Tai Tuivasa
| Tai Tuivasa | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1993-03-16) 16 March 1993 Sydney, Australia |
| Other names | Bam Bam Shoeyvasa [1] |
| Residence | St. Marys, Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 262 lb (119 kg; 18.7 st) |
| Division | Heavyweight |
| Reach | 75 in (191 cm) |
| Style | Boxing, Kickboxing |
| Years active | 2012–present |
Professional boxing record | |
| Total | 7 |
| Wins | 5 |
| By knockout | 3 |
| Losses | 2 |
Kickboxing record | |
| Total | 16 |
| Wins | 14 |
| By knockout | 10 |
| Losses | 2 |
| By knockout | 1 |
Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 9 |
| Wins | 8 |
| By knockout | 7 |
| By decision | 1 |
| Losses | 1 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| Other information | |
Boxing record from BoxRec | |
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Tai Tuivasa (born March 16, 1993), is an Australian mixed martial arts fighter currently competing in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of September 20, 2018, he is #11 in the official UFC heavyweight rankings.[3]
Contents
1 Early life
2 Mixed martial arts career
2.1 Early career
2.2 Ultimate Fighting Championship
3 Personal life
4 Championships and accomplishments
5 Mixed martial arts record
6 Professional boxing record
7 Kickboxing record (Incomplete)
8 Notes
9 References
10 External links
Early life
Tuivasa was born in Sydney to an Indigenous Australian mother, a Samoan father and 11 siblings.[4][5] He grew up in the western Sydney suburb of Mt Druitt and predominantly played rugby league in his youth. He was signed by the professional Sydney Roosters rugby league club in 2010 but gave up playing the sport when he developed a gambling addiction.[6]
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Tuivasa made his professional MMA debut in August 2012 in his native Australia. He fought sporadically over the next four years, amassing a undefeated record of 5 wins with all of his fights ending in knockouts.[7]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
In November 2016, it was announced that Tuivasa had signed a four-fight contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. According to Tuivasa, he had to sit out an extended period due to a knee injury and subsequent surgery.[8]
Tuivasa would make his UFC debut against Rashad Coulter on 19 November 2017 at UFC Fight Night: Werdum vs. Tybura.[9] Tuivasa won the fight via knockout due to a flying knee in the first round and became the first indigenous Australian to win a UFC fight.[10] This win also earned him the Performance of the Night bonus.[11]
Tuivasa faced Cyril Asker on 11 February 2018 at UFC 221.[12] He won the fight via technical knock out in the first round.[13] On 13 February 2018 Tuivasa entered the UFC's official rankings for heavyweight fighters, coming in at position 15.[14]
In March 2018, Tuivasa signed a new, four-fight contract with UFC.[15] Tuivasa faced Andrei Arlovski on 9 June 2018 at UFC 225.[16] He won the fight by unanimous decision.[17]
Tuivasa faced Junior dos Santos on December 2, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 142.[18] He lost the fight via technical knockout in round two.[19]
Personal life
Tuivasa is married to the sister of UFC light heavyweight fighter Tyson Pedro.[20][21]
Tuivasa currently hosts "The Halfcast Podcast" with Tyson Pedro as co-host.[22][23][24]
Tuivasa's moniker "Shoeyvasa" was coined by Sydney The Daily Telegraph newspaper after Tuivasa drinking beer from two fans' shoes after he won the bout against Andrei Arlovski at UFC 225.[1][25]
Championships and accomplishments
Australian Fighting Championship
- AFC Heavyweight Champion (One time)
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Rashad Coulter [11]
Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown | ||
9 matches | 8 wins | 1 loss |
By knockout | 7 | 1 |
By submission | 0 | 0 |
By decision | 1 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 8–1 | Junior dos Santos | TKO (punches) | UFC Fight Night: dos Santos vs. Tuivasa | 2 December 2018 | 2 | 2:30 | Adelaide, Australia | |
| Win | 8–0 | Andrei Arlovski | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 225 | June 9, 2018 | 3 | 5:00 | Chicago, Illinois, United States | |
| Win | 7–0 | Cyril Asker | TKO (punches and elbows) | UFC 221 | 11 February 2018 | 1 | 2:18 | Perth, Australia | |
| Win | 6–0 | Rashad Coulter | KO (flying knee) | UFC Fight Night: Werdum vs. Tybura | 19 November 2017 | 1 | 4:35 | Sydney, Australia | Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 5–0 | James McSweeney | TKO (corner stoppage) | Australian Fighting Championship 17 | 15 October 2016 | 1 | 5:00 | Melbourne, Australia | Defended the AFC Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 4–0 | Brandon Sololi | KO (elbow) | Australian Fighting Championship 16 | 18 June 2016 | 1 | 0:21 | Melbourne, Australia | Won the AFC Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 3–0 | Gul Pohatu | TKO (punches) | Urban Fight Night 5 | 12 December 2015 | 1 | 0:44 | Liverpool, Australia | |
| Win | 2–0 | Erik Nosa | TKO (punches) | Gladiators Cage Fighting: Gladiators 3 | 9 November 2012 | 1 | 0:28 | Sydney, Australia | |
| Win | 1–0 | Aaron Nieborak | TKO (punches) | Gladiators Cage Fighting: Gladiators 2 | 31 August 2012 | 1 | N/A | Sydney, Australia |
[26]
Professional boxing record
Professional record summary | ||
7 fights | 5 wins | 2 losses |
By knockout | 3 | 0 |
By decision | 1 | 2 |
By disqualification | 1 | 0 |
[27]
No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Lose | 5–2 |  Demsey McKean | UD | 3 | 15 April 2016 | The Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington, Victoria, Australia | Frank Bianco Cup Eight Man Heavyweight tournament Final |
| 6 | Win | 5–1 | David Tuitupou | UD | 3 | Frank Bianco Cup Eight Man Heavyweight tournament Semi Final | ||
| 5 | Win | 4–1 | Hamad Alloush | TKO | 2, (3) 1:33 | Frank Bianco Cup Eight Man Heavyweight tournament Quarter Final | ||
| 4 | Lose | 3–1 | Michael Kirby | UD | 3 | 3 April 2014 | Eight man heavyweight tournament final | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Willie Nasio | TKO | 1, (3) 2:00 | Eight man heavyweight tournament Semi final | ||
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Brett Smith | DQ | 1, (3) 3:00 | Eight man heavyweight tournament Quarter final | ||
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Nathan McKay | KO | 3, (4) 2:57 | 13 December 2013 | Olympic Park Sports Centre, Homebush, New South Wales, Australia | Professional debut |
Kickboxing record (Incomplete)
Kickboxing record | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
14 wins, 2 losses [a]
Legend: Win | ||||||||||||||||
Notes
^ Tuivasa's kickboxing record was announced at the beginning of his bout with Ismael Lazaar.[28]
References
^ ab Lamberton, Richard (10 June 2018). "UFC 225 Chicago: Robert Whittaker defeats Yoel Romero in fight of the year; 'Shoeyvasa' returns". The Daily Telegraph..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ "UFC 225 main-card breakdown: Will Holly Holm spoil Megan Anderson's UFC debut?". MMAjunkie. 2018-06-09. Retrieved 2018-06-09.
^ "Fighter Rankings | UFC ®". UFC. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
^ Tai Tuivasa: The cage or a prison cell
^ ‘Trying to pay back my heart’: Aussie UFC fighter Tai Tuivasa’s path to redemption
^ "Gambling addiction that prompted star to quit NRL". Retrieved 2017-11-19.
^ Sherdog.com. "Tai". Sherdog. Retrieved 2018-07-17.
^ Alex Oates (2017-08-05). "UFC: Sydney heavyweight Tai Tuivasa slated to fight American Rashad Coulter in November". couriermail.com.au. Retrieved 2017-08-14.
^ "Gone in 96 seconds: UFC rookie's record". Retrieved 2017-10-12.
^ Former Sydney Roosters player Tai Tuivasa delivers spectacular KO on UFC debut
^ ab Mazique, Brian. "UFC Fight Night 121 Werdum Vs. Tybura Results: Bonus Winners, Highlights, Analysis, Attendance, Gate". Forbes. Retrieved 2017-11-19.
^ "UFC fighters ducking Aussie phenom". Retrieved 2017-12-15.
^ "UFC 221 results: Tai Tuivasa destroys Cyril Asker with first-round TKO". MMAjunkie. 2018-02-11. Retrieved 2018-02-11.
^ Tai Tuivasa breaks into UFC heavyweight rankings
^ Helwani, Ariel (2018-03-21). "Tai Tuivasa signs new four-fight contract with UFC". mmafighting.com.
^ Helwani, Ariel (2018-03-16). "Andrei Arlovski vs. Tai Tuivasa slated for UFC 225". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
^ "UFC 225 results: Tai Tuivasa bloodied, battered, but outslugs Andrei Arlovski over three rounds". MMAjunkie. 2018-06-10. Retrieved 2018-06-10.
^ "Junior Dos Santos vs Tai Tuivasa set to headline UFC Adelaide". | BJPenn.com. 2018-08-30. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
^ Straus, Mike. "UFC Adelaide Results: Junior dos Santos Overwhelms Tai Tuivasa With Strikes". www.lowkickmma.com. Retrieved 2018-12-02.
^ "UFC 209: Tyson Pedro out to hit it hard in Las Vegas, just like the man he was named after, Mike Tyson". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-04-21.
^ "Tai Tuivasa to join UFC on four-fight deal and will fight in heavyweight division". Herald Sun. Retrieved 2017-04-21.
^ The halfcast podcast (2017-10-30), The Halfcast Podcast #1, retrieved 2017-12-24
^ The halfcast podcast (2017-11-23), The Halfcast Podcast #2, retrieved 2017-12-24
^ The halfcast podcast (2017-12-07), The Halfcast Podcast #3, retrieved 2017-12-24
^ "Australia's Whittaker gets split decision at UFC, Tuivasa skols a shoey after undercard win". ABC News. 2018-06-10. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
^ Sherdog.com. "Tai". Sherdog. Retrieved 2018-12-02.
^ "Tai Tuivasa". Boxrec. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
^ ab "♦♦ Ismael Lazaar vs Tai Tuivasa ♦♦ 16-10-'14 ♦♦ ᴴᴰ". Retrieved 2018-08-15.
External links
Professional boxing record for Tai Tuivasa from BoxRec
"Tai Tuivasa". UFC.com.
Professional MMA record for Tai Tuivasa from Sherdog
