Cezar Jesus Ferreira (born February 15, 1985), better known in his home country

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

as Cezar Mutante, is a

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

currently competing in the

light heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruis ...

division. A professional MMA competitor since 2007, he has competed for the

Ultimate Fighting Championship 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 Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

and

Professional Fighters League The Professional Fighters League (PFL) is an American mixed martial arts league founded by venture capitalist Donn Davis in 2017 and launched in 2018, following the acquisition and restructuring of the former World Series of Fighting (WSOF) promo ...

. He was also the inaugural winner of

Globo Globo (meaning ''globe'' in Portuguese, Spanish and Italian) may refer to: *Grupo Globo, a Brazilian conglomerate primarily in mass media **TV Globo, a television network *** GloboNews, a television 24-hour news channel *** Globo (Portuguese TV c ...

's The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil

Background

Ferreira was born in

Catanduva Catanduva is a municipality in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The population is 122,497 (2020 est.) in an area of 290.59 km2. Is the second largest city in the Northern part of the state, after São José do Rio Preto. The city has a dive ...

, but grew up in Ibitinga, São Paulo. He began training

capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics, music and spirituality. Born of the melting pot of enslaved Africans, Indigenous Brazilians and Portuguese influences at the beginning of the 16th centur ...

at the age of six. Cezar grew up

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

and practicing

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting ( ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

throughout his childhood and adolescence. Viewing tapes of

UFC Hall of Fame The UFC Hall of Fame is a hall of fame which honors mixed martial artists and MMA personalities, established and maintained by the U.S.-based mixed martial arts promotion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). In addition to the Ultimate Fighting ...

Royce Gracie Royce Gracie (; born 12 December 1966) is a Brazilian retired professional mixed martial artist, a UFC Hall of Famer, and a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu practitioner. A member of the Gracie family, he is considered to be one of the most influential figure ...

fighting caused his interest in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and MMA to grow. However, after having a rough home life and having to leave at seventeen years old, Mutante found

Vitor Belfort Vítor Vieira Belfort (; born 1 April 1977) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Heavyweight and Middleweight divisions. Belfort previously competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he fought in the Heavyw ...

who took him in as his own son, helping to raise him and take care of him. Belfort began training Ferreira in MMA at his gym.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

On April 29, 2007, Ferreira made his professional debut in a one-night middleweight tournament for Xtreme Fighting Championships in Brazil. He fought Andre Severo, winning via TKO at 1:29 of round one. In the next round of the tournament, Ferreira suffered his first defeat, losing to Antônio Braga Neto via decision. Ferreira took a long leave of absences from fighting after his wife got pregnant. Three years after his debut, Ferreira returned to active competition, fighting on the Bitetti Combat 6 card against Felipe Arinelli. Ferreira won the fight after choking Arinelli unconscious with a D'arce choke in the second round. Only a few months later Ferreira, again, fought for Bitetti Combat, fighting on their seventh event. He defeated Cassiano Ricardo Castanho de Freitas via TKO (doctor stoppage) in the second round. Ferreira then traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, United States to train with Vitor at Xtreme Couture. He was placed on the Ring of Fire 40 card in

Broomfield, Colorado Broomfield is a consolidated city and county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. Broomfield has a consolidated government which operates under Article XX, Sections 10-13 of the Constitution of the State of Colorado. The Broomfield populat ...

on April 16, 2011. Ferreira defeated Chaun Sims via

knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

only 17 seconds into round one. Ferreira took his second professional defeat at Superior Cage Combat 2 in Las Vegas, Nevada on August 20, 2011, losing to Elvis Mutapčić via one-punch

The Ultimate Fighter

In March 2012, it was revealed that Mutante was selected to be a participant on '' The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil''. Mutante defeated Gustavo Sampaio by submission with a guillotine choke in the second round to move into the ''Ultimate Fighter'' house, and become an official cast member. Mutante was selected as the first pick (second overall) by his mentor and real-life coach

to be a part of Team Vitor. In the second Middleweight fight of the season, Mutante was selected to fight Leonardo Mafra. Mutante won via submission (guillotine choke) in the second round. He was then scheduled to face

Thiago Perpetuo Thiago is the Portuguese equivalent of the names Jacob and James. It is the archaic spelling of the name Tiago, presently mostly used in Brazil; in Portugal, the modern spelling largely prevails. * Thiago (footballer, born September 1988), full n ...

for a spot in the final against Daniel Sarafian. He defeated Perpetuo by knockout (head kick) and was expected to face Sérgio Moraes, who replaced for Sarafian due to an injury.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Mutante was expected to make his UFC debut on June 23, 2012 at

UFC 147 ''UFC 147: Silva vs. Franklin II'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on June 23, 2012 at Mineirinho Arena in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Background The finals in the featherweight and middlewe ...

against Daniel Sarafian to determine the winner of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil. However, Sarafian injured himself and was forced out of the bout and replaced by Sérgio Moraes. Ferreira won the fight via unanimous decision. Ferreira was expected to face C. B. Dollaway on May 18, 2013 at UFC on FX 8. However, Dollaway was forced out of the bout with an injury and was replaced by Chris Camozzi. Then on April 7, Ferreira pulled out of the fight as well, citing an injury and was replaced by Rafael Natal. Ferreira was expected to face Clint Hester on August 3, 2013 at UFC 163. However, Hester was forced out of the bout and Ferreira instead faced promotional newcomer

Thiago Santos Thiago Santos de Lima (born January 7, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently signed to the Professional Fighters League (PFL), competing in the light heavyweight division. Prior to signing with the PFL, Santos competed for the U ...

. He won the fight via submission in the first round. Ferreira faced Daniel Sarafian on November 9, 2013 at

UFC Fight Night 32 ''UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson 2'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 32'') was a mixed martial arts event held on November 9, 2013, at the Goiânia Arena in Goiânia, Brazil. The event was broadcast live on Fox Sports 1. Background Th ...

. He won the fight via split decision (28–29, 30–27, and 30–28). The bout with C. B. Dollaway eventually took place on March 23, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 38. Ferreira lost via TKO in the first round. Ferreira faced Andrew Craig on June 28, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 44. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Ferreira faced Sam Alvey on February 22, 2015 at UFC Fight Night 61. Alvey won the fight via knockout in the first round. Ferreira faced

Jorge Masvidal Jorge Masvidal (born November 12, 1984) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Welterweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Masvidal has been competing professionally since 2003; he ...

in a welterweight bout on July 12, 2015 at The Ultimate Fighter 21 Finale. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Ferreira was expected to face Caio Magalhães on April 16, 2016 at UFC on Fox 19. However, Magalhães pulled out of the fight in the week leading up to the event citing an ankle injury and was replaced by Oluwale Bamgbose. Ferreira won the fight via unanimous decision. Ferreira next faced Anthony Smith on July 8, 2016 at The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Ferreira faced

Jack Hermansson Jack Berndhard Hermansson (born 10 June 1988) is a Swedish and Norwegian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is the former middleweight champion ...

on November 19, 2016 at UFC Fight Night 100. He won the fight via submission in the second round and was awarded a ''Performance of the Night'' bonus. Ferreira faced Elias Theodorou on February 19, 2017 at UFC Fight Night 105. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. Ferreira faced

Nate Marquardt Nathan Joel Marquardt (born April 20, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist who competed in the middleweight and welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 1999, he is a former Strikeforce ...

on November 11, 2017 at UFC Fight Night 120. He won the fight via split decision. Ferreira faced Karl Roberson on May 12, 2018 at UFC 224. He won the fight via technical submission in the first round. Ferreira was expected to face Tom Breese on November 17, 2018 at

UFC Fight Night 140 ''UFC Fight Night: Magny vs. Ponzinibbio'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 140'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on November 17, 2018 at Estadio Mary Terán de Weiss in Buenos Aires, ...

. However, it was reported on November 9, 2018 that Breese pulled out of the event due to injury, and he was replaced by Ian Heinisch. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. The pairing with Breese was rescheduled and was expected to take place on March 16, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 147. However, on February 1, 2019, Ferreira withdrew from the fight on February 1, citing a knee injury. Ferreira faced Marvin Vettori on July 13, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 155. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Professional Fighters League

In March 2020, Ferreira signed with

. Ferreira faced Nick Roehrick on April 29, 2021 at PFL 2 as the start of the 2021 PFL Light Heavyweight tournament. He won the fight via knockout 37 seconds into the first round. Ferreira faced Chris Camozzi at PFL 5 on June 17, 2021. He lost the bout via unanimous decision. Ferreira faced Marthin Hamlet in the Semifinals off the Light Heavyweight tournament on August 27, 2021 at PFL 9. Off his very first kick, Ferreira injured his hamstring, which sent him down to the canvas and the fight was called.

Championships and awards

Mixed martial arts

** The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil Middleweight Tournament Winner

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 14–10 , Marthin Hamlet , TKO (leg injury) , PFL 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:13 ,

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–8 , Nick Roehrick , KO (punches) , PFL 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:37 ,

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Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the Capital city, capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata ...

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Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of the same name, Brazil's List of Brazilian states by population, third-most populous state, and the List of largest citi ...

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Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 cen ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 11–6 , Elias Theodorou , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Browne , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...

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, Submission (arm-triangle choke) , UFC Fight Night: Bader vs. Nogueira 2 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:11 ,

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 10–5 , Anthony Smith , Decision (unanimous) , The Ultimate Fighter: Team Joanna vs. Team Cláudia Finale , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

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Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...

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Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, , Brazilian ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of 1,488,252 inhabitants (2020) makes it the List of largest cities in Brazil, twelfth most populous city in the country ...

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, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 ,

, Submission (guillotine choke) , UFC 163 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:47 ,

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 5–2 , Sérgio Moraes , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Belo Horizonte, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 4–2 , Elvis Mutapčić , KO (punch) , Superior Cage Combat 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:25 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Chaun Sims , KO (punch) , Ring of Fire 40 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:17 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Cassiano de Freitas , TKO (doctor stoppage) , Bitetti Combat 7 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:37 ,

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Mixed martial arts exhibition record

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