From UFC to UFC: Ultimate Fighting Champion to Ultimate Faithful Catholic.
Bas Rutten is a UFC Hall of Famer, former UFC Heavyweight Champion, three-time World Champion in MMA in Japan, and a renowned Hollywood actor. He has appeared in films including Here Comes the Boom, The Zookeeper, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, and The Smashing Machine, alongside Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt. He also appeared on the CBS sitcom Kevin Can Wait with Kevin James and Leah Remini.
Bas was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2015. Throughout his career, he has built a reputation not only as a professional fighter and actor, but also as a professionally trained chef and a passionate advocate for discipline, perseverance, and personal transformation.
His journey began with significant challenges. As a child, Bas battled severe eczema and asthma and was bullied regularly. After watching Enter the Dragon, he became inspired by Bruce Lee and began training in martial arts. After only four months of training, he stood up to his first bully, and the bullying stopped. That experience became the beginning of a lifelong journey of overcoming adversity.
From his difficult childhood to his professional fighting career, Bas has faced numerous challenges and experienced tremendous success. Yet he considers his return to the Catholic faith to be the most important part of his story. Baptized Catholic as an infant and having received his First Communion, Bas stopped practicing the faith at age 12 when his parents stopped attending Mass. His years away from the Church included a wild lifestyle as a professional fighter, street fighter, bouncer, and participant in a culture that involved drugs and alcohol.
In 2013, Bas attended a conference where a presentation profoundly impacted him and led him back to the Catholic faith. Shortly afterward, he told his wife that he wanted to pursue the faith again. In a remarkable turn of events, his wife had independently begun attending Mass and taking RCIA classes. As Bas says, “God works in mysterious ways!” On September 12, 2015, Bas and his wife were married for the third time—this time in the Catholic Church at St. Thérèse Church in Alhambra. Bas also has a special connection to St. Thérèse and enjoys sharing that story.
Since returning to the Church, Bas has embraced his Catholic faith with tremendous dedication. He has consecrated himself to Mary, prioritizes daily prayer and Mass whenever possible, and continually studies the faith. He credits his Catholic faith with helping him become a better husband, father, friend, and citizen.
