Tai Tuivasa

Tai Tuivasa
Born (1993-03-16) 16 March 1993
Sydney, Australia
Other names Bam Bam
Shoeyvasa [1]
Residence St. Marys, Australia
Nationality Australian
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight 265 lb (120 kg; 18.9 st)
Division Heavyweight
Reach 75 in (191 cm)
Style Boxing, Kickboxing
Years active 2012–present
Professional boxing record
Total 7
Wins 5
By knockout 3
Losses 2
Kickboxing record
Total 16
Wins 14
Losses 2
By knockout 1
Mixed martial arts record
Total 8
Wins 8
By knockout 7
By decision 1
Losses 0
Other information
Boxing record from BoxRec
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Tai Tuivasa (born March 16, 1993), is an Australian mixed martial arts fighter currently competing in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of September 20, 2018, he is #11 in the official UFC heavyweight rankings.[2]

Early life

Tuivasa was born in Sydney to an Indigenous Australian mother and a Samoan father.[3] He grew up in the western Sydney suburb of Mt Druitt and predominantly played rugby league in his youth. He was signed by the professional Sydney Roosters rugby league club in 2010 but gave up playing the sport when he developed a gambling addiction.[4]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Tuivasa made his professional MMA debut in August 2012 in his native Australia. He fought sporadically over the next four years, amassing a undefeated record of 5 wins with all of his fights ending in knockouts.[5]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In November 2016, it was announced that Tuivasa had signed a four-fight contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. According to Tuivasa, he had to sit out an extended period due to a knee injury and subsequent surgery.[6]

Tuivasa would make his UFC debut against Rashad Coulter on 19 November 2017 at UFC Fight Night: Werdum vs. Tybura.[7] Tuivasa won the fight via knockout due to a flying knee in the first round and became the first indigenous Australian to win a UFC fight.[8] This win also earned him the Performance of the Night bonus.[9]

Tuivasa faced Cyril Asker on 11 February 2018 at UFC 221.[10] He won the fight via technical knock out in the first round.[11] On 13 February 2018 Tuivasa entered the UFC's official rankings for heavyweight fighters, coming in at position 15.[12]

In March 2018, Tuivasa signed a new, four-fight contract with UFC.[13] Tuivasa faced Andrei Arlovski on 9 June 2018 at UFC 225.[14] He won the fight by unanimous decision.[15]

Tuivasa is scheduled to face Junior dos Santos on December 2, 2018 at UFC Fight Night 142.[16]

Championships and accomplishments

Personal life

Tuivasa is married to the sister of UFC light heavyweight fighter Tyson Pedro.[17][18]

Tuivasa currently hosts "The Halfcast Podcast" with Tyson Pedro as co-host.[19][20][21]

Tuivasa's moniker "Shoeyvasa" was coined by Sydney The Daily Telegraph newspaper after Tuivasa drinking beer from two fans' shoes after he won the bout against Andrei Arlovski at UFC 225.[1][22]

Mixed martial arts record

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 8–0 Andrei Arlovski Decision (unanimous) UFC 225 June 9, 2018 3 5:00 Chicago, Illinois, United States
Win 7–0 Cyril Asker TKO (punches and elbows) UFC 221 11 February 2018 1 2:18 Perth, Australia
Win 6–0 Rashad Coulter KO (flying knee) UFC Fight Night: Werdum vs. Tybura 19 November 2017 1 4:35 Sydney, Australia Performance of the Night.
Win 5–0 James McSweeney TKO (corner stoppage) Australian Fighting Championship 17 15 October 2016 1 5:00 Melbourne, Australia Defended the AFC Heavyweight Championship.
Win 4–0 Brandon Sololi KO (elbow) Australian Fighting Championship 16 18 June 2016 1 0:21 Melbourne, Australia Won the AFC Heavyweight Championship.
Win 3–0 Gul Pohatu TKO (punches) Urban Fight Night 5 12 December 2015 1 0:44 Liverpool, Australia
Win 2–0 Erik Nosa TKO (punches) Gladiators Cage Fighting: Gladiators 3 9 November 2012 1 0:28 Sydney, Australia
Win 1–0 Aaron Nieborak TKO (punches) Gladiators Cage Fighting: Gladiators 2 31 August 2012 1 N/A Sydney, Australia

Professional boxing record

Professional record summary
7 fights 5 wins 2 losses
By knockout 3 0
By decision 1 2
By disqualification 1 0

[23]

No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
7 Lose 5–2 Australia Demsey McKean UD 3 15 April 2016 Australia The Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington, Victoria, Australia Frank Bianco Cup Eight Man Heavyweight tournament Final
6 Win 5–1 Australia David Tuitupou UD 3 15 April 2016 Australia The Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington, Victoria, Australia Frank Bianco Cup Eight Man Heavyweight tournament Semi Final
5 Win 4–1 Australia Hamad Alloush TKO 2, (3)
1:33		 15 April 2016 Australia The Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington, Victoria, Australia Frank Bianco Cup Eight Man Heavyweight tournament Quarter Final
4 Lose 3–1 Australia Michael Kirby UD 3 3 April 2014 Australia The Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington, Victoria, Australia Eight man heavyweight tournament final
3 Win 3–0 Australia Willie Nasio TKO 1, (3)
2:00		 3 April 2014 Australia The Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington, Victoria, Australia Eight man heavyweight tournament Semi final
2 Win 2–0 Australia Brett Smith DQ 1, (3)
3:00		 3 April 2014 Australia The Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington, Victoria, Australia Eight man heavyweight tournament Quarter final
1 Win 1–0 Australia Nathan McKay KO 3, (4)
2:57		 13 December 2013 Australia Olympic Park Sports Centre, Homebush, New South Wales, Australia Professional debut

Kickboxing record (Incomplete)

Kickboxing record

Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest   Notes

Notes

  1. ↑ Tuivasa's kickboxing record was announced at the beginning of his bout with Ismael Lazaar.[24]

References

  1. 1 2 Lamberton, Richard (10 June 2018). "UFC 225 Chicago: Robert Whittaker defeats Yoel Romero in fight of the year; 'Shoeyvasa' returns". The Daily Telegraph.
  2. ↑ "Fighter Rankings | UFC ®". UFC. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  3. ↑ ‘Trying to pay back my heart’: Aussie UFC fighter Tai Tuivasa’s path to redemption
  4. ↑ "Gambling addiction that prompted star to quit NRL". Retrieved 2017-11-19.
  5. ↑ Sherdog.com. "Tai". Sherdog. Retrieved 2018-07-17.
  6. ↑ Alex Oates (2017-08-05). "UFC: Sydney heavyweight Tai Tuivasa slated to fight American Rashad Coulter in November". couriermail.com.au. Retrieved 2017-08-14.
  7. ↑ "Gone in 96 seconds: UFC rookie's record". Retrieved 2017-10-12.
  8. ↑ Former Sydney Roosters player Tai Tuivasa delivers spectacular KO on UFC debut
  9. 1 2 Mazique, Brian. "UFC Fight Night 121 Werdum Vs. Tybura Results: Bonus Winners, Highlights, Analysis, Attendance, Gate". Forbes. Retrieved 2017-11-19.
  10. ↑ "UFC fighters ducking Aussie phenom". Retrieved 2017-12-15.
  11. ↑ "UFC 221 results: Tai Tuivasa destroys Cyril Asker with first-round TKO". MMAjunkie. 2018-02-11. Retrieved 2018-02-11.
  12. ↑ Tai Tuivasa breaks into UFC heavyweight rankings
  13. ↑ Helwani, Ariel (2018-03-21). "Tai Tuivasa signs new four-fight contract with UFC". mmafighting.com.
  14. ↑ Helwani, Ariel (2018-03-16). "Andrei Arlovski vs. Tai Tuivasa slated for UFC 225". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2018-03-16.
  15. ↑ "UFC 225 results: Tai Tuivasa bloodied, battered, but outslugs Andrei Arlovski over three rounds". MMAjunkie. 2018-06-10. Retrieved 2018-06-10.
  16. ↑ "Junior Dos Santos vs Tai Tuivasa set to headline UFC Adelaide". | BJPenn.com. 2018-08-30. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
  17. ↑ "UFC 209: Tyson Pedro out to hit it hard in Las Vegas, just like the man he was named after, Mike Tyson". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-04-21.
  18. ↑ "Tai Tuivasa to join UFC on four-fight deal and will fight in heavyweight division". Herald Sun. Retrieved 2017-04-21.
  19. ↑ The halfcast podcast (2017-10-30), The Halfcast Podcast #1, retrieved 2017-12-24
  20. ↑ The halfcast podcast (2017-11-23), The Halfcast Podcast #2, retrieved 2017-12-24
  21. ↑ The halfcast podcast (2017-12-07), The Halfcast Podcast #3, retrieved 2017-12-24
  22. ↑ "Australia's Whittaker gets split decision at UFC, Tuivasa skols a shoey after undercard win". ABC News. 2018-06-10. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
  23. ↑ "Tai Tuivasa". Boxrec. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
  24. 1 2 "♦♦ Ismael Lazaar vs Tai Tuivasa ♦♦ 16-10-'14 ♦♦ ᴴᴰ". Retrieved 2018-08-15.
  • Professional boxing record for Tai Tuivasa from BoxRec
  • "Tai Tuivasa". UFC.com.
  • Professional MMA record for Tai Tuivasa from Sherdog Edit this at Wikidata
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