Ilir Latifi (born July 28, 1983) is a Swedish

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 previously fought in the

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...

division of the

UFC 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 ...

. A two-time national wrestling champion and a professional

MMA 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 strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...

competitor since 2008, Latifi has also competed in

Shark Fights Shark Fights was a mixed martial arts promotion based in Amarillo, Texas. It made its debut on October 24, 2008. On September 11, 2010 Shark Fights had its biggest card in Shark Fights history by having UFC veterans Jorge Masvidal, Keith Jardin ...

, Rumble of The Kings, and GLORY.

Mixed martial arts career

Background

With a considerable number of wrestlers in his family, Latifi began wrestling at a young age. Latifi continued to wrestle in order to pursue his dream of one day being world champion. In 2005, he began to follow in his older brother's footsteps by training MMA as a result of his dissatisfaction with the constant rule changes in wrestling. Latifi competed at the 2005 ADCC European trials, where his division was won by

Alistair Overeem Alistair Cees Overeem (born 17 May 1980) is a Dutch professional heavyweight mixed martial artist and kickboxer, currently competing in the heavyweight division of Glory. He is a former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, Dream Heavyweight Cha ...

, but he did not earn a spot at the 2005 ADCC championships. Although Latifi did not compete at the 2009 ADCC European Trials, he was invited to the 2009 ADCC Championships, where he lost in the first round to

Alexandre Ribeiro Alexandre Ribeiro (born January 20, 1981) is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner, mixed martial artist and submission wrestler. He is a two-time World Black Belt Absolute (open weight) World ...

via points (2–0).

Early career

Latifi started his career as a heavyweight. His first professional MMA fight was on May 17, 2008 with the Real Pain Challenge promotion against future Bellator fighter and WSOF Heavyweight champion

Blagoi Ivanov Blagoy Ivanov ( bg, Благой Александров Иванов; born October 9, 1986) is a Bulgarian mixed martial artist and Sambo practitioner. He is currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he competes ...

. However, the fight was ruled a

no contest ' is a legal term that comes from the Latin phrase for "I do not wish to contend". It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. In criminal trials in certain United States jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neith ...

55 seconds into the first round, as Latifi drove Ivanov into one of the posts on the ring and destroyed it. Next he fought future UFC heavyweight Christian Colombo on September 6, 2008. The bout was first booked as a professional contest, but would later be changed to an amateur or semi-pro bout which is not listed on the fighters professional records. Latifi won the fight by submission due to a north-south choke in the first round. Back in professional competition Latifi had his last fight as a heavyweight, before dropping down to light heavyweight, on October 25, 2008 at Superior Challenge 2, where he defeated Roman Mihocka by knockout in the second round. He holds a notable win over MMA- and kickboxing veteran Tony Lopez. Lopez came in to the fight on a 7-fight winning streak. Latifi used his superior wrestling and also his improved striking to shut Lopez down to win a unanimous decision. He has also fought against former Bellator Light Heavyweight champion and former MFC Light Heavyweight Champion

Emanuel Newton Emanuel Newton (born February 1, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial artist who competed in Bellator's Light Heavyweight division, where he is a former Bellator Light Heavyweight World Champion. He has also competed for WEC, King of the ...

and

Tatsuya Mizuno (born June 2, 1981) is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division. A professional competitor since 2006, he has fought for DREAM, Pancrase, DEEP, M-1 Global, ProElite, ONE FC, K-1, and also participated in ...

. His early career success has led to Latifi being ranked as one of the top

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruise ...

s in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. He became the first Superior Challenge Light Heavyweight Champion after defeating Jorge Oliveira for the vacant belt on October 6, 2012 at Superior Challenge 8.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Latifi made his UFC debut against at the time #10 ranked, former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion

Gegard Mousasi Gegard Mousasi (born 1 August 1985), is a Dutch mixed martial artist and former kickboxer, currently competing in Bellator MMA, where he is the former two-time Bellator Middleweight Champion. As of December 13, 2022, he is #10 in the Bellator MMA ...

on April 6, 2013 at

UFC on Fuel TV 9 ''UFC on Fuel TV: Mousasi vs. Latifi'' (also known as ''UFC on Fuel TV 9'' or ''UFC Sweden 2'') was a mixed martial arts event held on April 6, 2013, at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. The event was broadcast live on Fuel TV. Ba ...

, on four days notice, reportedly cutting weight from 105 kg (231 lbs) to 93.4 kg (206 lbs), replacing his injured training partner

Alexander Gustafsson Alexander Gustafsson (born 15 January 1987) is a Swedish professional mixed martial artist. Gustafsson currently competes in the light heavyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Gustafsson spent a major part of his MMA ...

. Latifi lost the fight via unanimous decision. After the fight UFC President

Dana White Dana Frederick White Jr. (born July 28, 1969) is an American businessman who serves as president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a global mixed martial arts organization. In August 2019, White's net worth was estimated at $500 milli ...

praised Latifi for taking a fight against a top 10 fighter like Mousasi on such short notice and promised that Latifi would get another fight in the promotion. In his second fight for the promotion, Latifi fought MMA- and kickboxing veteran

Cyrille Diabaté Cyrille Moktar Diabaté (born October 6, 1973) is a retired French mixed martial artist and kickboxer. He has also competed in shoot boxing and Muay Thai. He has fought at Palace Fighting Championship, Tachi Palace Fights, PRIDE, ShoXC, Deep, ...

on March 8, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 37. Latifi won the fight via submission in the first round. His opponent, Diabaté retired from

and the UFC following his loss to Latifi. Latifi was later expected to face

Tom Lawlor Thomas Joseph Lawlor (born May 15, 1983) is an American professional wrestler, retired mixed martial artist and podcast host. He is best known for his time in Major League Wrestling (MLW), where he was a former one-time MLW World Heavyweight Cham ...

on July 19, 2014 at

UFC Fight Night 46 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 ...

. However, Lawlor later had to withdraw from the bout citing an injury, and was replaced by promotional newcomer Chris Dempsey. Latifi effectively used leg kicks to disable his opponent, before finishing him with punches, ending the fight via first-round knockout. Latifi faced promotional newcomer

Jan Błachowicz Jan Maciej Błachowicz (; born 24 February 1983) is a Polish professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Cham ...

on October 4, 2014 at

UFC Fight Night 53 ''UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Story'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 53'') was a mixed martial arts event held on October 4, 2014, at Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. Background This event was the third event that the UFC hosted in St ...

. He lost the fight via TKO in the first round. Latifi next faced

Hans Stringer Hans Stringer (born July 6, 1987) is a Dutch mixed martial artist who last competed in 2016. Background Growing up in the Netherlands, Stringer began training in kickboxing in 2003, and mixed martial arts a year later. Stringer spent some time s ...

on July 18, 2015 at

UFC Fight Night 72 ''UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Leites'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 72'') was a mixed martial arts event held on 18 July 2015 at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. Background After previously hosting 15 events at various locations around ...

. He won the fight by knockout after dropping Stringer with an overhand right and following up with punches on the ground, stopping the fight 56 seconds into the first round. Latifi faced

Sean O'Connell Sean O'Connell was a Gaelic football manager and player who featured for the Derry county team in the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s and was on the Derry side that finished runners-up to Dublin in the 1958 All-Ireland Championship – winning a ...

on January 17, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 81 ''UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 81'') was a mixed martial arts event held on January 17, 2016, at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Background A UFC Bantamweight Championship bout between defending ...

. He won the fight by knockout, having landed a vicious overhand right that wobbled O'Connell, followed by a right hook that dropped him to the canvas, 28 seconds into the first round. Following the fight, Latifi expressed his desire to fight in a main event in his hometown

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...

. Latifi faced

Gian Villante Gianpiero Villante (born August 18, 1985) is a retired American mixed martial artist who previously fought in the heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional from 2009 to 2021, he also has competed for Strikeforce ...

on March 5, 2016 at

UFC 196 ''UFC 196: McGregor vs. Diaz'' was a mixed martial arts event held on March 5, 2016 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Background The event was officially announced in November 2015 as "UFC 197," taking place on March 5, 2016 at HS ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Latifi next faced

Ryan Bader Arizona State Sun Devils Ryan DuWayne Bader (born June 7, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist currently signed to Bellator MMA where he is the current Bellator Heavyweight Champion, the former Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion, an ...

on September 3, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 93 ''UFC Fight Night: Arlovski vs. Barnett'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 93'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on September 3, 2016, at Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany. Background After h ...

. He lost the fight via knockout in the second round. Latifi was expected to face

Antônio Rogério Nogueira Antônio Rogério Nogueira (; born 2 June 1976), also known as Minotouro or Lil Nog, is a Brazilian former mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the UFC. He is the twin brother of Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira, the "Minotauro ...

on June 25, 2017 at

UFC Fight Night 112 ''UFC Fight Night: Chiesa vs. Lee'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 112'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on June 25, 2017, at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Background The ...

. However, on May 17, it was announced that Nogueira pulled out due to a neck injury. Subsequently, despite having six weeks to secure a replacement opponent, promotion officials elected to remove Latifi from the event entirely. Latifi faced undefeated prospect

Tyson Pedro Tyson Pedro (born 17 September 1991) is an Australian mixed martial artist who competes in the Light heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Pedro is an Australian of Spanish, American Samoa heritage. ...

on September 9, 2017 at

UFC 215 ''UFC 215: Nunes vs. Shevchenko 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on September 9, 2017 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Background The promotion was initially planning a PPV even ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision, handing Pedro the first loss of his career. Latifi was expected to face

Ovince Saint Preux Ovince Saint Preux (born April 8, 1983) is a Haitian-American professional mixed martial artist who competes in the light heavyweight division of the UFC. A professional competitor since 2008, Saint Preux has also formerly competed for Strikef ...

on January 27, 2018 at

UFC on Fox 27 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 ...

. However, he was injured during a training session and was forced to pull from the event, and the bout was cancelled. The pair was rebooked and took place on February 24, 2018 at

UFC on Fox 28 ''UFC on Fox: Emmett vs. Stephens'' (also known as ''UFC on Fox 28'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on February 24, 2018, at Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, United States. Background The even ...

. Latifi won the fight via submission in the first round. This win earned him the

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

bonus. Latifi was expected to face

Glover Teixeira Glover Lucas Teixeira (; born 28 October 1979) is a Brazilian-American mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champi ...

on July 22, 2018 at

UFC Fight Night 134 ''UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Smith'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 134'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on July 22, 2018, at Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany. Background The event was ...

. However, on July 5, 2018, it was announced that he was pulled from the event, citing injury. Latifi faced Corey Anderson on December 29, 2018 at

UFC 232 ''UFC 232: Jones vs. Gustafsson 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on December 29, 2018 at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Background A UFC Light Heavyweight Championship bout b ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Latifi was expected to face

Volkan Oezdemir Volkan Oezdemir (born 19 September 1989) is a Swiss professional mixed martial artist and former kickboxing practitioner. He currently competes in the Light heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competi ...

on June 1, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 153. On May 30, 2019 it was reported that Latifi was forced to pull out of the event due to back injury and the bout was cancelled. The pair was rebooked at

UFC on ESPN 5 ''UFC on ESPN: Covington vs. Lawler'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 5'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 3, 2019, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Background T ...

on August 3, 2019. In turn, due to Oezdemir having visa issues to enter United States, the bout was moved to August 10, 2019 at

UFC Fight Night 156 ''UFC Fight Night: Shevchenko vs. Carmouche 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 156'' or ''UFC on ESPN+ 14'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 10, 2019 at Antel Arena in Mon ...

. He lost the fight via knockout in the second round.

Move up to heavyweight

On October 14, 2019, news surfaced that Latifi will be moving up to heavyweight division. Latifi faced

Derrick Lewis Derrick James Lewis (born February 7, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he currently holds the record for most knockouts ...

on February 8, 2020 at

UFC 247 ''UFC 247: Jones vs. Reyes'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 8, 2020 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, United States. Background A UFC Light Heavyweight Championship ...

. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Latifi faced

Tanner Boser Tanner Vilbon Nicholas Boser (born August 2, 1991) is a Canadian mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter who is currently signed to the UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship Heavyweight division. He had previously competed for Unified MMA, where he won the ...

on June 5, 2021 at UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Sakai. He won the fight via split decision. Latifi was next expected to face Alexander Romanov at

UFC Fight Night 202 ''UFC Fight Night: Makhachev vs. Green'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 202'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 60'' and ''UFC Vegas 49'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 26, 2022 at the U ...

on February 19, 2022. However, the bout was cancelled for undisclosed reasons. Latifi was scheduled to face

Alexey Oleynik Aleksei Alexeyevich Oleinik (born June 25, 1977, as Oleksíy Oleksíyovych Olíynyk) is a Russian mixed martial artist and Sambo (martial art)#Styles, combat sambo fighter who fought for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, competing in their ...

on March 26, 2022 at

UFC Fight Night 205 ''UFC Fight Night: Lemos vs. Andrade'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 205'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 63'' or ''UFC Vegas 52'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 23, 2022, at the UF ...

. However, the day of the event, Latifi withdrew due to illness and the bout was cancelled. The pair was rescheduled to meet on two weeks later at

UFC 273 ''UFC 273: Volkanovski vs. The Korean Zombie'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 9, 2022, at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Backgroun ...

on April 9, 2022. In turn, Latifi withdrew again for unknown reasons and was replaced by

Jared Vanderaa Jared Vanderaa (born May 12, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Vanderaa was born in Washington but moved around a lot with his mother in pursuit o ...

. The pair was yet again rescheduled for

UFC Fight Night 211 ''UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Yan'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 211'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 69'' and ''UFC Vegas 61'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 1, 2022, at the UFC Apex ...

on October 1, 2022. Latifi won the bout via unanimous decision. In the post-fight interview he said that, having reached the age of 40 and the end of his UFC contract, he was unsure of his future in the sport, and that it might have been his last fight. In the same interview he revealed fighting with possible

staph infection A staphylococcal infection or staph infection is an infection caused by members of the ''Staphylococcus'' genus of bacteria. These bacteria commonly inhabit the skin and nose where they are innocuous, but may enter the body through cuts or abrasio ...

which he didn't disclose to the athletic commission and was later suspended for three months, making him eligible to return on January 1, 2023.

Personal life

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

origin, Latifi's parents emigrated from

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

in the 1960s. Latifi was raised in

Rosengård Rosengård (literally "Rose Manor") was a city district ( sv, stadsdel) in the center of Malmö Municipality, Sweden. On 1 July 2013, it was merged with Husie, forming Öster. In 2012, Rosengård had a population of 23,563 of the municipality' ...

, where he befriended football player

Zlatan Ibrahimović Zlatan Ibrahimović (, ; born 3 October 1981) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a striker for club AC Milan and the Sweden national team. Ibrahimović is renowned for his acrobatic strikes and volleys, powerful long-range sho ...

. His brother Arben "the king" Latifi, who Ilir has described as his greatest influence in life, is a black belt in

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

and was one of the pioneers of Swedish MMA in the early days, winning both the championship in European Open BJJ and the Panamerican Championship during his active career. In 2016, Latifi was awarded role model of the year and received the most votes for the people's choice award in the annual Swedish martial arts awards ceremony ''Kampsportsgalan''.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

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 ...

(One time) vs.

**Tied ( Anthony Johnson &

) for most Light Heavyweight stoppage victories in less than one minute in UFC history (2) *Superior Challenge **Superior Challenge Light Heavyweight Championship (One time; First)

Submission wrestling

Abu Dhabi Combat Club The ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship, is an international submission wrestling, submission grappling competition, organised by the Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC). The inaugural tournament was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE in 1998. It has been ...

**2003 ADCC European Championships **2004 ADCC European Qualifiers Winner

Amateur wrestling

*Nordic Wrestling Association **2001 Nordic Championship Junior -97 kg (213 lbs) Greco-Roman Championship *Swedish Wrestling Federation **2005 Swedish National Light Heavyweight Greco-Roman Championship

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 16–8 (1) ,

Aleksei Oleinik Aleksei Alexeyevich Oleinik (born June 25, 1977, as Oleksíy Oleksíyovych Olíynyk) is a Russian mixed martial artist and combat sambo fighter who fought for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, competing in their heavyweight division. He be ...

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Dern vs. Yan , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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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Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

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, KO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Shevchenko vs. Carmouche 2 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:31 ,

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, Uruguay , , - , Loss , align=center, 14–6 (1) , Corey Anderson , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

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, Technical Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC on Fox: Emmett vs. Stephens , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:48 ,

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

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Edmonton, Alberta Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anchor ...

, Canada , , - , Loss , align=center, 12–5 (1) ,

, KO (knee) , UFC Fight Night: Arlovski vs. Barnett , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:06 ,

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

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, KO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Leites , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:56 ,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Scotland , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–4 (1) ,

, TKO (body kick and punches) , UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Story , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:58 ,

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, Sweden , , - , Win , align=center, 9–3 (1) , Chris Dempsey , KO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: McGregor vs. Brandao , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:07 ,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, Ireland , , - , Win , align=center, 8–3 (1) ,

, Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs. Manuwa , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:02 ,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

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, Decision (unanimous) , UFC on Fuel TV: Mousasi vs. Latifi , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, Russia , , - , Loss , align=center, 4–2 (1) ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Shark Fights 17: Horwich vs. Rosholt 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 (1) , Matteo Minonzio , TKO (head kick) , Strength and Honor Championship 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:29 ,

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

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, TKO (knee and punches) , Rumble of the Kings 4 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:15 ,

Norrköping Norrköping (; ) is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County, about 160 km southwest of the national capital Stockholm, 40 km east of county seat Linköp ...

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Blagoy Ivanov Blagoy Ivanov ( bg, Благой Александров Иванов; born October 9, 1986) is a Bulgarian mixed martial artist and Sambo (martial art), Sambo practitioner. He is currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UF ...

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Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

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Hvidovre Hvidovre is the main town in Hvidovre Municipality, Denmark. The town, a suburb of Copenhagen, is about 10 km southwest of the capital's center. It is the 2nd biggest suburb of Copenhagen, only beaten by Frederiksberg. History Hvidovre has ...

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References

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Latifi, Ilir Living people Swedish male mixed martial artists Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling Swedish male sport wrestlers Amateur wrestlers 1983 births Swedish people of Albanian descent Sportspeople from Malmö Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters

Mixed martial arts career

Background

Early career

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Move up to heavyweight

Personal life

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Submission wrestling

Amateur wrestling

Mixed martial arts record

See also

References

External links