Vinicius Moreira Castro (born February 28, 1989) is a Brazilian

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 ...

currently competing in the

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 ...

division. He is most known for his time spent fighting in the

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 ...

(UFC).

Background

Inspired by Minotauro Nogueira's fights in

Pride FC PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

, Moreira started training jiu-jitsu in 2006 as his first martial art. After growing unmotivated by jiu-jitsu, he started training mixed martial arts in 2015, making his professional debut in the following year.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Moreira began his MMA career by compiling an MMA record of 8–1 by competing mainly within the Brazilian regional MMA circuit as well as in India for

Super Fight League Super Fight League is a mixed martial arts promotion, based in India. The organisation was formed in 2012 by actor Sanjay Dutt and British-Indian businessman Raj Kundra, and is currently co-owned by British-Indian businessman Bill Dosanjh and ...

Dana White's Contender Series Brazil

Moreira faced John Allan on August 11, 2018, at Dana White's Contender Series Brazil 3. He won the fight via submission with a triangle choke and was awarded with a UFC contract.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Moreira made his UFC debut against

Alonzo Menifield Alonzo Menifield (born October 18, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2015, he has formerly fought in Bellator and the ...

on January 19, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw. He lost the fight via technical knockout due to punches in the first round. Moreira then faced

Eryk Anders Eryk Ryan Anders (born April 21, 1987) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former American football linebacker. He competes in the Middleweight division of the UFC. He played college football at the University of Alabama. Early ...

on June 29, 2019, at UFC on ESPN: Ngannou vs. dos Santos. He lost the fight via knockout due to punches in the first round. Moreira next faced

Paul Craig Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

on September 21, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Rodríguez vs. Stephens. He lost the fight via submission with a rear-naked choke in the first round. Moreira was scheduled to face

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 February 23, 2020, at UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. Hooker. However, Pedro withdrew from the bout in early January due to an undisclosed injury. Moreira was expected to face

Modestas Bukauskas Modestas Bukauskas (born 10 February 1994) is a Lithuanian and British mixed martial artist who competes in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is the former two-time Cage Warriors Light Heavyweight Cha ...

on July 15, 2020, 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 ...

. However, on July 3, Moreira tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and was removed from the event. On January 15, Moreira received a public warning by

USADA The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, ) is a non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization and the national anti- doping organization (NADO) for the United States. To protect clean competition and the integrity of sport and prevent ...

due to an out-of-competition positive test for

anastrozole Anastrozole, sold under the brand name Arimidex among others, is a medication used in addition to other treatments for breast cancer. Specifically it is used for hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. It has also been used to prevent breast ca ...

in September 2020. He had provided a supplement that was proven to be tainted with the substance. Moreira was scheduled to face

Ike Villanueva Isaac "Ike" James Villanueva (born April 4, 1984), is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Mixed martial arts career Early career Starting his career in 2008, Vi ...

on January 30, 2021, at

UFC Fight Night 186 ''UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gane'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 186'', ''UFC on ESPN+ 44'' and ''UFC Vegas 20'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on February 27, 2021, at the ...

. In late December 2020, the UFC opted against holding an event on a planned January 30 date and decided to reschedule several bouts to January 20, 2021, at UFC on ESPN: Magny vs. Chiesa. He lost the fight by knockout in the second round. On February 4, 2021, it was announced that Moreira was released from his UFC contract.

Post UFC

Moreira made his first appearance after his UFC release against Rodrigo Duarte on August 8, 2021, at Brazilian Fighting Series 1. He won the bout after the bout was stopped by the doctor after the first round. Moreira faced Aleksandr Maslov at Open Fight Championship 9 on August 27, 2021, for the OFC Heavyweight Championship. He lost the bout via unanimous decision. Moreira faced

Mikhail Mokhnatkin Mikhail Aleksandrovich Mokhnatkin (russian: Михаил Александрович Мохнаткин; born 16 January 1990) is a Russian Combat Sambo and mixed martial arts practitioner. He is a World and European Champion in 100 kg. In mi ...

on December 19, 2021, at Open Fighting Championship 15. He lost via unanimous decision. Moreira returned against Sergey Dyakonov at MMA Series 53 on June 24, 2022. He lost the bout via unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

*Fam Fight MMA ** FFMMA Heavyweight Championship (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 10–8 , Sergey Dyakonov , Decision (unanimous) , MMA Series 53 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

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, 10–7 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Open Fighting Championship 15 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Russia , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–6 , Aleksandr Maslov , Decision (unanimous) , Open Fighting Championship 9 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Ekaterinburg Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administrat ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 10–5 , Rodrigo Duarte , TKO (doctor stoppage) , Brazilian Fighting Series 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–5 ,

, KO (punch) , UFC on ESPN: Magny vs. Chiesa , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:39 ,

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

, United Arab Emirates , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–4 ,

, Submission (rear-naked choke) , UFC Fight Night: Rodríguez vs. Stephens , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:19 ,

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

, Mexico , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–3 ,

, KO (punches) , UFC on ESPN: Ngannou vs. dos Santos , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:18 ,

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–2 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:56 ,

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 , John Allan , Submission (triangle choke) , Dana White's Contender Series Brazil 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:40 ,

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 ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Jason Radcliffe , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , SFL 2018 Semifinals: Haryana Sultans vs. U.P. Nawabs , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:07 ,

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

, India , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Sachin Kumar , Submission (armbar) , SFL 2018: Sher-E-Punjab vs. Haryana Sultans , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:24 ,

, India , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Amit Thapa , Submission (rear-naked choke) , SFL 2018: Haryana Sultans vs. Mumbai Maniacs , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:05 ,

, India , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , José Aparecido Santos Gomes , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , SFL 2018: Haryana Sultans vs. Bengaluru Tigers , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

, India , , - , Loss , align=center, 4–1 , Rafael Celestino , KO (punches) , Shooto Brazil 77 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:27 ,

Brasília Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Renan Ferreira , Submission (armbar) , Fam Fight Night , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:37 ,

Goiânia Goiânia (; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Goiás. With a population of 1,536,097, it is the second-largest city in the Central-West Region and the 10th-largest in the country. Its metropolitan area has a population ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Vinicius Lima , Submission (keylock) , The Warriors Combat 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:39 ,

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Gustavo Moralis , TKO (punches) , Magal Fight 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:54 ,

Alexânia Alexânia is a municipality in central Goiás state, Brazil. Alexânia is known for its alleged extraterrestrial sightings in the late sixties and early seventies. The Areias River passes through the municipality. Location It is located on th ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Gabriel Scheufler , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Fight K Águia , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:57 , Gama, Brazil , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Moreria, Vinicius 1989 births Living people Light heavyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian male mixed martial artists Brazilian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Sportspeople from the Federal District (Brazil) Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters