Born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, Sparks was introduced to combat sports through his father, a Vietnam War veteran who also worked as a martial arts instructor in the military. Sparks himself began training when he was seven years old, before transitioning into kickboxing when he was a teenager and became a sparring partner for various local boxers and kickboxers. Sparks then embarked on his own career in kickboxing, before finally switching over to MMA. Sparks is also owner of a general contracting company, A-Ron Construction. A-Ron Construction is based in Louisville, Kentucky; servicing all aspects of home improvement needs.
Early career
Sparks made his professional MMA debut on June 17, 2006, defeating Heath Zimmerman via KO at Caged Inferno 2. Following this impressive win, Sparks would compile an undefeated record of 5-0 before being signed by Bellator MMA inJune 2010.
Sparks made his Bellator debut in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky at Bellator 30, which he won by knockout after just 50 seconds. He then fought veteran Vince Lucero at Bellator 43 on May 7, 2011, which he won via first-round submission. Sparks entered into the. In the opening round, he faced Mark Holata at Bellator 52 and won via knockout in the first round. Sparks then faced Eric Prindle in the semifinals and lost via knockout in the first round. Sparks will compete in the, and was expected to face Mark Godbeer in the quarterfinals at. Sparks faced Vitaly Minakov on June 19, 2013 at Bellator 96 in the opening round of the Heavyweight Tournament. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round. Sparks made his next appearance for Bellator at Bellator 105 on October 25, 2013, facing fellow kickboxerMighty Mo. Sparks lost via submission in the first round. Sparks was released from Bellator on August 25, 2014.
Other promotions
Sparks was expected to face Josh Walker at Hardrock MMA 60 on February 1, 2014. However, in the weeks leading up to the event, the fight was taken off of the card for unknown reasons. Sparks was expected to face Jeremy May on September 20, 2014 at Square Ring Promotions: Island Fights 30. However, the fight was cancelled for unknown reasons.
