André Muniz
André Muniz de Aguiar (born February 17, 1990) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of December 13, 2021, he is #13 in the UFC middleweight rankings. Background. Born in Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, André Muniz was a very active teenager, which made his mother sign him up for Jiu-Jitsu classes to see if he could get calmer and more disciplined. It worked, Muniz fell in love with martial arts, and started practicing Muay Thai too. His first competition happened when he was 15 years old , a white belt championship in Montes Claros. He began practicing MMA at the age of 19, when he asked his teacher at the time to schedule a fight for him. Muniz attended Faculdades Unidas do Norte de Minas, from where he graduated with bachelor's degree in physical education with honors. Mixed martial arts career. Early career. Muniz moved to Rio de Janeiro every time he had a fight booked to train with the likes of Thiago Santos and Luis Henrique at Tata Fight Team, and would work as a personal trainer to earn extra money and make ends meet  in between fights. Victorious in 10 of 11 bouts between 2014 and 2018, a run that started with a decision over former PRIDE star and WEC middleweight champion Paulo Filho at the Bitetti Combat 19 event on February 6, 2014. Dana White's Contender Series. Muniz was invited onto the Brazilian version of DWCS at Dana White's Contender Series Brazil 2 on August 11, 2018. He won a unanimous decision against Bruno Assis, but the win did not win him a UFC contract. Almost a year later, Muniz returned to DWCS to face undefeated Taylor Johnson at Dana White 's Contender Series 23 on August 6, 2019. He finished Johnson via rear-naked choke in the first round, finally winning a UFC contract. Ultimate Fighting Championship. After two wins in Dana White's Contender Series, Muniz signed with the UFC and made his promotional debut against Antônio Arroyo at on November 16, 2019. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Muniz made his sophomore appearance against Bartosz Fabiński at on September 5, 2020. He won the fight via first-round armbar. Muniz was scheduled to face Andrew Sanchez at UFC 257 on January 23, 2021. However, Muniz withdrew from  the bout and was replaced by Makhmud Muradov. Muniz faced multiple-time Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Ronaldo Souza at UFC 262 on May 15, 2021. He won the fight via technical submission in the first round after breaking Souza's arm in an armbar, becoming the first person to submit Souza in the process. The feat was widely recognized and named as the Submission of the Year by the mixed martial arts media and also the UFC itself. Muniz was scheduled to face Dricus Du Plessis on December 11, 2021 at UFC 269. However, Du Plessis was removed from the  event due to injury and he was replaced by Eryk Anders. He won the fight via an armbar submission in the first round. Muniz was scheduled to face Uriah Hall on April 16, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 206 However, Hall withdrew due to undisclosed reasons, and the bout was cancelled. The bout with Hall was rescheduled for UFC 276 on July 2. Personal life. Muniz is the father of two daughters. In a December 2021 interview with Sherdog, Muniz said that he used the bonus money that he won for his performance against Bartosz Fabinski at UFC Fight Night : Overeem vs. Sakai to purchase a plot of land where he plans to build a home for his family.