Andrei Arlovski Tweets

Andrei Arlovski (born February 4, 1979) is a Belarusian mixed martial arts fighter and a former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champion. He is considered to be one of the top ten ranked heavyweight fighters in the world by multiple MMA publications.

Arlovski made his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut at "UFC 28: High Stakes", defeating Aaron Brink by submission. He was then thrown in against top opposition, losing to future UFC Heavyweight Champion Ricco Rodriguez and heavyweight contender Pedro Rizzo. Despite those early defeats, wins over future British Cage Rage light heavyweight champion Ian Freeman, and future IFL light heavyweight champion Vladimir Matyushenko propelled Arlovski back into the UFC elite.

In 2004, a motorcycle accident injury suffered by the at the time UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir led to the creation of an interim heavyweight title. It was decided that the two top heavyweight contenders would meet to declare the interim champion, and on February 5, 2005 at "UFC 51: Super Saturday", Arlovski faced former heavyweight champion, Tim Sylvia. In the fight, Arlovski eventually connected with an overhand right and dropped Sylvia. On the ground, Arlovski followed up with an ankle lock that forced Sylvia to tap out at 47 seconds of the first round, making Arlovski the new UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion.

Arlovski went on to defended his interim title on June 4, 2005 at "UFC 53: Heavy Hitters", against Justin Eilers. Andrei won the bout by TKO in the first round. After the fight, it was revealed that Eilers suffered extensive injuries in this match including a badly broken nose, two broken hands and a complete ACL tear.

In October 2005, Arlovski once again defended his title at "UFC 55: Fury" against top contender Paul Buentello. Arlovski knocked out Buentello in 15 seconds of the opening round. On August 12, 2005, the UFC announced that it now recognized Arlovski as the undisputed heavyweight champion, as Frank Mir had not fully rehabilitated from his motorcycle accident.

In a rematch with Tim Sylvia at "UFC 59: Reality Check" on April 15, 2006, Arlovski knocked Sylvia down with a right hand punch early in the first round. Sylvia was able to protect himself and recovered almost immediately. While Arlovski tried to finish Sylvia with a right lead, Sylvia countered with a short right uppercut to the chin, knocking Arlovski to the mat. Sylvia followed up with punches on the ground until referee Herb Dean stopped the match at 2:43 of the first round.