | 0:46 | Denver, Colorado, United States | Light Heavyweight debut. |
| Win | 15–8 | Crafton Wallace | Submission (rear-naked choke) | WEFC 3: Shake | May 10, 2003 | 1 | 1:12 | Jacksonville, Florida, United States | |
| Loss | 14–8 | Rodney Glunder | TKO (doctor stoppage) | RINGS Holland: One Moment In Time | December 1, 2002 | 2 | 3:52 | Utrecht, Netherlands | |
| Loss | 14–7 | Marvin Eastman | TKO (elbows) | WFA 2: Level 2 | July 5, 2002 | 2 | 1:35 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 14–6 | Bill Vucick | Submission (keylock) | WEF 12: World Extreme Fighting 12 | May 11, 2002 | 2 | 2:30 | Steubenville, Ohio, United States | |
| Win | 13–6 | Rob Morris | TKO (submission to punches) | RSF 6: Mayhem in Myers | December 29, 2001 | 1 | 0:35 | Fort Myers, Florida, United States | |
| Loss | 12–6 | Hiromitsu Kanehara | TKO (punches) | RINGS: King of Kings 2000 Block B | December 22, 2000 | 1 | 4:14 | Osaka, Japan | |
| Win | 12–5 | Andrei Kopylov | KO (punch) | RINGS: King of Kings 2000 Block B | December 22, 2000 | 1 | 0:10 | Osaka, Japan | |
| Loss | 11–5 | Aaron Brink | TKO (punches) | RINGS USA: Rising Stars Final | September 30, 2000 | 2 | 4:29 | Moline, Illinois, United States | |
| Loss | 11–4 | Vladimir Matyushenko | TKO (cut) | WEF: New Blood Conflict | August 26, 2000 | 2 | 2:17 | | |
| Win | 11–3 | Valentijn Overeem | KO (punches) | RINGS USA: Rising Stars Block B | July 22, 2000 | 1 | 0:35 | Honolulu, Hawaii | |
| Win | 10–3 | Mike Dresch | KO (punches) | RINGS USA: Rising Stars Block B | July 22, 2000 | 1 | 0:13 | Honolulu, Hawaii | |
| Win | 9–3 | Alexander Bezroutchkin | Submission (rear-naked choke) | RINGS Russia: Russia vs. The World | May 20, 2000 | 1 | 3:30 | Yekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia | |
| Loss | 8–3 | John Dixson | Submission (heel hook) | WEF 7: Stomp in the Swamp | October 9, 1999 | 1 | 2:00 | Kenner, Louisiana, United States | |
| Loss | 8–2 | Bobby Hoffman | Submission (guillotine choke) | EC 27: Extreme Challenge 27 | August 21, 1999 | 1 | 4:46 | Davenport, Iowa, United States | |
| Win | 8–1 | David Dodd | TKO (punches) | EC 27: Extreme Challenge 27 | August 21, 1999 | 1 | 2:20 | Davenport, Iowa, United States | |
| Win | 7–1 | Wade Rome | Submission (triangle choke) | WEF 5: World Extreme Fighting 5 | June 12, 1999 | 0 | 0:00 | DeLand, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 6–1 | John Horning | Submission (side choke) | XCC: Xtreme Combat Championships 2 | June 8, 1999 | 0 | 0:00 | Florida, United States | |
| Win | 5–1 | Victor Vincelette | TKO (injury) | WEF 2: World Extreme Fighting 2 | February 21, 1999 | 1 | 0:10 | | |
| Win | 4–1 | Efrain Ruiz | TKO (submission to punches) | WEF 1: World Extreme Fighting 1 | December 19, 1998 | 1 | N/A | | |
| Loss | 3–1 | Travis Fulton | TKO (submission to punches) | EC 21: Extreme Challenge 21 | October 17, 1998 | 1 | 1:57 | Hayward, Wisconsin, United States | |
| Win | 3–0 | Jeff Monson | Submission (rear-naked choke) | EC 20: Extreme Challenge 20 | August 22, 1998 | 1 | 3:47 | Davenport, Iowa, United States | |
| Win | 2–0 | David Giannotti | Submission (choke) | WVF: Orlando 2 | July 25, 1998 | 1 | 1:13 | Orlando, Florida, United States | |
| Win | 1–0 | Joe Campanella | N/A | EC 19: Extreme Challenge 19 | June 20, 1998 | 1 | 0:34 | Hayward, Wisconsin, United States | |