Timothy Deane Sylvia (born March 5, 1976) is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter and former Ultimate Fighting Championship Heavyweight Champion. He trains as a member of the Miletich Fighting Systems (MFS) camp and is part of their MFSE (Miletich Fighting System Elite) group. He presently fights for Adrenaline MMA (previously known as M-1 Global).

Martial arts background

Sylvia joined a karate school as a child, and began wrestling in high school. After graduation, he worked construction, community gardening, hanging sheet rock, a bouncer for Shane Reids bar, and painting houses. He was playing semi-pro football when he became interested in MMA, and began to train with Marcus Davis. During this time he decided to take up boxing and grappling, and after training for a year, Sylvia entered his first grappling contest, taking first place in his division. Soon after, he got the opportunity to fight in a Rhode Island no-holds-barred amateur event, in which he knocked out his opponent in 17 seconds.

A long time UFC fan, Sylvia and some friends attended UFC 28 in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 2000. In late 2000 Sylvia sold all of his belongings and moved to Bettendorf, Iowa, to train with Team Miletich. On April 22, 2010, Tim Sylvia was awarded a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Pedro Silveira

Early professional career

Sylvia made his professional MMA debut in 2001 fighting for the IFC. He went on to rack up thirteen consecutive wins with ten knockouts in organizations such as SuperBrawl, and Extreme Challenge. In 2002, Sylvia signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship and won a TKO victory over Wesley "Cabbage" Correira at UFC 39 when Correira's corner threw in the towel. Sylvia then went on to defeat Ricco Rodriguez at UFC 41, winning his first UFC heavyweight championship. Soon after Sylvia defended his title with another quick victory over Gan McGee at UFC 44.

Controversy

After the fight with McGee, Sylvia tested positive for the banned substance Stanozolol. He voluntarily forfeited his title and was handed a six-month suspension, and fined $10,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC). He later commented that the steroid usage was for shedding excess weight. Sylvia apologized and made no effort to claim innocence.

Injury

At UFC 48 in June 2004, Sylvia returned to face Frank Mir for the vacant UFC heavyweight championship; he lost. Early on in the fight Mir trapped Sylvia's right arm in an armbar submission attempt. As Sylvia tried to escape the hold, Mir tightened the submission and Sylvia's right radius bone snapped about three inches below his elbow. Referee Herb Dean immediately stopped the fight and declared Sylvia unable to continue. Sylvia took exception to the decision and repeatedly claimed his arm was not broken (though the break could be explicitly seen on the slow-motion replay of the fight), even touching it and moving it around to demonstrate. NSAC officials and UFC president Dana White, acting on the doctor's opinion and in the interests of Sylvia's health, officially ended the fight and awarded Mir the title. Sylvia was taken to a local hospital where an x-ray revealed that his arm was in fact broken; he then took several months off to recuperate. Afterward, Sylvia said he was glad the referee stopped the fight, thereby saving his arm from further damage.

Return

Six months after his loss to Frank Mir, Sylvia returned (a titanium plate had been attached to his forearm), in February 2005 to the UFC, taking on Andrei Arlovski to crown an interim UFC heavyweight champion as Mir, while still the nominal UFC champion, had suffered numerous injuries from a motorcycle accident that left him unable to defend his title. Sylvia was knocked to the ground by an overhand right punch, and while on the ground was caught in an achilles lock.

In May 2005, Sylvia defeated Mike Block in the IFC by TKO, then went on to face MMA veteran Tra Telligman at UFC 54. With one second left in the first round, Sylvia landed a left head kick which knocked out Telligman. Sylvia made his cable television debut next, fighting Assuerio Silva at Ultimate Fight Night 3 on Spike TV, winning a unanimous decision after three rounds in a match that was intended to decide the next number one contender.

Reclaiming the title

At UFC 59, Sylvia was finally awarded his rematch with the then-outright champion Andrei Arlovski. During the fight Sylvia was knocked down by Arlovski, only to immediately stand up. Within ten seconds Sylvia dropped Arlovski with an uppercut, followed by ground and pound, securing a TKO victory and once again taking the UFC heavyweight title. Soon after the match, Sylvia requested, and was given, a rematch with Arlovski. Their third match took place at UFC 61, with Sylvia remaining champion by unanimous decision.

Sylvia next fought Jeff Monson at UFC 65. Billed as a classic "striker vs. grappler" match, Sylvia won again by unanimous decision. The fight showcased Sylvia's growth as a mixed martial artist as he avoided danger from Monson on the ground, and even attempted a triangle choke submission himself.

On March 3, 2007, Sylvia lost the UFC heavyweight championship to Randy Couture via unanimous decision. The judges all scored the bout 50-45, giving Couture his fifth UFC championship.

On October 20, 2007 at UFC 77, Sylvia defeated Brandon Vera via unanimous decision, All three judges scored the bout 30–27. In the post-fight interview he called out Cheick Kongo to fight for the spot as number one contender for the heavyweight championship belt

On February 2, 2008 Sylvia lost via guillotine choke to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 81 in Las Vegas, Nevada for the interim heavyweight championship. This was his last fight before he left the UFC

Adrenaline / Affliction / Other

On March 28, 2008, Sylvia signed with Adrenaline MMA, formerly M-1 Global, to a two-year contract that allows him to fight for other organizations while under contract with Adrenaline. A few weeks later he was offered to fight Fedor Emelianenko at Affliction Clothing's inaugural event Affliction: Banned for the newly created WAMMA Heavyweight Championship. The fight took place on July 19, 2008, and saw the former Pride Heavyweight Champion dropping Sylvia and taking his back before securing a rear naked choke, forcing Sylvia to submit at 0:36 of the first round.

On February 25, 2009, Sylvia's manager (and Adrenaline MMA CEO) Monte Cox announced that Sylvia would face former boxing world heavyweight champion and 1988 Olympic gold medalist Ray Mercer in a boxing main event at Adrenaline MMA III on May 30, 2009, at the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort in Atlantic City. However, after the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board refused to sanction the fight the event was moved to Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center in Birmingham, Alabama and rescheduled to June 13. Only days before the bout it was changed to be contested under MMA rules, again because of sanctioning problems. When they finally met, Mercer knocked Sylvia out with a single punch nine seconds into the first round.[7] Sylvia Weighed in at 310.6 pounds for the Superheavyweight fight.

Before his bout with Mercer, Sylvia was scheduled to face Paul Buentello at Affliction: Trilogy. But after the devastating KO loss, manager Monte Cox and Affliction decided it would be best for Sylvia to sit out the next few months because of his recent losses.

After Affliction folded, Sylvia defeated Jason Riley Via TKO (Punches) 2:32 into the first round at the Adrenaline IV main event on September 18, 2009 in Council Bluffs, Iowa.It was later revealed through Sherdog.com that Sylvia broke his right hand about a minute and a half into his fight with Jason Riley stalling an October 25 debut with the Japan promotion Dream.

Sylvia's next fight was expected to be a rematch with The Ultimate Fighter alumni Wes Sims on March, 20th in Ohio. However, the Ohio State Athletic Commission refused to sanction the bout, saying that the fight was "non-competitive", resulting in the bout being rescheduled to June 6, 2010, in Nova Scotia, Canada, for the IFC Superheavyweight title.

In the meantime, Sylvia fought five time World's Strongest Man Mariusz Pudzianowski at Moosin: God of Martial Arts‎ on May 21, 2010, winning by Submission (Punches).

The Sims fight (and another against UFC veteran Pedro Rizzo) were scuttled again, when it was discovered that Sylvia broke his foot at Moosin.

Sylvia is now scheduled to fight fellow UFC veteran Paul Buentello at Powerhouse World Promotions: War on the Mainland on August 14.

MMA record

32 matches 26 wins 6 losses

By knockout 17 1

By submission 3 4

By decision 6 1

2010-08-14 Paul Buentello Powerhouse World Promotions: War on the Mainland Irvine, California, US

2010-05-21 Win 26–6 Mariusz Pudzianowski Moosin: God of Martial Arts Submission (Punches) Round 2, 1:43 Worcester, Massachusetts, US Superheavyweight bout

2009-09-18 Win 25–6 Jason Riley Adrenaline MMA 4: Sylvia vs. Riley TKO (Punch) Round 1, 2:32 Council Bluffs, Iowa, US Superheavyweight bout

2009-06-13 Loss 24–6 Ray Mercer Adrenaline MMA 3: Bragging Rights KO (Punch) Round 1, 0:09 Birmingham, Alabama, US Superheavyweight bout

2008-07-19 Loss 24–5 Fedor Emelianenko Affliction: Banned Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Round 1, 0:36 Anaheim, California, US For the WAMMA Heavyweight title.

2008-02-02 Loss 24–4 Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira UFC 81: Breaking Point Submission (Guillotine Choke) Round 3, 1:28 Las Vegas, Nevada, US For the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship. Won Fight of the Night Honors

2007-10-21 Win 24–3 Brandon Vera UFC 77: Hostile Territory Decision (Unanimous) Round 3, 5:00 Cincinnati, Ohio, US

2007-03-03 Loss 23–3 Randy Couture UFC 68: Uprising Decision (Unanimous) Round 5, 5:00 Columbus, Ohio, US Lost the UFC Heavyweight Championship

2006-11-18 Win 23–2 Jeff Monson UFC 65: Bad Intentions Decision (Unanimous) Round 5, 5:00 Sacramento, California, US Defended the UFC Heavyweight Championship.

2006-07-08 Win 22–2 Andrei Arlovski UFC 61: Bitter Rivals Decision (Unanimous) Round 5, 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, US Defended the UFC Heavyweight Championship.

2006-04-15 Win 21–2 Andrei Arlovski UFC 59: Reality Check TKO (Punches) Round 1, 2:43 Anaheim, California, US Won the UFC Heavyweight Championship

2006-01-16 Win 20–2 Assuerio Silva UFC Ultimate Fight Night 3 Decision (Unanimous) Round 3, 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, US

2005-08-20 Win 19–2 Tra Telligman UFC 54: Boiling Point KO (Head Kick) Round 1, 4:59 Las Vegas, Nevada, US

2005-05-21 Win 18–2 Mike Block IFC – Caged Combat TKO (Punches) Round 1, 1:26 Columbus, Ohio, US

2005-02-05 Loss 17–2 Andrei Arlovski UFC 51: Super Saturday Submission (Achilles Lock) Round 1, 0:47 Las Vegas, Nevada, US For the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship.

2004-12-12 Win 17–1 Wes Sims Superbrawl 38 TKO (Punches) Round 1, 1:32 Honolulu, Hawaii, US

2004-06-19 Loss 16–1 Frank Mir UFC 48: Payback Technical submission (Armbar) Round 1, 0:50 Las Vegas, Nevada, US For the UFC Heavyweight Championship.

2003-09-26 Win 16–0 Gan McGee UFC 44: Undisputed KO (Punches) Round 1, 1:54 Las Vegas, Nevada, US Defended the UFC Heavyweight Championship. Failed drug test and stripped of title after fight.

2003-02-28 Win 15–0 Ricco Rodriguez UFC 41: Onslaught KO (Punches) Round 1, 3:09 Atlantic City, New Jersey, US Won the UFC Heavyweight Championship.

2002-09-27 Win 14–0 Wesley Correira UFC 39: The Warriors Return TKO (Corner Stoppage) Round 2, 1:43 Uncasville, Connecticut, US

2002-07-27 Win 13–0 Jeff Gerlick Extreme Challenge 48 TKO (Strikes) Round 1, 3:17 Tama, Iowa, US

2002-04-27 Win 12–0 Mike Whitehead Superbrawl 24: ROTH 2 TKO (Strikes) Round 1, 2:38 Honolulu, Hawaii, US

2002-04-27 Win 11–0 Jason Lambert Superbrawl 24: ROTH 2 TKO (Strikes) Round 2, 4:13 Honolulu, Hawaii, US

2002-04-27 Win 10–0 Boyd Ballard Superbrawl 24: ROTH 2 KO (Knee) Round 1, 3:21 Honolulu, Hawaii, US

2002-04-26 Win 9–0 Mike Whitehead Superbrawl 24: ROTC 1 TKO (Strikes) Round 1, 3:46 Honolulu, Hawaii, US

2002-03-16 Win 8–0 Matt Fremmbling Extreme Challenge 47 Decision Round 2, 5:00 Orem, Utah, US

2002-03-16 Win 7–0 Gino De La Cruz Extreme Challenge 47 TKO (Punches) Round 1, 0:43 Orem, Utah, US

2002-02-16 Win 6–0 Ernest Henderson Extreme Challenge 46 TKO (Punches) Round 1, 0:36 Clive, Iowa, US

2001-11-17 Win 5–0 Greg Wikan Extreme Challenge Trials Submission (Choke) Round 3, 2:20 Davenport, Iowa, US

2001-08-24 Win 4–0 Ben Rothwell Extreme Challenge 42 Decision Round 3, 5:00 Davenport, Iowa, US

2001-06-02 Win 3–0 Greg Wikan UW – Ultimate Fight Minnesota TKO (Corner Stoppage) Round 1, 5:00 Bloomington, Minnesota, US

2001-04-07 Win 2–0 Gabe Beauperthy GC 3: Showdown at Soboba Submission (Choke) Round 2, 4:16 Friant, California, US

2001-01-19 Win 1–0 Randy Durant IFC – Battleground 2001 TKO (Strikes) Round 1, 2:05 Atlantic City, New Jersey, US