Iuri Alcântara

Iuri Alcântara (born 4 August 1980) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competed in the UFC bantamweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2003, Alcântara mostly fought in Brazil before signing with World Extreme Cagefighting to take part in their final event. He is the brother of fellow UFC fighter Ildemar Alcântara.

Mixed martial arts career Background and early career

Alcântara was born on the island of Marajó, Pará in Brazil. Incidentally, Alcântara takes his fighting nickname from the island and is billed as Iuri "Marajó" Alcântara. and is managed by Wallid Ismail, the owner of the Jungle Fight promotion that Alcântara has competed in and won a championship. the first decision victory in his career.

Alcântara entered into the lightweight grand prix at Jungle Fight 22. His opening round fight was against the highly touted, once undefeated Francisco Trinaldo. Trinaldo had previously been named as one of the top prospects in the sport of MMA, having defeated experienced veterans such as Luiz Firmino. Despite the reputation of his opponent, Alcântara was able to hand Trinaldo his first professional loss when he forced him to tap out to an armbar in the second round.

The win advanced Alcântara into the final where he faced the Peruvian Manuelo Morales. Alcântara ran through Morales, defeating him via TKO from a front kick to the body, in just 16 seconds of the opening round. With the win, Alcântara became the first ever Jungle Fight Lightweight Champion.

World Extreme Cagefighting On 3 November 2010, it was announced that Alcântara had signed a five-fight deal with Zuffa and that his debut would come at World Extreme Cagefighting's final event, WEC 53.

Ultimate Fighting Championship On 28 October 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, most WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.

Alcântara was expected to make his featherweight debut against Mackens Semerzier on 27 August 2011 at UFC 134 However, Semerzier was injured and was replaced on the card by promotional newcomer Antonio Carvalho. Carvalho was also forced from the bout with an injury, and was replaced by Felipe Arantes. Alcântara won the fight via unanimous decision.

Alcântara faced Michihiro Omigawa on 14 January 2012 at UFC 142. He won the fight via unanimous decision after rocking Omigawa on several occasions and almost submitting him with an armbar.

Alcântara faced promotional newcomer Hacran Dias on 23 June 2012 at UFC 147. Dias defeated Alcântara via unanimous decision.

Alcântara was expected to drop to bantamweight and face George Roop on 19 January 2013 at UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Bisping. However, Roop was forced out of the bout with an injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Pedro Nobre. After nearly finishing Nobre early in the first round with a submission attempt, the bout was declared a no contest as Alcântara was ruled to have landed an inadvertent, but illegal strike to the back of Nobre's head, rendering him unable to continue at 2:11 of round 1. After the fight, UFC president Dana White accused Nobre of faking the injury.

Alcântara was expected to face Marcos Vinicius on 18 May 2013 at UFC on FX 8. However, Vinicius was forced out of the bout citing an injury. He instead faced promotional newcomer Iliarde Santos and won the fight via first-round TKO.

Alcântara faced Urijah Faber on 17 August 2013 at UFC Fight Night 26. Despite having Faber in trouble early in the first round, Alcântara was unable to stop Faber's wrestling and lost via unanimous decision.

Alcântara faced Wilson Reis on 15 February 2014 at UFC Fight Night 36. He won the fight via split decision.

Alcântara faced Vaughan Lee on 31 May 2014 at UFC Fight Night 41. He won the fight via KO early in the first round.

Alcântara next faced Russell Doane on 13 September 2014 at UFC Fight Night 51. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Alcântara faced Frankie Saenz on 22 February 2015 at UFC Fight Night 61. Despite being the biggest betting favorite on the card, Alcântara lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Alcântara faced Leandro Issa on 1 August 2015 at UFC 190. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Alcântara next faced Jimmie Rivera on 30 January 2016 at UFC on Fox 18. He lost the back-and-forth fight via unanimous decision. Both participants were awarded a Fight of the Night bonus.

Alcântara faced Brad Pickett on 8 October 2016 at UFC 204. He won the fight via submission in the first round and was awarded a Performance of the Night bonus.

Alcântara faced Luke Sanders on 4 March 2017 at UFC 209. After losing the first round and absorbing a number of strikes, Alcântara rallied back and won the fight via a kneebar submission in the second round and earned himself another Performance of the Night bonus.

Alcântara was briefly linked to a rematch with Felipe Arantes on 3 June 2017 at UFC 212. However, on 11 May, Arantes was pulled from the fight for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by promotional newcomer Brian Kelleher. Alcântara lost the fight via submission due to a guillotine choke in the first round.

Alcântara faced Alejandro Pérez on 9 December 2017 at UFC Fight Night 123. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) flagged Alcântara after the fight for gaining more than 10% of his weight from weigh-in to fight day. The CSAC later announced it would not license Alcântara to fight another bantamweight bout in California.

Alcântara faced Joe Soto on 3 February 2018 at UFC Fight Night 125. He won the fight via technical knockout sixty-six seconds into the first round. This win earned him the Performance of the Night bonus.

Alcântara faced Cory Sandhagen on 25 August 2018 at UFC Fight Night 135. Despite locking in a very tight armbar early in the first round, he ultimately lost via technical knockout in the second round. This fight earned him the Fight of Night award.

On 2 October 2020 it was reported Alcântara was released by the UFC.

Post UFC In his first bout post UFC release, Alcântara made his return after 4 years off to face Daniel Bažant at FNC 7 on September 3, 2022. He lost the bout at the end of the first round via TKO stoppage due to ground and pound.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship Fight of the Night (Two times) vs. Jimmie Rivera and Cory Sandhagen Sherdog UFC/MMA 'Submission of the Year' 2017 - Top 5 List #3 vs. Luke Sanders Jungle Fight Lightweight Champion (One time; first)

Mixed martial arts record Loss

Daniel Bažant TKO (punches) FNC 7

Pula, Croatia Loss

Cory Sandhagen TKO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Gaethje vs. Vick

Lincoln, Nebraska, United States Win

Joe Soto TKO (body kick and punches) UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Anders

Belém, Brazil Loss

Alejandro Pérez Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega

Fresno, California, United States Loss

Brian Kelleher Submission (guillotine choke) UFC 212

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Win

Luke Sanders Submission (kneebar) UFC 209

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Brad Pickett Submission (triangle choke) UFC 204

Manchester, England Loss

Jimmie Rivera Decision (unanimous) UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Bader

Newark, New Jersey, United States Win

Leandro Issa Decision (unanimous) UFC 190

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Loss

Frankie Saenz Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Bigfoot vs. Mir

Porto Alegre, Brazil Win

Russell Doane Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Bigfoot vs. Arlovski

Brasília, Brazil Win

Vaughan Lee KO (punches) UFC Fight Night: Munoz vs. Mousasi

Berlin, Germany Win

Wilson Reis Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Mousasi

Jaraguá do Sul, Brazil Loss

Urijah Faber Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Sonnen

Boston, Massachusetts, United States Win

Iliarde Santos KO (punches) UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Rockhold

Jaraguá do Sul, Brazil NC

Pedro Nobre NC (punch to back of head) UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Bisping

São Paulo, Brazil Loss

Hacran Dias Decision (unanimous) UFC 147

Belo Horizonte, Brazil Win

Michihiro Omigawa Decision (unanimous) UFC 142

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Win

Felipe Arantes Decision (unanimous) UFC 134

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Win

Ricardo Lamas KO (punch) WEC 53

Glendale, Arizona, United States Win

Manuelo Morales TKO (front kick to the body) Jungle Fight 22

São Paulo, Brazil Win

Francisco Trinaldo Submission (armbar) Jungle Fight 22

São Paulo, Brazil Win

Francisco Mario Submission (kimura) Amazon Fight 4

Belém, Brazil Win

Armando Gomes TKO (punches) Jungle Fight 21

Natal, Brazil Win

Joao Paulo Rodrigues Submission (armbar) Iron Man Championship 6

Belém, Brazil Win

Viscardi Andrade Decision (split) Jungle Fight 19: Warriors 3

São Paulo, Brazil Win

Jackson Pontes Submission (triangle armbar) Iron Man Championship 5

Belém, Brazil Win

Marinho Rocha Submission (triangle choke) Iron Man Championship 4

Belém, Brazil Win

Jamil Silveira Submission (triangle choke) Leal Combat: Grand Prix

Natal, Brazil Win

Francisco Silva TKO (knee injury) Leal Combat: Grand Prix

Natal, Brazil Loss

Mauricio Reis Submission (kneebar) Minotauro Combat 1

Macapá, Brazil Win

Alexandre Alcântara TKO (punches) Belém Open Fight 2

Macapá, Brazil Win

Rafael Carvalho TKO (punches) Iron Man Championship 3

Belém, Brazil Win

Jimmy Nascimento TKO (punches) IMVT: Champions

Belém, Brazil Win

Carlos Aldenis TKO (punches) Tribus de Vale Tudo

Santarém, Brazil Win

Jimmy Nascimento TKO (punches) Iron Man Championship 2

Belém, Brazil Win

Furdjel de Windt Decision (unanimous) Cage Fight Event: Rumble in the Jungle

Paramaribo, Suriname Loss

Henrique Mello Decision (unanimous) Fury FC: Fury Trials

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Win

Elielson Almeida Submission Midway vs. Dinamite

Belém, Brazil Win

Ronie Ronie Submission (rear-naked choke) DFC 2: The Lightweights

Santarém, Brazil Loss

Andre Luis Oliveira TKO (leg injury) Predador FC 4: Kamae

Brazil Win

Rerison Araujo Submission (armbar) Midway Fight

Belém, Brazil Win

Ivanildo Santos Submission (armbar) EcoFight 2

Macapá, Brazil Win

Michel Addario Bastos TKO (punches) EcoFight 2

Macapá, Brazil Win

Rafael Addario Bastos KO (punches) Mega Combat Vale Tudo

Belém, Brazil Win

Renenson Costa Submission (armbar) Iron Man Vale Tudo 7

Macapá, Brazil Win

José de Arimatéia Submission (armbar) Desafio de Gigantes 2

Macapá, Brazil Win

Erlon Gabriel KO (punches) Super Vale Tudo: Ananindeua

Ananindeua, Brazil