Fighter Profile: Thiago Alves
Overall Record: 16-3
UFC Record: 9-2
Hometown: Fortaleza, Brazil
Height: 5’9” Weight: 170
Age: 25
Thiago “Pitbull” Alves is a mixed-martial artist who is currently fighting in the welterweight (170lb) division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Alves, a native of Brazil, now resides in Florida where he trains at the American Top Team. He works on many skills at ATT but specializes in Muay-Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the latter of which he is a purple belt.
Alves began fighting professionally in October 2001 in Brazil for the Champions Night and Bitetti Combat Nordeste organizations. He won his first three contests in his homeland, two by knockout and one with a decision.
With three wins under his belt, Alves decided to make the journey across the globe, to the United States, for the development of his career. His first fight in America was against former professional boxer Marcus Davis at the Hardcore Fighting Championship in Massachusetts. Alves and Davis went toe-to-toe for three rounds with the “Pitbull” squeezing out the tight split decision victory.
Alves’ next two fights took place in Florida for the Absolute Fighting Championship organization against Derrick Noble and Nuri Shakur. Noble was able to control Alves with his grappling, enough to get into position for a fight-ending rear naked choke which handed Alves his first career loss. He bounced back impressively to win a decision against Shakur in February 2004.
Alves would only have to fight two more times before getting his opportunity on the big stage of MMA. He produced stoppages against both Jason Chambers and Jeff Cox while fighting for Midwest-based - Ironheart Crown and King of the Cage promotions. He record stood at an impressive 7-1 in less than four years of competition.
His big break came in the form of the UFC, at “Ultimate Fight Night 2” in October 2005, against Pat Miletich disciple – Spencer Fisher. Fisher, who was also making his UFC debut, was too much for Alves on the ground, transitioning to dominant positions, working his ground and pound and finally finishing him with a triangle choke late in the 2nd round. Alves would rebound with two TKO wins at UFC 56 and UFC 59 against Ansar Chalangov and Derrick Noble.
The Brazil native began to make his way up the welterweight ladder until a June 2006 loss to Jon Fitch put a temporary stop to his progression. Alves neutralized Fitch for a round and a half until Fitch caught him with an up kick followed by a series of punches that proved too much to overcome. Fitch dealt Alves his third career and second UFC loss.
With two wins and two losses in the UFC, Alves looked much more than a mediocre fighter in the bouts that followed. He was able to rattle off seven straight wins, since the loss to Jon Fitch, spanning over three years all the while demonstrating his aggressive striking style.
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At “The Final Chapter” in October 2006, Alves won a lop-sided unanimous decision against journeyman John Alessio, beating him on the feet for most of three action-packed rounds. Two months later on the UFC 66 card, the “Pitbull” dominated Tony DeSouza before finishing him via KO with a perfectly-timed knee in the second round. The win was not without drama however, Alves tested positive for a banned diuretic and served an eight-month suspension.
Upon his return the UFC set Alves up with “UFC Fight Night 11” bout against well-rounded Japanese fighter - Kuniyoshi Hironaka. Alves stunned Hironaka with a knee then finished him with punches, earning a TKO victory late in the 2nd round.
Almost routinely, Alves began finishing off opponents with TKO’s. He made a significant jump up the ladder with victories against Chris Lytle and Karo Parisyan at “UFC 78” and “UFC Fight Night 13.” Alves was quickly developing a reputation as a hard-hitting striker with an iron chin. He was proving that he not only could dish it out but he could take a hit as well.
Wins over Lytle and Parisyan were solid, but it was his June 2008 TKO against former welterweight champion Matt Hughes that really put Alves on the MMA radar. He had an ankle problem late in his training camp that prevented Alves from taking the proper steps to make the 170-pound weight limit. Hughes accepted the fight regardless then took a beating from Alves, who caught Hughes with a flying knee then finished him with punches.
In his most recent bout, at UFC 90 in October 2008, Alves made sure that UFC officials didn’t deny him his title shot any longer. He pounded Josh Koscheck, especially in the striking department, for three full rounds and earned his seventh straight win with a unanimous decision. The win over Koscheck solidified his position as the number one contender for George St. Pierre’s welterweight belt.
It will be nine months, by the time UFC 100 comes around, that Alves last saw action in the octagon. Alves presents a legitimate challenge to Pierre, who hasn’t had much competition since re-claiming his belt from Matt Serra. His stand-up is probably the area that he has the slight advantage, other than that the edge will point in GSP’s direction. UFC 100 will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 11th, 2009 and our UFC 100 preview & predictions are now live here at ProFighting-fans.com.
Recent Thiago Alves MMA News:
- Lost to Georges St-Pierre by Unanimous Decision at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 - UFC 100 results
By Nick Russell
ProFighting-fans.com Staff Writer
Published June 2009