Welterweight UFC fighter, Paulo Thiago Alencar Arunes is a Brazilian
mixed martial artist and member of the Bad Boy Team.
Ranked number 9 by MMA Weekly and number 7 by Sherdog, Thiago was
born on January 25, 1981. He made his professional debut in 2005
at Storm Samurai against Ricardo Petrucio where he won by
submission in the third round.
Exactly one year later he competed in the Grand Prix Planaltina
and won all three fights via submissionmwhich won him the
tournament title.
Bad Boy Paulo Thiago UFC® Walkout T-shirt
2010 Topps UFC Main Event #31 Paulo Thiago
After two more wins, Paul was signed by Jungle Fights MMA. He won
four fights for the organization and was then signed by the
Ultimate Fighting Championships.
On February 21, 2009, Thiago went up against top contender
Josh Koscheck at UFC 95. With a right uppercut
and a left hook, Thiago won by KO. Koscheck argued that he was
still alert and able to defend himself but a replay of the fight
showed otherwise. Thiago won the Knockout of the Night Award as
well.
Jon Fitch was Paul's next contender. The
two faced off at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009 in Las Vegas. It was
Thiago's first fight in the United States. He lost via
unanimous decision.
But he would redeem himself at UFC 107 on November 21, 2009 at
the Mandalay Bay Events Center where he defeated Jacob Volkman, a
UFC newcomer by unanimous decision.
A rematch with Koscheck was set for UFC 109 but Koscheck backed
out due to an undisclosed injury. Mike Swick, AKA team-mate,
replaced him. Thiago won by submission in round two, winning
himself a win and his second UFC fight bonus as well.
But the next fight Thiago would not fare as well. Up against
Martin Kampmann on June 12, 2010 at UFC 115, he lost via
unanimous decision.
And again at UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez on October 23,
2010, Thiago lost by unanimous decision to Diego Sanchez. Though Thiago came out strong
at the start of the fight by Sanchez' wrestling abilities
proved too much for him. Both fighters won Fight of the Night
awards though and an extra paycheck as well.
Thiago signed a four fight deal with the UFC in November of 2010.
He is a member of the elite special force police in Brazil and
trains with the constrictor Team which is affiliated with Team
Black House where Anderson Silva and the Nogueria brothers train. He is
married and has twins.
In keeping with regulations, Thiago wears UFC gloves in the ring. He is most known for being a
well-rounded fighter with strong counter punching and a very
solid BJJ background with emphasis in Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai.
