Irwing "Irwin" Armando Rivera (born February 14, 1989) is a Mexican

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

who competes in the

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class is derived from Ba ...

division of the

Eagle Fighting Championship Eagle Fighting Championship (EFC), commonly referred to as Eagle FC, is a Russian mixed martial arts promoter (entertainment), promotion company established in 2020 by former UFC Lightweight Championship, UFC Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagome ...

. A professional mixed martial artist since 2014, Rivera has competed for

Combate Americas Combate Global (previously Combate Americas) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) sports franchise and media company directed toward a Hispanic audience. It includes TV broadcasts, live events, and mobile content Combate Global airs on Univi ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

and

Titan FC Titan Fighting Championship (Titan FC) is an American mixed martial arts promotion based out of Pompano Beach, Florida. Their shows were originally run in and near Kansas City and have since expanded to include venues all over North America and e ...

where he was the Bantamweight Champion.

Background

Rivera was born in

Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl Nezahualcóyotl (), or more commonly Neza, is a city and municipal seat of the municipality of Nezahualcóyotl in Mexico. It is located in the state of Mexico, adjacent to the east side of Mexico City. The municipality comprises its own intrasta ...

, Mexico, but

immigrated Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

with his parents to

New Windsor, New York New Windsor is a town in Orange County, New York, United States. History The region was originally inhabited by the Munsee The Munsee (or Minsi or Muncee) or mə́n'si·w ( del, Monsiyok)Online Lenape Talking Dictionary, "Munsee Indians"L ...

where he grew up. He has a younger sister Kelly, older sister Lezlye and a brother. Rivera initially trained for boxing, but dabbled into mixed martial arts after his boxing gym closed its doors.

Mixed martial arts career

Titan FC

After getting cut from

, Rivera made his Titan Fighting Championship debut against Edir Terry at Titan FC 48 on February 16, 2018. He lost the fight due to technical knockout stemming from a leg injury. Rivera made his sophomore appearance in Titan FC against Lazar Stojadinovic at Titan FC 53 on March 15, 2019. He won the fight via first-round knockout. Rivera then faced Matt Wagy for the interim Titan FC Bantamweight Championship at Titan FC 55 on June 28, 2019. Rivera claimed the interim championship via fourth-round technical knockout stemming from a body punch. On November 11, 2019, Rivera was elevated to undisputed Bantamweight Champion after the reigning champion Rudson Caliocane vacated the title. For his first title defense, Rivera faced Danny Sabatello at Titan FC 58 on December 20, 2019. Rivera retained his title via fourth-round technical knockout. In May 2020, Rivera vacated his title in order to sign with the

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Replacing Mike Davis on two days' notice, Rivera signed with the UFC and faced

Giga Chikadze Giga Chikadze ( Georgian: გიგა ჭიკაძე, born 25 August 1988) is a Georgian mixed martial artist and former kickboxer. He currently competes in the Featherweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Chikadze fo ...

in a featherweight bout at

UFC Fight Night 172 ''UFC Fight Night: Figueiredo vs. Benavidez 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 172'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 30'' and ''UFC Fight Island 2'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 19, 2020 ...

on May 16, 2020. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Rivera made his second appearance in the organization at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Oleinik on August 8, 2020 against Ali AlQaisi. He won the fight via split decision. Rivera faced

Andre Ewell Andre Eugene Ewell (born January 21, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist. He competed in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He also competed for Classic Entertainment and Sports (CES MMA) and is a former ...

on September 19, 2020 at

UFC Fight Night 178 ''UFC Fight Night: Covington vs. Woodley'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 178'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 36'' and ''UFC Vegas 11'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 19, 2020 at th ...

. He lost the fight via split decision. Rivera was scheduled to face Ray Rodriguez on March 13, 2021 at

UFC Fight Night 187 ''UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 187'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 45'' and ''UFC Vegas 21'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on March 13, 2021 at the UF ...

. Due to the two counts arrest of attempted murder of his two sisters, UFC rescinded their bout negotiation.

Eagle Fighting Championship

Rivera faced Firdavs Khasanov at Eagle FC 46 on March 11, 2022. He won the bout in the second round after dropping Khasanov with a body kick and then finishing him with ground and pound.

Legal troubles

In January 2021, Rivera was arrested on two counts of attempted murder in

Palm Beach County, Florida Palm Beach County is a county located in the southeastern part of Florida and lies directly north of Broward County and Miami-Dade County. The county had a population of 1,492,191 as of the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous county ...

after he allegedly stabbed his two sisters. He was booked into the Palm Beach County jail and held without bail. On January 8, it was revealed that Rivera was being kept in a mental health facility rather than in jail. His sisters also broke their silence, stating that they love Irwin and that all that they wish for their brother is for him to get the help that he needs for his mental state. Irwin was granted a conditional release from custody on October 19, 2021, after the judge in the case approved Rivera’s plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. He was diagnosed with Bipolar I disorder and it was determined that he was having a psychotic episode at the time of the stabbings.

Personal life

Rivera has a daughter (born 2016) from his previous relationship.

Championships and accomplishments

** Titan FC Bantamweight Champion (one time) ***One successful title defense

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 11–6 , Firdavs Khasanov , TKO (body kick and punches) , Eagle FC 46 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:48 ,

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

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Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–4 , Danny Sabatello , TKO (punch to the body) , Titan FC 58 , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 4:26 ,

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

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, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 6–4 , Edir Terry , TKO (leg injury) , Titan FC 48 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:05 ,

Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables, officially City of Coral Gables, is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248. Coral Gables is known globally as home to the ...

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, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–2 , Jose Ceja , KO (punches) , Combate Americas: Empire Rising , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:22 ,

Verona, New York Verona (called ''Te-o-na-ta-le'', "''pine forest''" by the Haudenosaunee) is a town in southwestern Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 6,293 at the 2010 census. The town was named after Verona, Italy. Verona is located so ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Jose Ceja , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Legacy FC 52 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 4:45 ,

Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 4–1 ,

Steven Peterson Steven Timothy Peterson (born May 29, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist. Peterson currently competes in the Featherweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2010, Peterson ha ...

, Decision (unanimous) , Legacy FC 46 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Allen, Texas Allen is a city in Collin County in the U.S. state of Texas, and a northern suburb of Dallas. According to the 2020 U.S. census its population was 104,627, up from 84,246 in 2010. Allen is located approximately twenty miles (32.2 km) north ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , John Rivera , TKO (punches) , Fight Time 22: Autism Speaks! , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:34 ,

Sunny Isles Beach, Florida Sunny Isles Beach (SIB, officially the City of Sunny Isles Beach) is a city located on a barrier island in northeast Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The city is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the east and the Intracoastal Waterway on ...

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References

External links

* * Living people Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu 1989 births Mexican male mixed martial artists Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Mexican practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu {{DEFAULTSORT:Rivera, Irwin