Mariano "Big Dawg" Mendoza: World's Strongest Latino

Martial arts is practiced on an international level and, accordingly, is celebrated within many cultures around the globe. September 15th marked the start of Hispanic Heritage Month. Hispanic heritage runs deep within martial arts, with iconic Hispanic champions including Tito Ortiz, Dominick Cruz, Brandon Moreno, Cain Valasquez, Jessica Aguilar, and Mariano Mendoza.

Mariano Mendoza is more than a Mexican world champion weightlifter. He’s also a U.S. Navy veteran, writer, and actor. Mariano was born in Los Angeles, California, and continues to work there today. Before taking martial arts by storm, Mariano was in the U.S. Navy and Army Reserves from 1986-1995.

Mariano grew up in a troubled household, but turned to sports for support. His martial arts journey started off with karate where he naturally excelled, placing second at his first competition, The Long Beach International Karate Championships. Eventually, Mariano transitioned to Muay Thai, where he learned entirely new skills and techniques. During his training a promoter came up and helped Mariano start his professional fighting career. As they say, the rest is history.

Since he started professionally fighting, he’s celebrated several achievements on his journey, including being the first Hispanic Heavyweight Cage Fighter to fight in the W.V.C. in Brazil and Jamaica, his world record title Muscle Beach Strong Man 1995 and 1996, and even holding the World Record Strict Curl at 220lbs in 2015. His long line of success has earned him the title of “World’s Strong Latino” and was rated in the top 100 fighters in the world by Grappler Magazine.

Off the mat, Mariano is immersed in the world of film as a stuntman, actor, and producer. So if you recognize his face, it could be from “Better Call Saul”,  “Training Day”, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”, or any of his other 160 TV and movie appearances. Mariano’s success in media and martial arts landed him to be featured in a handful of video games, including MMA Supremacy and Saints Row 3. His short video autobiography “The Untold Story of Mariano Mendoza” was released in 2017, and dives into his uprising as a Hispanic martial artist and actor. Today, Mariano continues to celebrate his achievements and expand his experience in both industries.

While Mariano “Big Dawg” Medoza is just one notable Hispanic athlete who is prominent in media and martial arts, we use Hispanic Heritage Month as a moment to celebrate everyone of Hispanic heritage and those who are paving the way for future generations.