Vitor "The Phenom" Belfort

Vitor Belfort started fighting in Mixed Martial Arts tournaments at the age of 19. He busted onto the UFC scene in UFC 12 Judgement Day with two lightning fast fights that lasted a total of two minutes. His popularity skyrocketed as he ground and pounded Tank Abbott into submission in the very next UFC.

He lost his next fight against then unknown fighter/wrestler Randy Couture. Couture was not expected to win this fight, but not only did he do so, he did it by punching Vitor out. A groundswell of disapproval dominated the thoughts of Vitor when everyone started to say that he could not wrestle, so much so that he submitted his next opponent without throwing a punch.

Then came his finest moment as a fighter. He destroyed up and comer Wanderlei Silva in 44 seconds, doing so by punching Silva more than 10 times while they went completely across the ring. Wanderlei was nearly unconscious up against the gates.

Vitor moved over to PRIDE for several years and was not as spectacular as he had been in the UFC. He came back in 2002 and matched up against rising star Chuck Liddell. He lost in a unanimous decision. He won his next match to set him back up for a title shot and rematch against Randy Couture.

Name:	Vitor Belfort
AKA/Nickname:	"The Phenom"
Born:	04/01/1977
Hometown:	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Height:	6' 0" (183 cm)
Weight:	196 lbs. (89 kg)
Division / Class:	Light Heavyweight
UFC Rank:	Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion
MMA Record:	19-8, 13 Knockouts 2 Submissions
UFC Record:	8-4
Last Fight:	Win by Knock Out UFC 103 vs Rich Franklin September 19, 2009
Next Fight:	Sometime in 2010. Most likely vs Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight Belt

Vitor won the Light Heavyweight Championship from Randy due to a cut on his eye early into the first round of the fight. He rematched Vitor and was soundly defeated. This started a bad streak of losing and what many thought was the end of his career.

During this time, he also had a personal battle that he was trying to overcome. His sister had been kidnapped before the first championship fight vs Randy Couture and has not yet been found. Vitor rededicated himself to fighting and is now training with Randy Couture.

His last three fights have shown us that the old Vitor might be back. He is still only 32 years old and could still be in his prime. In his last fight, Rich Franklin said he was prepared for Belfort's speedy hands, but was none the less knocked out convincingly in the first round.

Vitor is now the number 1 contender for the Middleweight championship and a title fight against Anderson Silva is enevitable.

Vitor's most famous fight - his lightning quick hands tell the tale against Wanderlei Silva.

Vitor Belfort's KO punch of Rich Franklin
vitor-belfort-ko--punch-rich-franklin

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