Rodolfo Vieira Record: 12-5-0

Path to the UFC

Vieira turned his attention to MMA and stacked early finishes on the international circuit before the UFC signed him. He made his Octagon debut in August 2019, submitting the previously highly regarded Oskar Piechota by second-round arm-triangle choke – an immediate signal that his world-class grappling translated. He followed up at UFC 248 in March 2020 with a first-round arm-triangle finish of Saparbeg Safarov.

UFC career

Vieira's run has shown both his ceiling and his growing pains. In 2021 he was caught in a guillotine by Anthony Hernandez in a fight where his cardio faded, then rebounded with a third-round rear-naked choke of Dustin Stoltzfus. A 2022 decision loss to Chris Curtis exposed his striking, but he returned to his bread and butter with arm-triangle submissions of Cody Brundage in 2023 and Armen Petrosyan in 2024. He dropped a 2025 decision to Andre Petroski, decisioned Tresean Gore, then was knocked out by a head kick from rising prospect Bo Nickal at UFC 322 in November 2025.

Fighting style

Vieira is one of the most credentialed pure grapplers in the UFC, and his MMA game reflects it. Nine of his 11 wins have come by submission – the arm-triangle choke is his signature – against a single knockout and one decision, for a 91 percent finish rate. Once he secures top position, his pressure and control are smothering. The honest limitations are equally clear: his striking remains a work in progress, and cardio and takedown defense against well-rounded opponents have cost him fights, including knockout and decision losses that have kept him from a sustained climb.

Career highlights

• Decorated jiu-jitsu world champion — a multiple-time IBJJF World Champion and 2015 ADCC gold medalist before turning to MMA.
• Submitted a former UFC champion in grappling — tapped Benson Henderson by kimura during his 2015 ADCC run.
• UFC submission specialist — 9 of his 11 MMA wins by submission, including arm-triangle finishes of Oskar Piechota and Armen Petrosyan.