Who is Tai Tuivasa?
Tai Anthony Tuivasa is an Australian professional mixed martial artist, presently competing in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is No. 11 in the UFC heavyweight rankings as of December 13, 2021.
Tai Tuivasa Career
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
In August 2012, Tuivasa made his professional MMA debut in his native Australia. He fought continuously for the following four years with all his victories ending in knockouts. Tai has fought a couple of MMA mixed rules bouts with Combat 8 promotions. He fought Australian former rugby league representative John Hopoate on December 1, 2012. The fight was held in the Newcastle Panthers FC arena at Combat 8:02, the second Combat 8 event, winning the fight by TKO.
Later, he fought kickboxer Peter Graham at Combat 8:03, in a back and forth brawl that looked as if Tuivasa would finish his opponent early on. However, the fight continued, Graham rallied and Tai tired, leading to a final loss for Tuivasa through TKO in the second round because of punches.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
It was announced in November 2016, that Tai had signed a four-fight deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He had to stay out for a longer time because of a knee injury and then surgery. Tuivasa would make his UFC breakout against Rashad Coulter at UFC Fight Night: Werdum vs, Tybura on November 19, 2017. He won the fight through knockout because of a flying knee in the first round and became the first indigenous Australian to win a UFC fight. This victory also earned Tai the Performance of the Night bonus.
2018-2020
On February 11, 2018, Tuivasa faced Cyril Asker at UFC 221. He won the fight through technical knockout in the first round. Tuivasa joined the UFC’s official rankings for heavyweight fighters, coming in at position 15 on February 13, 2018. He then signed a new, four-fight deal with UFC in March 2018. In June 2018, he faced Andrei Arlovski at UFC 225, winning the fight by unanimous decision.
On December 2, 2018, Tai faced Junior dos Santos at UFC Fight Night 142. However, he lost through technical knockout in round two. He then faced Blagoy Ivanov at UFC 238 on June 8, 2019, losing the fight through unanimous decision. On October 6, 2019, Tai faced Sergey Spivak at UFC 243. He was defeated through an arm-triangle choke in the second round.
2020-present
On June 6, 2020, Tuivasa was planned to face Jarjis Danho at UFC 251. On April 9, the president of UFC, Dana White, announced that this event was postponed to a future date. Tuivasa faced Stefan Struve on October 24, 2020, at UFC 254, winning through knockout in the first round. He was then scheduled to face Don’Tale Mayes on ESPN 21, on March 20, 2021, at UFC. Mayes was however removed from the fight in the week leading up to the event for reasons not disclosed and replaced by promotional newcomer Harry Hunsucker. Tai won the fight through technical knockout in round one.
On July 10, 2021, Tuivasa faced Greg Hardy at UFC 264, winning the fight through knockout in round one. He received the Performance of the Night award for this victory. On October 30, 2021, he was scheduled to face Walt Harris at UFC 267, but the bout was canceled due to visa problems for Tuivasa. The two were rescheduled and finally met on December 11, 2021, at UFC 269. Tuivasa won the fight through knockout in the second round, earning him his third Performance of the Night bonus award. On February 12, 2022, he faced Derrick Lewis at UFC 271, winning the fight through knockout in round two. He received a Performance of the Night bonus award for the victory.
How old is Tai Tuivasa?
Tai Anthony Tuivasa is aged 28 as of 2021, having been born on March 16, 1993, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. He shares his birthday with famous people including Jhené Aiko, Luca Lombardo, Anthony Vargas, Alexandra Daddario, Julien Brown, Alan Tudyk, Brett Davern, Brooke Burns, Clifton Powell, Erik Estrada, among others.
Tai Tuivasa Family
Who are Tai Tuivasa’s parents?
Tai Anthony Tuivasa was born in Syndey, New South Wales to Tony Tuivasa and, Kerry Johnson. He was born to a Samoan father, an Indigenous Australian (Wiradjuri) mother, and brought up in the western Sydney suburb of Mount Druitt.
Does Tai Tuivasa have siblings?
Tuivasa was born to his parents in a family, of twelve children. He has eleven siblings, with who he grew up within the western Sydney suburb of Mount Druitt.
Tai Tuivasa Education
Tuivasa has kept his educational background information very personal and away from the media.
Tai Tuivasa Interests
Tuivasa was a rugby player in his youth, signing with the professional Sydney Roosters rugby league club in 2010. However, he gave up the sport after developing a gambling addiction.
Currently, he hosts ”The Half cast Podcast” alongside Tyson Pedro and Andrew Fifita as co-hosts. He celebrated with a ‘shoey’, drinking beer from a borrowed shoe at UFC 221, and UFC 225. His style was nicknamed”Shoeyvasa”, by the Sydney newspaper, but it was not allowed again on UFC 254 after he won.
Tai Tuivasa Wife
Tuivasa is currently in a relationship with Brierley Pedro, the sister of UFC light heavyweight fighter Tyson Pedro. They have one child from their relationship together.
Tai Tuivasa Kids
Tuivasa and his partner, Brierley have one child together, a son named Carter Tuivasa.
Tai Tuivasa Height
With his enormous Samoan body, Tuivasa stands at an impressive height of 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) and moderate weight of 120 kg (265 lbs).
Tai Tuivasa Net Worth
Australian heavyweight mixed martial artist and fighter, Tai has been active in fighting from 2012 to the present. He has fought in numerous fights winning most of them through knockout. Tai has earned a great fortune from his career and has accumulated an estimated net worth of $18 million as of 2022.
