Daniel Sarafian

Daniel Sarafian Gantman (born 21 August 1982 in São Paulo) is an Armenian-Brazilian mixed martial artist who last competed in 2018. A professional since 2006, Sarafian has formerly competed for the UFC, Bellator, Absolute Championship Berkut, and was a competitor on Globo's The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil.

Daniel Sarafian
BornDaniel Sarafian Gantman
(1982-08-21) 21 August 1982
São Paulo, Brazil
NationalityBrazilian
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight205 lb (93 kg; 14.6 st)[1]
DivisionLight Heavyweight
Middleweight
Welterweight
Reach69.7 in (177 cm)[2]
StanceOrthodox
Fighting out ofSão Paulo, Brazil
TeamPower MMA And Fitness
RankBlack belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu[3]
Years active2006–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total17
Wins11
By knockout1
By submission7
By decision3
Losses6
By knockout2
By submission1
By decision3
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Background

Sarafian started training in the martial arts at the age of five years under his grandfather who was a black belt in judo. Sarafian took solely judo classes until he was ten years old when he began training karate. At sixteen he began taking lessons in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. After entering high school and getting constantly picked on for being overweight, Sarafian began working out and training MMA. Only a couple classes into MMA, Sarafian "fell in love with fighting".

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Sarafian made his professional debut at Predator FC 2 against Jorge Luis Bezerra, winning the fight via submission in round three. In his next bout, he agreed to fight UFC and Strikeforce veteran Mike Whitehead. Sarafian lost the fight via unanimous decision. After his bout with Whitehead Sarafian was asked to take a fight for District Combat Promotions, a small promotion based in the United States. Sarafian took the fight and won via submission (armbar) in the third round.

Sarafian stayed in the United States and fought on the Texas' promotion, Xtreme Fight Championship. He fought Cedric Marks and won the fight via submission in the first round. Sarafian then signed a one-fight deal with Bellator Fighting Championships to compete on their first fight card of their inaugural season. Sarafian fought Gary Padilla, losing in the second round via referee stoppage. Sarafian racked up four straight wins before signing on to take part on The Ultimate Fighter.

The Ultimate Fighter

In March 2012, it was revealed that Sarafian was selected to be a participant on The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil. Sarafian defeated Richardson Moreira via decision to move into the Ultimate Fighter house, and become an official cast member.

Sarafian was selected as the third pick (sixth overall) by Vitor Belfort to be a part of Team Belfort. In the first Middleweight fight of the season, Sarafian was selected to fight Renee Forte. Sarafian dominated the fight and won via rear naked choke in the second round.[4]

In the semi-finals Sarafian was selected to fight Sérgio Moraes. Sarafian won the fight in the first round via KO after hitting Moraes with a flying knee as he dropped for a take down. The win moved Sarafian into the finals of the middleweight tournament, set to take place at the UFC 147.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Sarafian was scheduled to officially make his UFC debut at UFC 147 on 23 June 2012, to determine the middleweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil. However, due to an injury, Sarafian was replaced by Sérgio Moraes and did not compete at the event.[5]

In his debut, Sarafian faced C.B. Dollaway on 19 January 2013, at UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Bisping.[6] He lost the back-and-forth fight via split decision. Despite the loss, it was awarded the Fight of the Night honors.

Sarafian faced promotional newcomer Eddie Mendez on 8 June 2013, at UFC on Fuel TV 10.[7] He won the fight via arm triangle submission in the first round.

In what was originally set to be The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil middleweight final, Sarafian faced Cezar Ferreira on 9 November 2013 at UFC Fight Night 32.[8] He lost the fight via split decision.

Sarafian faced Kiichi Kunimoto in a welterweight bout on 14 June 2014, at UFC 174.[9] He lost the fight via rear-naked choke submission in the first round.

Sarafian was expected to return to middleweight and face Dan Miller on 20 December 2014, at UFC Fight Night 58.[10] However, Miller pulled out of the bout on 11 December and was replaced by promotional newcomer Antônio dos Santos.[11] Sarafian won the fight via second round TKO as dos Santos dislocated a finger and was unable to continue.[12]

Sarafian was expected to face Ricardo Abreu on 6 June 2015, at UFC Fight Night 68.[13] However on 4 May, Sarafian was forced to withdraw from the event due to injury and was replaced by Jake Collier.[14]

Sarafian was expected to face Sam Alvey on 21 February 2016, at UFC Fight Night 83.[15] However, Alvey pulled out of the bout in late December after sustaining a broken jaw and was replaced by Oluwale Bamgbose[16][17] Sarafian lost the fight via knockout in the first round. After his loss to Bamgbose, Sarafian was subsequently released from the promotion[18]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
17 matches 11 wins 6 losses
By knockout 1 2
By submission 7 1
By decision 3 3
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 11–6 Carlos Eduardo Decision (unanimous) ACB 82: Silva vs. Kolobegov 9 March 2018 3 5:00 São Paulo, Brazil
Win 10–6 James Austen Heidlage Decision (unanimous) LFA: Sioux Falls Fight Night 1 29 April 2017 3 5:00 Sioux Falls, South Dakota, United States Return to Light Heavyweight.
Loss 9–6 Oluwale Bamgbose KO (head kick and punches) UFC Fight Night: Cowboy vs. Cowboy 21 February 2016 1 1:00 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
Win 9–5 Antônio dos Santos TKO (finger injury) UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Dollaway 20 December 2014 2 1:01 Barueri, Brazil Return to Middleweight.
Loss 8–5 Kiichi Kunimoto Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC 174 14 June 2014 1 2:52 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Welterweight debut.
Loss 8–4 Cezar Ferreira Decision (split) UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson 9 November 2013 3 5:00 Goiânia, Brazil
Win 8–3 Eddie Mendez Submission (arm-triangle choke) UFC on Fuel TV: Nogueira vs. Werdum 8 June 2013 1 2:20 Fortaleza, Brazil
Loss 7–3 C.B. Dollaway Decision (split) UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Bisping 19 January 2013 3 5:00 São Paulo, Brazil Fight of the Night.
Win 7–2 Ricardo Silva Submission (rear-naked choke) Pretorian 1 5 July 2011 1 4:01 São Paulo, Brazil
Win 6–2 Gilklei Antonio Silva Submission (punches) Blaze FC 1 26 February 2011 1 1:44 Curitiba, Brazil
Win 5–2 Mauricio Alonso Decision (unanimous) First Class Fight 5 23 October 2010 3 5:00 São Paulo, Brazil
Win 4–2 Yuri Villas Boas Submission (arm-triangle choke) Hero Kombat 1 24 April 2010 1 2:14 São Paulo, Brazil
Loss 3–2 Gary Padilla TKO (punches) Bellator 1 3 April 2009 2 3:04 Hollywood, Florida, United States Middleweight debut.
Win 3–1 Cedric Marks Submission (triangle choke) Xtreme Fight Championship 27 February 2009 1 2:06 Austin, Texas, United States
Win 2–1 Lamont Lister Submission (armbar) District Combat Promotions 1 13 December 2008 3 1:32 Washington, D.C., United States
Loss 1–1 Mike Whitehead Decision (unanimous) Platinum Fighting Productions 1 9 December 2007 3 5:00 Quezon City, Philippines
Win 1–0 Jorge Luis Bezerra Submission (guillotine choke) Predador FC 2 11 August 2006 3 0:43 São Paulo, Brazil

Mixed martial arts exhibition record
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 3-0 Sérgio Moraes KO (flying knee) The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 17 June 2012 (airdate) 1 4:07 São Paulo, Brazil The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil semifinal round.
Win 2-0 Renee Forte Submission (rear-naked choke) The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 8 May 2012 (airdate) 2 0:00 São Paulo, Brazil The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil preliminary round.
Win 1-0 Richardson Moreira Decision (unanimous) The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 25 March 2012 (airdate) 2 5:00 São Paulo, Brazil The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil elimination round.

See also

References
  1. Gerbasi, Thomas (19 December 2014). "Official Fight Night Barueri 2014 Weigh In Results". ufc.com. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  2. "Fight Card - UFC 174 Johnson vs. Bagautinov". UFC.com. Archived from the original on 4 July 2014. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  3. "Daniel Sarafian - Official UFC Fighter Profile". UFC.com. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  4. "Episode No. 3 recap: 'The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil'". Archived from the original on 11 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  5. Staff (18 June 2012). "Sergio Moraes replaces injured Daniel Sarafian in 'TUF: Brazil' middleweight final". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  6. "UFC makes official Jan. 19 card in Brazil". MMAjunkie.com. 3 November 2012. Archived from the original on 6 November 2012.
  7. Dana Becker (18 March 2013). "Daniel Sarafian-Eddie Mendez Added To UFC On FUEL TV 10". fightline.com. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
  8. Christoffer Esping. "Cezar Mutante möter Daniel Sarafian på UFC Fight Night 32". mmanytt.se. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
  9. Matt Erickson (18 March 2014). "Daniel Sarafian meets Kiichi Kunimoto at UFC 174 in Vancouver". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
  10. Jacob Cooper (16 October 2014). "Daniel Sarafian vs. Dan Miller Added To UFC Fight Night 58". fansided.com. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  11. Staff (11 December 2014). "Antonio dos Santos Jr. replaces Dan Miller at UFC Fight Night 58". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
  12. Ben Fowlkes (20 December 2014). "UFC Fight Night 58 results: Daniel Sarafian gets odd injury TKO vs. Antonio dos Santos Jr". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
  13. Jason Floyd (10 March 2015). "Daniel Sarafian vs. Ricardo Abreu booked for UFC Fight Night 68 in New Orleans". themmareport.com. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  14. Staff (4 May 2015). "Daniel Sarafian out of UFC Fight Night bout; Ricardo Abreu meets Jake Collier on June 6". sherdog.com. Retrieved 4 May 2015.
  15. Staff (16 December 2015). "Sam Alvey vs. Daniel Sarafian joins UFC Fight Night 82 lineup in Pittsburgh". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  16. Staff (29 December 2015). "Sam Alvey suffers broken jaw, out of UFC Fight Night 82 vs. Daniel Sarafian". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  17. Tristen Critchfield (5 January 2016). "Oluwale Bamgbose replaces injured Sam Alvey, meets Daniel Sarafian at UFC Fight Night Pittsburgh". sherdog.com. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  18. Ben Fowlkes (21 February 2016). "UFC Fight Night 83 results: Oluwale Bamgbose flattens Daniel Sarafian for 1st UFC win". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
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