Quick Facts
Biography
Marcus Aurélio Martins (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈmaʁkuz awˈɾɛliu]; born August 18, 1974) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He formerly fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships and for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He currently fights as a lightweight, and primarily employs Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He is known for having never been finished in MMA competition.
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Aurélio began his career in promotions such as ZST and HOOKnSHOOT, earning notable submission victories against Remigijus Morkevicius and Rich Clementi. Aurelio then came to PRIDE Bushido, where he defeated PRIDE Lightweight Champion Takanori Gomi with an arm triangle in a non title fight. A rematch for the title was scheduled six months later, which Gomi won by a controversial split decision.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
On June 24, 2007, Aurelio announced his signing with the UFC. He made his debut at UFC 74, losing to Clay Guida by split decision.
Aurelio won his next fight over Luke Caudillo via first round TKO at UFC 78.
He was defeated by Evan Dunham on August 29, 2009 at UFC 102. He replaced Matt Veach who sustained a back injury while training.
After his defeat at the hands of Dunham, Aurelio was released from the organization, along with fellow UFC veterans, Hermes Franca, Chris Wilson, and Justin McCully.
After racking up two consecutive wins in his post UFC career, Aurelio faced Japanese grappler Shinya Aoki at Dream 16. Aoki utilized superior ground control to take a unanimous decision.
Championships and accomplishments
- ZST
- ZST Grand Prix Winner (One time)
- HOOKnSHOOT
- HnS Southeast Lightweight Championship (One time)
- United States Mixed Martial Arts
- USMMA Lightweight Championship (One time; first)
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 32 matches | 22 wins | 10 losses |
| By knockout | 4 | 0 |
| By submission | 15 | 0 |
| By decision | 3 | 10 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 22–10 | Garrett Gross | Submission (armbar) | WF-Warrior Fight | November 29, 2012 | 1 | 4:56 | Fortaleza, Brazil | |
| Loss | 21–10 | Lyle Beerbohm | Decision (unanimous) | ShoFight 20 | June 16, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Springfield, Missouri,United States | |
| Win | 21–9 | Matt McGrath | Submission (armbar) | MMA Live 1 | May 19, 2011 | 1 | 3:39 | London, Ontario, Canada | |
| Loss | 20–9 | Shinya Aoki | Decision (unanimous) | Dream 16 | September 25, 2010 | 2 | 5:00 | Nagoya, Japan | |
| Win | 20–8 | Niko Puhakka | Submission (rear naked choke) | Fight Festival 27 | March 13, 2010 | 2 | 2:40 | Helsinki, Finland | |
| Win | 19–8 | Daniel Aspe | Submission (rear-naked choke) | NDC 1 – Peru vs. American Top Team | October 17, 2009 | 2 | 2:37 | Lima, Peru | |
| Loss | 18–8 | Evan Dunham | Decision (split) | UFC 102 | August 29, 2009 | 3 | 5:00 | Oregon, United States | |
| Win | 18–7 | Joey Gorczynski | Submission (rear naked choke) | 5150 Combat: Rumble at the Rally | June 27, 2009 | 1 | 3:45 | Oklahoma, United States | |
| Win | 17–7 | Chris Liguori | KO (punch) | WCA: Pure Combat | February 6, 2009 | 2 | 0:23 | New Jersey, United States | |
| Loss | 16–7 | Hermes França | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 90 | October 25, 2008 | 3 | 5:00 | Illinois, United States | |
| Loss | 16–6 | Tyson Griffin | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 86 | July 5, 2008 | 3 | 5:00 | Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 16–5 | Ryan Roberts | Submission (armbar) | UFC Fight Night 13 | April 2, 2008 | 1 | 0:16 | Colorado, United States | |
| Win | 15–5 | Luke Caudillo | TKO (strikes) | UFC 78 | November 17, 2007 | 1 | 4:29 | New Jersey, United States | |
| Loss | 14–5 | Clay Guida | Decision (split) | UFC 74 | August 25, 2007 | 3 | 5:00 | Nevada, United States | UFC debut |
| Loss | 14–4 | Takanori Gomi | Decision (split) | Pride - Bushido 13 | November 5, 2006 | 2 | 5:00 | Yokohama, Japan | For Pride Lightweight Championship |
| Loss | 14–3 | Mitsuhiro Ishida | Decision (unanimous) | Pride - Bushido 11 | June 4, 2006 | 2 | 5:00 | Saitama, Saitama, Japan | |
| Win | 14–2 | Takanori Gomi | Technical Submission (arm triangle choke) | Pride - Bushido 10 | April 2, 2006 | 1 | 4:34 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 13–2 | Jutaro Nakao | Decision (unanimous) | PRIDE Bushido 8 | July 17, 2005 | 2 | 5:00 | Nagoya, Japan | |
| Win | 12–2 | Daisuke Nakamura | Decision (unanimous) | PRIDE Bushido 6 | April 3, 2005 | 2 | 5:00 | Yokohama, Japan | |
| Loss | 11–2 | Dokonjonosuke Mishima | Decision (split) | PRIDE Bushido 4 | July 19, 2004 | 2 | 5:00 | Nagoya, Japan | |
| Win | 11–1 | Naoyuki Kotani | TKO (cut) | ZST.5 | May 5, 2004 | 2 | 3:34 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 10–1 | Remigijus Morkevicius | Submission (triangle choke) | ZST: Grand Prix Final Round | January 11, 2004 | 1 | 2:48 | Tokyo, Japan | Won ZST Grand Prix |
| Win | 9–1 | Masakazu Imanari | Decision (split) | ZST: Grand Prix Final Round | January 11, 2004 | 2 | 5:00 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 8–1 | Rich Clementi | Submission (injury) | ZST: Grand Prix Final Round | January 11, 2004 | 1 | 0:40 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 7–1 | Takumi Nakayama | Submission (armbar) | ZST: Grand Prix Opening Round | November 23, 2003 | 1 | 3:05 | Tokyo, Japan | |
| Win | 6–1 | James Dunn | TKO (corner stoppage) | Mass Destruction 12 | August 16, 2003 | 1 | 5:00 | Massachusetts, United States | |
| Loss | 5–1 | Antonio McKee | Decision (split) | KOTC 27: Aftermath | August 10, 2003 | 2 | 5:00 | California, United States | |
| Win | 5–0 | Darrell Smith | Submission (triangle choke) | Absolute Fighting Championships 3 | May 24, 2003 | 1 | 2:35 | Florida, United States | Defended HnS Southeast Lightweight Championship |
| Win | 4–0 | David Gardner | Submission (armbar) | USMMA 3: Ring of Fury | May 3, 2003 | 3 | 4:13 | Massachusetts, United States | Won vacant USMMA Lightweight Championship |
| Win | 3–0 | Justin Wisniewski | Submission (armbar) | Absolute Fighting Championships 2 | March 28, 2003 | 1 | 1:14 | Florida, United States | Won HnS Southeast Lightweight Championship |
| Win | 2–0 | Scott Johnson | Submission (armbar) | XFA 5: Redemption | January 25, 2003 | 1 | 3:31 | Florida, United States | |
| Win | 1–0 | Walter McCall | Submission (triangle choke) | WEFC 1: Bring It On | June 29, 2002 | 2 | 2:45 | Georgia, United States |