Andre Muniz is nearing the top of the UFC middleweight division with four octagon wins and submissions over the likes of Ronaldo Souza and Eryk Anders ahead of his UFC 276 bout with Uriah Hall in Las Vegas. This is a chance that comes many years after Muniz considered quitting the sport.
“Sergipano” was 14-3 as a professional and victorious in eight straight fights when he jumped on an opportunity to compete in Russia, where he faced Azamat Murzakanov in a light heavyweight contest. Muniz went on to lose the fight in just 50 seconds. Living in a small town in Brazil and training with a small group of people that wouldn’t prepare him for the elite of the sport, Muniz considered hanging up the gloves and finding something else to do with his life.
“I’m very grateful for all the people that helped me, but we’re talking about a world-class level of competition,” Muniz said in a recent episode of MMA Fighting podcast Trocacao Franca. “I had already decided I was going to stop [fighting], so to look back at myself fighting for regional promotions and then be on the Contender [Series] and be ranked today, I always tell my teammates that hard work pays off.
“Hard work does pay off. To abdicate from certain things and commit to something, it pays off. You might not get to the UFC, but good things happen to people that work hard and work the right way.”
Muniz was convinced by his wife to not give up on his dreams. He decided to relocate to Rio de Janeiro to train at Tata Fight Team full-time. Almost a year after his loss in Russia, Muniz was approached by his coaches Tata Duarte and Philip Lima about an upcoming season of Dana White‘s Contender Series exclusive for Brazilian athletes, but he had to be on a winning streak in order to have a chance.
Muniz stopped Joao Paulo dos Santos and Willyanedson Paiva in a combined time of 1:55 for the Watch Out Combat Show promotion to get his shot in Las Vegas, and was matched up against a former training partner of his, Bruno Assis.
“I was busted up before the fight,” Muniz recalls. “I had furuncles on my knee and my face was fractured. For five weeks, I was unable to spar. It took me two days to get to Las Vegas because my visa was late arriving. I got to Las Vegas on Wednesday, the fight was Saturday, and something went wrong on the brain MRI I did Thursday. The doctors wouldn’t clear me. Everything went wrong.
“Alex Davis, my manager, said to me, “Son, you just need to win.” It doesn’t matter if it’s a decision, if you’re putting on a show, just win. You can win after all that you have been through .'”
.
Muniz had to wait a year after the decision victory, but he returned to DWCS in 2019 to submit Taylor Johnson in under two minutes to finally seal a deal with the UFC.
“After all the difficulties I had to go through in life and fighting, I have a strong mind,” Muniz said. I was like “Man, he’s going to have to kill us.” He won’t get me killed, but I will beat him. I got punched in the face and kept walking forward. Your mind should be strong when your body is failing
Muniz was able to make his UFC debut in March, beating Antonio Arroyo. He only fought once in 2020, scoring the first of three straight armbar finishes by tapping out Bartosz Fabinski. The historic finish of “Jacare” led to a clash with short-notice replacement Anders, and Muniz now expects to be closer to the belt by finishing Hall.
“Justice is only for God’s brother. But, somehow, I have gotten to where I am and believe I can get even farther,” Muniz stated. “I am confident that I have the ability to go farther and I will continue my efforts for others. My wife, my daughters, my team, my coaches. It must have a purpose. I believe there is. I always give my 100 percentage every time I go there. It’s kill or be killed.”
This website uses cookies.