Thiago Tavares (born November 8, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and politician who most recently competed in the Lightweight division.
Tavares outgrappled fellow UFC-newcomer Naoyuki Kotani to a unanimous decision, followed by a dominant submission victory over Jason Black.
Tavares fought perennial contender Tyson Griffin to a unanimous decision loss, the first of his professional career, at UFC 76.
[4] Thiago rebounded with a unanimous decision victory over Michihiro Omigawa at UFC Fight Night: Swick vs Burkman.
Tavares was knocked out in his next bout by Matt Wiman and lost a unanimous decision to Kurt Pellegrino nearly three months later.
Tavares defeated TUF finalist Manvel Gamburyan via unanimous decision at UFC 94 in a close fight.
Tavares and Nik Lentz fought to a majority draw at UFC Fight Night: Maynard vs. Diaz.
Tavares was set to face Willamy Freire at UFC Live: Jones vs. Matyushenko taking place August 1, 2010.
Tavares was expected to face Tony Ferguson on May 5, 2012, at UFC on Fox 3, replacing an injured Dennis Hallman.
[18] Just prior to the UFC on FX 5 weigh ins, Dennis Hallman alerted officials and Tavares that he would miss weight by 7 pounds.
Tavares was expected to face promotional newcomer Zubaira Tukhugov in a featherweight bout on February 15, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 36.
[26] However, Tavares was forced out of the bout citing a rib injury and replaced by Douglas Silva de Andrade.
[30] In his eventual featherweight debut, Tavares faced Robbie Peralta on August 16, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 47.
[45] He was then scheduled to face Fabricio Oliveira at Aspera FC 50 on March 18, 2017, but withdrew from the bout due to an unknown reason.
[3] Reaching the clinical phase of his studies, Tavares was able to train more consistently again and was scheduled to return from retirement against Laercio Alves dos Santos at Gladiator CF on July 22, 2020.
[50] Then, he is also expected to face Mauricio Ariel for the Super Lightweight Championship at Inside Fighters' League 1 on April 11, 2021.
[51] Tavares is currently studying medicine at University Institute of Health Sciences - Héctor A. Barceló Foundation in Buenos Aires, Argentina.