The Most Famous
MARTIAL ARTS from Cuba
This page contains a list of the greatest Cuban Martial Arts. The pantheon dataset contains 179 Martial Arts, 3 of which were born in Cuba. This makes Cuba the birth place of the 7th most number of Martial Arts behind Poland, and France.
Top 4
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Cuban Martial Arts of all time. This list of famous Cuban Martial Arts is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Yoel Romero (b. 1977)
With an HPI of 41.14, Yoel Romero is the most famous Cuban Martial Arts. His biography has been translated into 22 different languages on wikipedia.
Yoel Romero Palacio (born April 30, 1977) is a Cuban professional mixed martial artist and former freestyle wrestler. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division for Bellator MMA. Romero formerly competed in the Middleweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and was a challenger for the UFC Middleweight Championship. As a freestyle wrestler, Romero competed at 85 kilograms, where he was the 1999 World Champion (five-time medalist at the World Championships), the 2000 Olympic Silver medalist, a three-time World Cup winner (six-time medalist), the 2003 Pan American Games Gold medalist (bronze medalist in 1999) and a five-time Pan American Champion.
2. Legna Verdecia (b. 1972)
With an HPI of 35.36, Legna Verdecia is the 2nd most famous Cuban Martial Arts. Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.
Legna Verdecia Rodríguez (born 29 October 1972 in Granma) is a Cuban judoka who won Olympic medals in 1996 and 2000. In a career from 1989 to 2006 she won 165 out of 187 fights, making her one of the most successful Cuban judoka in history.
3. Ángel Matos (b. 1976)
With an HPI of 31.80, Ángel Matos is the 3rd most famous Cuban Martial Arts. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.
Ángel Valodia Matos Fuentes (born December 24, 1976, in Holguín) is a former Cuban taekwondo athlete. He received a gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, and added another at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro. The World Taekwondo Federation banned Matos and his coach for life following an incident at the 2008 Summer Olympics where Matos kicked the Swedish referee Chakir Chelbat in the face, after being disqualified in the bronze medal match. The decision was later ratified by the IOC. He was also banned for life by the same committee.
4. Héctor Lombard (b. 1978)
With an HPI of 31.57, Héctor Lombard is the 4th most famous Cuban Martial Arts. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Héctor Lombard (born 2 February 1978) is a Cuban-Australian professional mixed martial artist, bodybuilder, and former Olympic judoka who competes in the Light Heavyweight division of Eagle FC. Lombard has also competed in the middleweight and welterweight divisions. Lombard is best known for his tenure in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and has also fought in Deep, Pride, and Bellator where he was the inaugural Bellator Middleweight Champion.
People
Pantheon has 4 people classified as Cuban martial arts born between 1972 and 1978. Of these 4, 4 (100.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Cuban martial arts include Yoel Romero, Legna Verdecia, and Ángel Matos. As of April 2024, 1 new Cuban martial arts have been added to Pantheon including Héctor Lombard.
Living Cuban Martial Arts
Go to all Rankings
Yoel Romero
1977 - Present
HPI: 41.14
Legna Verdecia
1972 - Present
HPI: 35.36
Ángel Matos
1976 - Present
HPI: 31.80
Héctor Lombard
1978 - Present
HPI: 31.57
