411 Fighter Profile: Andrei Arlovski

Posted by  on 06.24.2008

One of the most feared strikers in the world of MMA is ready to debut in Affliction on July 19th! Before he starts the next phase of his career, catch up on the life and fight history of "The Pitbull" Andrei Arlovski!

Andrei Arlovski

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Nickname: "The Pitbull"
Record: 12-5
Weight: 240 lbs.
Height: 6'3"
Hometown: Minsk, Belarus (currently resides in Chicago, IL)
Ranking #5 Heavyweight
Association: Team Pitbull
Organizations: Affliction (current), UFC, M-1
Accomplishments: Former UFC Heavyweight Champion, 2000 M-1 MFC European Heavyweight Champion

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Introduction

In the world of mixed-martial arts there are few figures as imposing as Andrei Arlovski. In addition to his impressive physique there's the matter of those fangs he's so keen on showing whenever it's time to fight. Once the bell rings he can hit as hard as any man that's ever strapped on a pair of four ounce gloves. Of course he isn't just a striker, as he has shown several times that he's perfectly comfortable waging war on the ground. He's a former heavyweight champion who's at a crossroads in his career. Before the next chapter begins, let's catch up on the life and career of the original "Pitbull."

Early Life

Àíäðýé Àðëî¢ñê³ was born in Minsk, Belarus on February 4th, 1979. As a child he was picked on by bullies and this is what eventually led him to an interest in combat sports. At the age of 14 he began lifting weights to add muscle, in the hopes that it would help him deal with his schoolyard adversaries. Although he had an early interest in playing soccer, at the age of 18 he began to study the martial arts. Shortly thereafter he enrolled at the police academy in Minsk, where all officers had to take a defense training course in Sambo. He soon showed a natural gift for the sport, and would go on to win silver medals at the Sambo World Cup and the World Sambo Championship. In 2000, at the age of 19, Arlovski competed in his first MMA match.

MMA Career

Loss, Viacheslav Datsik, KO (punch), round 1, 6:05
M-1 MFC - World Championship 1999, St. Petersburg, Russia, 04.09.99
-Arlovski's professional debut doesn't quite go as planned. Coincidentally this fight was not only Arlovski's debut, but also the professional debut of his opponent as well.



Win, Michael Tielroov, Submission (guillotine choke), round 1, 1:25
M-1 MFC: European Championship 2000, St. Petersburg, Russia, 04.09.00
Win, Roman Zentsov , TKO (strikes), round 1, 1:18, MFC European Championship 2000
M-1 MFC European: Championship 2000, St. Petersburg, Russia, 04.09.00
-After suffering defeat the year before, Arlovski returns to M-1 and competes in the heavyweight tournament where he wins his next two fights in under three minutes total to claim the 2000 MFC European Championship. It wasn't long afterwards that the bright lights of the UFC came calling.



Win, Aaron Brink, Submission (armbar), round 1, :55
UFC 28: High Stakes, East Rutherford, NJ, 11.11.00
Loss, Ricco Rodriguez, TKO (strikes), round 3, 1:23
UFC 32: Showdown in the Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ, 06.29.01
Loss, Pedro Rizzo, KO (punches), round 3, 1:45
UFC 36: Worlds Collide, Paradise, NV, 03.22.02
Win, Ian Freeman, TKO (punches), round 1, 1:25
UFC 40: Vendetta, Paradise, NV, 11.22.02
Win, Vladimir Matyushenko, KO (punch), round 1, 1:59
UFC 44: Undisputed, Paradise, NV, 09.26.03
Win, Wesley "Cabbage" Correira, TKO (strikes), round 2, 1:15
UFC 47: It‘s On!, Las Vegas, NV, 04.02.04
-Arlovski is matched up with the ultra-tough "Cabbage" in a fight to determine the next #1 contender for the heavyweight belt.



Win, Tim Sylvia, Submission (Achilles lock), round 1, :47, UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship
UFC 51: Super Saturday, Las Vegas, NV, 02.05.05
-After Frank Mir submitted Sylvia to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship, he was badly injured in a motorcycle accident. This led to the creation of an interim belt, with Arlovski taking on the man that Mir had beaten to win the title. Arlovski surprises everyone by making short work of "The Maine-iac."

Win, Justin Eilers, TKO (strikes), round 1, 4:10, UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship
UFC 53: Heavy Hitters, Atlantic City, NJ, 06.04.05
-Not only does Arlovski win, but it was revealed afterwards that Eilers suffered a variety of injuries in the fight, including a broken nose, two broken hands, and a completely torn ACL.



Win, Paul Buentello, KO (punch), round 1, :15, UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship
UFC 55: Fury, Uncasville, CT, 10.07.05
-Arlovski defends the interim belt for the last time. Two months after his win over Buentello it was announced that Frank Mir would not be able to return from his injuries to defend his title, and so Arlovski was promoted to undisputed heavyweight champion.

Loss, Tim Sylvia, TKO (punches), round 1, 2:43, UFC Heavyweight Championship
UFC 59: Reality Check, Anaheim, CA, 04.15.06
-Sylvia battled back into title contention and gets a second chance at Arlovski. This time Big Tim used a more cautious approach, a style that he could carry on for the remainder of his UFC career.



Loss, Tim Sylvia, Decision (unanimous), round 5, 5:00, UFC Heavyweight Championship
UFC 61: Bitter Rivals, Las Vegas, NV, 07.08.06
-Third time is certainly not the charm as Arlovski and Sylvia are put in a rubber match to complete their trilogy. Unfortunately the fight is nothing like their two previous meetings, and Tim wins a somewhat anti-climatic decision. Later is it discovered that Arlovski had injured his left leg during the fight, although he never disclosed it to anyone. The injury would've gone unannounced had the news not been leaked that Arlovski was having an MRI done the week after the fight.

Win, Marcio Cruz, KO (strikes), round 1, 3:15
UFC 66: Liddell vs. Ortiz II, Las Vegas, NV, 12.30.06
-An interesting fight with a great finish.



Win, Fabricio Werdum, Decision (unanimous), round 3, 5:00
UFC 70: Nations Collide, Manchester, England, 04.21.07
-Here's the fight that caused Arlovski a lot of problems. Neither man really engaged the other during the bout, which caused the referee to intervene at the beginning of the third round and threaten to take a point away from the first man to retreat. This would be Arlovski's only fight in 2007.

Win, Jake O'Brien, TKO (punches), round 2, 4:17
UFC 82: Pride Of A Champion, Columbus, OH, 03.01.08
-In the final fight on his UFC contract Arlovski is relegated to the undercard for the first time in over six years and hands O'Brien his first career loss. It was interesting to see the fighter salaries released after the event, if only because Arlovski was the only man fighting on the pre-lims that was also making six-figures.

The Future

On July 19th Arlovski will do something he hasn't done in over eight years: fight outside of the UFC. He'll debut at Affliction: Banned where he'll face former IFL competitor Ben Rothwell. With the talent pool currently under the Affliction banner there are some intriguing possibilities down the road. In the next few years we could see Arlovski match up against Josh Barnett, Fedor Emelianenko, or possibly even his old nemesis Tim Sylvia. It has also been reported that the split with the UFC was amicable, so there is still the chance that we may see "The Pitbull" inside the octagon again someday. No matter where he goes there's little doubt that his fans will be excited, and his opponents will be terrified.

Official Website of Andrei Arlovski
Official MySpace of Andrei Arlovski