Alexis Vila Perdomo (born March 12, 1971) is a Cuban professional mixed martial artist. An accomplished wrestler, Vila is also a two-time

World Champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

and 1996 Olympic bronze medallist. At the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

he won the bronze medal in the Freestyle Light Flyweight (– 48 kg) category.

Background

Born and raised in a rough neighborhood in Villa Clara, Cuba, Vila began getting into

street fights Street fighting or street combat is hand-to-hand combat in public places between individuals or groups of people. The venue is usually a public place (e.g., a street), and the fight sometimes results in serious injury or even death. Some street ...

from a young age. After winning multiple titles in

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

and earning a bronze medal at the

in Atlanta, Georgia, Vila defected to the United States in 1997 and found a job coaching at

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

where he worked with future

UFC 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 TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...

fighters

Rashad Evans Rashad Evans (born September 25, 1979) is an American retired mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competed in the Light Heavyweight (MMA), Light Heavyweight division. Evans started his professional MMA career in 2003, and was the Heavyw ...

and

Gray Maynard Bradley Gray Maynard (born May 9, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight and Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Between 2008 and 2011, he competed in a noted rivalry with forme ...

. In 2004, Vila accidentally crashed his car into

Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

. Though no one was hurt, authorities mistakenly believed it to be attempted terrorism and Vila was charged with airport violence and sent to prison for three years. Upon his release, Vila began his career in

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

Mixed martial arts career

Bellator Fighting Championships

Vila made his

Bellator Bellator, warrior in Latin, may refer to: * Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States * Bishop Bellator of Sufetula (5th century) Taxonomy * ''Bellator'' (fish), a fish genus in the family Triglidae (sea robins) ** ...

debut by defeating

Featherweight Champion Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, thi ...

Joe Warren in the quarterfinals of the

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class ...

tournament at

Bellator 51 2011 in Bellator MMA was the fourth installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships. Mixed martial arts tournaments were held in multiple weight classes, including three of the original tournament classes: Welterweight, Lightweight and Feathe ...

. Vila next faced

Marcos Galvao Marcos may refer to: People with the given name ''Marcos'' *Marcos (given name) * Marcos family Sports ;Surnamed * Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century) * Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer * Né ...

and won by controversial split decision. In the finals, Vila faced Eduardo Dantas for the Season 5 Bellator Bantamweight Tournament Championship. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Vila's next fight was against

Luis Nogueira Luis Alberto Nogueira (born April 10, 1985) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist who competes in the bantamweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2008, Nogueira has mostly fought for Shooto Brazil before making his U.S. ...

in the Quarterfinals of the Season 6 Bantamweight Tournament. Vila lost via unanimous decision.

World Series of Fighting

Vila faced Josh Rettinghouse in a

bout at World Series of Fighting 6: Burkman vs. Carl on October 26, 2013. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Vila faced Sidemar Honorio at WSOF 8. He won the bout via unanimous decision. Vila then faced Brandon Hempleman at WSOF 12 on August 9, 2014. Vila lost via unanimous decision.

Other promotions

Vila faced Brazilian prospect Marcel Adur at Fight Time 23: Mayhem In Miami on February 6, 2015. He lost the fight via body kick TKO, suffering the first TKO loss of his career.

Personal life

He has a daughter in Cuba. He married Adriana Vila Perdomo (née De La Cruz) in Miami on April 26, 2012, but later divorced. She is now married to fellow Cuban boxer Joel Casamayor. On April 23, 2018, Vila was arrested for charges including 2nd degree murder. In December 2019, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison following his conviction for his role in organizing the kidnapping, torture and murder of Camilo Salazar.

Mixed martial arts record

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WSOF 6 World Series of Fighting 6: Burkman vs. Carl was a mixed martial arts event held in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. Background This event featured the first WSOF Championship bout between Josh Burkman and Steve Carl. Results ...

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Joshua Sampo Joshua Ashley Sampo (born July 24, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed in Ultimate Fighting Championship's flyweight division. Mixed martial arts career Early career Sampo started his professional career in 2009 ...

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Marcos Galvão Marcos Galvão (born 23 June 1982) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Featherweight division of the Professional Fighters League. A professional competitor since 2003, Galvão peaked at a global ranking ...

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References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vila, Alexis 1971 births Living people Wrestlers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Cuban male sport wrestlers Olympic wrestlers for Cuba Olympic bronze medalists for Cuba Cuban male mixed martial artists Flyweight mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing freestyle wrestling Defecting sportspeople from Cuba Cuban emigrants to the United States Olympic medalists in wrestling Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Pan American Games gold medalists for Cuba Pan American Games gold medalists in wrestling Wrestlers at the 1995 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1995 Pan American Games American people convicted of murder Sportspeople from Villa Clara Province Sportspeople convicted of crimes Sportspeople convicted of murder