Deiveson Figueiredo, (aka “Deus Da Guerra” or “God of War”) was born December 18, 1987, and is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Flyweight Champion.
The 33 year-old who possesses a 20-2 record, (not to mention a superbly chiseled, 56kg physique) stands at no.1 in the UFC flyweight rankings as well as being named MMA Junkie’s 2020 Fighter of the Year. He holds notable wins over Joseph Benavidez, Alex Perez and Alexandre Pantoja.
Figueiredo’s fighting style is very well-rounded with 9 TKO/KO finishes, and 8 submission wins; despite being a flyweight fighter, Figueiredo packs incredible one-punch knockout power, and may well hold the crown as the hardest hitting 125lb fighter in the world, and arguably in history.
Not only does Figueiredo possess immense power, but he also has high-level jiu-jitsu skill marked by his black belt, which has helped with his 8 submission wins; specifically, Figueiredo has a dangerous guillotine choke that makes up 5 of his 8 submission victories.
It doesn’t take long for Figueiredo to put these skills into action, with him holding the fastest submission in the UFC’s flyweight division at just 1:57. Despite only having 10 fights in the UFC, Figueiredo is tied for the most finishes in UFC flyweight history with Demetrious Johnson with 7, yet Johnson undertook 18 fights to reach this number.
Figueiredo’s professional career started in 2012 and, after 11 straight victories, 10 via stoppages, got his UFC debut in 2017.
Figueiredo went on an impressive 4-0 start in his UFC career until he came up against Jussier Formiga in his fifth UFC fight, who handed him his first defeat to date via a unanimous decision loss.
Despite the setback, Figueiredo put together two quick victories earning a shot at the UFC title, but due to missing weight in his first attempt despite beating Joseph Benavidez, he was unable to capture the title.
However, Figueiredo was able to remedy this problem defeating Benavidez in impressive fashion once again and has since been able to have one successful defense of his title.
For his second title defense which was against Brandon Moreno, the fight ended in a majority draw after Figueiredo was deducted a point in round 3 due to an illegal groin strike.
However, in the rematch with Moreno, Figueiredo was unfortunately submitted in the third round. After this recent defeat, this leaves us asking what and who is next for Figueiredo? How many wins are needed before he earns another shot at UFC gold?
Now that you have a brief snapshot of the “God of War’s” career, let’s take a closer look at Deiveson Figueiredo’s Top 5 MMA Finishes! (in descending order)
5. Vs. Tim Elliott – UFC FN 161 (Oct. 12, 2019)
Figueiredo took on former title challenger and The Ultimate Fighter winner Tim Elliot and it didn’t take long for him to show why he is the division’s elite.
Just 25 seconds into round 1, Figueiredo counters a leg kick from Elliot with a quick left-right hook that gets Elliot’s respect.
At 3 minutes in, Elliot ducks in for a double leg takedown; however, Figueiredo immediately wraps up his neck and starts to squeeze as he tightens his guillotine. This forces Elliot to tap at 3:08 of round 1.
This quick submission win gave Figueiredo his shot at the UFC’s flyweight championship.
4. Vs. John Moraga – UFC FN 135 (Aug. 25, 2018)
The, at the time, no.14-ranked Figueiredo took a big step up facing the then no.6-ranked Moraga, looking to make a charge at the top 10.
Moraga came out with a heavily based leg kick game to keep at bay the powerful “God of War” striker. Two minutes in, Figueiredo clinches Moraga against the cage and uses a body lock to take the fight to the floor; however, Moraga uses good guard defense to prevent any major damage.
Just under a minute into round 2, Figueiredo again clinches Moraga against the cage tripping him to the floor and begins to work from half-guard with slicing shots that open a cut just below Moraga’s left eye. Moraga does well and manages to return to his feet, yet this doesn’t stop the barrage of blistering blows.
Figueiredo unbridles a slashing elbow that staggers Moraga, followed by a right hook that drops him. However, Figueiredo is overly aggressive here and almost spoils his own work as he falls trying to finish the fight, getting caught with a right hand himself that stumbles him.
Despite this, he manages to get a left hook in to the body that drops Moraga, finishing proceedings at 3:08 into round 2.
This was just Figueiredo’s third UFC fight, and early on he had begun to display his powerful striking, and wild nature.
3. Vs. Alex Perez – UFC 255 (Nov. 21, 2020)
After winning the vacant flyweight belt, Figueiredo stepped into the octagon against Perez for his first defence of UFC gold.
At 45 seconds into round 1, Figueiredo lands a strong body kick, but shortly after, Perez returns with a leg kick-to-body kick combination.
At 1:20, Perez attempts a takedown, and Figueiredo tries to fasten a leg lock. However, he didn’t quite get it, leaving the opportunity for Perez to take his back which fails.
Figueiredo then sinks in a quick guillotine causing Perez to tap at 1:57 of round 1
This was Figueiredo’s first defence of his title, and he did it in style with the quickest submission in flyweight history.
2. Vs. Joseph Benavidez 1 – UFC FN 169 (Feb. 29, 2020)
This fight was Figueiredo’s first shot at UFC gold; however due to missing weight, he was ineligible for the belt.
At 50 seconds into round 1, Figueiredo catches a kick from Benavidez and uses it to get a takedown. Benavidez tries to quickly scramble to his feet, but Figueiredo clamps on an armbar, which Benavidez manages to successfully defend, getting back to his feet.
With just over a minute left in the round, Benavidez puts together multiple darting attacks that find success and, with just 10 seconds remaining, lands a huge right hook to end an evenly fought first round.
At 35 seconds into round 2, Benavidez continues with his darting attacks but is often leading face first and is made to pay for this as he is caught with a huge right hand.
At 1:40 in, and as the fighters briefly clinch, Figueiredo throws Benavidez off and posts off his jab to line up a monstrous straight right that decks Benavidez. Figueiredo then quickly finishes off the fight with a couple of TKO punches at 1:54 of round 2.
Despite this impressive win, it was a bittersweet moment for Deiveson as the belt was still vacant, and a rematch was set up for later on in the year.
1. Vs. Joseph Benavidez 2 – UFC FN 172 (July 19, 2020)
After Figueiredo failed to make weight in their first matchup, a rematch was set between the two fighters, with Figueiredo looking to make it two out of two against Benavidez.
The action opens up at 45 seconds into round 1, when a whipping right hook grazes off the side of Benavidez’s head sitting him down. Figueiredo then immediately begins to reign down elbows to try and finish the fight.
However, Benavidez does well to survive and tries to get up but doing so allows Figueiredo to take his back, and he begins to squeeze on his rear-naked choke attempt.
At 2 minutes in, it looks like a tap is inevitable, but somehow Benavidez manages to peel away Figueiredo’s hands.
Shortly after, Benavidez returns to his feet, but at 3:25 in, Benavidez is knocked down again, this time with a digging right hook, but bounces back up.
With just 45 seconds left, Figueiredo unleashes an overhand right that drops Benavidez for the third time. Figueiredo transitions to mount and blasts down elbows, and in an attempt to escape, Benavidez turns to his back, allowing Figueiredo to finish his rear-naked choke this time, leaving Benavidez unconscious at 4:48 of round 1.
This outstanding performance gave Figueiredo, “The God of War”, a deserved Performance of the Night bonus worth $50,000 as well as capturing the UFC’s Flyweight Championship title.
