Rafael Cavalcante (born 5 April 1980), often known by his nickname of Feijão, is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who fights in the light heavyweight division.
He trains with Anderson Silva and Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira as part of the Black House camp.
Cavalcante also studied veterinary medicine for five years at the Universidade de Cuiaba - UNIC in his adopted hometown of Cuiaba, Mato Grosso, and it was the legendary Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira who personally convinced Cavalcante's father to allow his son to give up his medical career, in order to focus solely on training for a career in professional fighting under the tutelage of Nogueira.
[2] Cavalcante made his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2006, in the Pantanal Combat tournament, in the State of Mato Grosso, Brazil, compiling an undefeated record of 3-0 before being signed by the IFL.
Cavalcante made his promotional debut at IFL: Atlanta, facing veteran Devin Cole whom he defeated via TKO early in the second round.
Cavalcante made his next appearance at IFL: Las Vegas, facing fellow Brazilian Márcio Cruz.
On 26 July 2008, Cavalcante faced Travis Galbraith, who was given a weeks' notice for the fight, at EliteXC: Unfinished Business.
Cavalcante was next scheduled to fight for the inaugural EliteXC Light Heavyweight Championship against Cyrille Diabaté in November 2008, but Diabaté pulled out due to an injury, and the event itself was eventually folded as EliteXC closed operations a month before the fight's scheduled date.
On 1 July 2017, Cavalcante defeated Dan Konecke via technical knockout in the first round to earn a Bellator MMA contract.
In a police report, Cavalcante claims a man forcefully grabbed his girlfriend and along with a friend threatened to kill him.