Frank Trigg: Can He Still Be Relevant In The Welterweight Division?

At UFC 103, Frank "Twinkle Toes" Trigg will return to the octagon to fight top welterweight contender Josh Koscheck. I say return, because Trigg was a top challenger in the division only four years ago.

Trigg was born on May 7, 1972 in a family of seven children. At a young age, Trigg had a sudden interest in martial arts and began wrestling when he was 12 years old.

From there, his interest in different martial arts only intensified. Frank was recruited by Jack Spates to wrestle at the University of Oklahoma.

In 1995, Trigg began training in judo and was introduced to Mixed Martial Arts by his judo trainer Patrick Burris. Today, Frank Trigg is a second degree black belt in judo even though he is most known for his striking and wrestling skills.

Frank had his first pro fight in 1997 and went on to win his first seven fights all by KO, TKO, or submission.

After 11 pro fights in MMA and only one loss, the UFC offered Trigg a contract with his first fight being against UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes at UFC 45.

Trigg lost the fight only to win his next two fights and challenge Hughes in a rematch at UFC 52. A second loss to Hughes and then a devastation loss to Georges St-Pierre sent Frank Trigg out of the UFC.

Outside of the UFC, Trigg fought nine times and suffered only two losses, one to Carlos Condit, and the other to Robbie Lawler.

Now, four years after his crushing defeat at the hands of Georges St-Pierre, Frank Trigg is back for another shot at glory. His opportunity at redemption will begin against Josh Koscheck at UFC 103. Both men have said that they would be fighting a mirror image of themselves. Both men are good wrestlers, good strikers, and have a pretty good cardio.

Frank Trigg agreed to a four fight deal and the fight against Koscheck will be the first; where do we go from there?

It will be interesting to see in what shape Trigg is in at UFC 103. If "Twinkle Toes" shows up in great form, he may have a decent shot against "Kos" and could possibly get a shot at the title in the future.

If Koscheck beats up Trigg and wins, Trigg won't have much of an impact as he can only move down from there. I personally would not mind a rematch against Matt Hughes, considering how entertaining the first two fights were.

After his fight on Sept. 19, we will know which road Trigg will take, either up or down the ladder. Can he still be relevant in the division and become champion?

Only time will tell for sure.

There is one thing you can count on; Frank Trigg will give everything he has to make an impact and beat Josh Koscheck.