Alexander Sarnavskiy

Alexander Sarnavskiy
Born January 17, 1989
Omsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Other names Tiger
Nationality Russian
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight 155 lb (70 kg; 11.1 st)
Division Lightweight
Reach 70.5 in (179 cm)[1]
Style Kickboxing, Hand-to-hand combat
Fighting out of Omsk, Russia
Team RusFighters Sport Club
Reign Training Center
BJ Penn's MMA
Trainer Alexander Shlemenko
Rank Master of Sport in HTHC
Years active 2008–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total 33
Wins 30
By knockout 7
By submission 18
By decision 5
Losses 3
By submission 1
By decision 2
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Alexander Sarnavskiy (born January 17, 1989) is a Russian mixed martial artist who competes in the lightweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2008, Sarnavskiy has mostly competed in his native Russia, where he is an M-1 Global veteran and lightweight division in the Bellator Fighting Championships. Alexander is currently ranked as the #2 lightweight in Europe.[2]

Mixed martial arts career

Background

Sarnavskiy trains at RusFighters Sport Club, which is also home to Bellator season three middleweight champion Alexander Shlemenko. Like Shlemenko, Sarnavskiy shows a tendency to prefer the striking aspect of fighting, though he is regarded as skilled on the ground too,[3] as evidenced by his opening two victories coming via triangle choke.

M-1 Global

After compiling a record of 8-0 (3 submission, 4 KO/TKOs), Sarnavskiy joined M-1 Global to enter their selection tournament. His opening round fight was against Maxim Kuptsov. Midway through the first round, Sarnavskiy caught his opponent in a body triangle and peppered him with punches from behind. He soon went for a rear naked choke, which forced the tapout from Kuptsov.[4]

Sarnavskiy then faced Karen Grigoryan in the next round, defeating him by split decision, advancing him to the final.

Following the win over Grigoryan, Sherdog ranked him as the number one undefeated European prospect in the sport.[3] Around the same time, Sarnavskiy was scheduled to face Artiom Damkovsky at the M-1 Eastern European Finals.[5] The bout was cancelled however and Damkovsky faced a replacement opponent in the final.

Appearing at M-1 Challenge XXI: Guram vs. Garner, Sarnavskiy faced Victor Kuku. Immediately, Sarnavskiy went after Kuku and went for a flying knee. Sarnavskiy's spinning back fist knocked Kuku down, before he hit Kuku with a barrage of punches to claim the knockout win.[6]

Sarnavskiy made his U.S. MMA debut in Norfolk, Virginia on March 25, 2011 on the televised portion of M-1 Challenge: Damkovsky vs. Figueroa. He faced late replacement Beau Baker and won the fight via submission in the second round.[7]

Bellator MMA

On June 19, 2012, Sarnavskiy signed with Bellator, thus terminating the contract with M-1 Global.[8]

Sarnavskiy entered as a participant in the Bellator season seven lightweight tournament. In the opening round, he faced Rich Clementi on October 19, 2012 at Bellator 77.[9] He lost the fight via split decision (29–28, 28–29, 30–26).

Sarnavskiy defeated Tony Hervey on November 30, 2012 at Bellator 82 via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–27).

In 2013, Sarnavskiy entered as a participant in the Bellator Season 8 Lightweight tournament. He faced Brazilian Kickboxer Thiago Michel in the quarter finals on January 31, 2013 at Bellator 87[10] and won via submission in the second round.

Sarnavskiy was originally scheduled to face David Rickels in the semifinals. However, Sarnavskiy fractured his hand during his first fight and had to withdraw from the tournament.

In the fall of 2013, Sarnavskiy entered the next Lightweight tournament. He faced Marcus Davis on September 27, 2013 at Bellator 101 in the Quarterfinals of Bellator's Season Nine Lightweight Tournament. After knocking Davis down with a punch, he took his back and eventually won via a rear naked choke submission.

Sarnavskiy faced Ricardo Tirloni in the semifinals and won via triangle choke in the first round.

Sarnavskiy faced Will Brooks in the finals and lost via unanimous decision.

After nearly a year away from the Bellator cage, Sarnavskiy was expected to face John Gunderson on October 10, 2014 at Bellator 128.[11] However, Gunderson withdrew from the bout and retired from MMA fighting. Derek Campos stepped in as a replacement.[12] An injury forced Campos out of the fight, Sarnavskiy eventually faced promotional newcomer Dakota Cochrane.[13] He won the fight by submission in the first round.

Sarnavskiy faced Marcin Held on April 10, 2015 at Bellator 136.[14] He lost the fight via verbal submission in the third round.

Championships and Accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 30–3 Marcin Held Verbal Submission (kneebar) Bellator 136 April 10, 2015 3 1:11 Irvine, California, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 30–2 Artak Nazaryan KO (flying knee) FEFoMP: Cup of Friendship November 8, 2014 1 4:09 Novosibirsk, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 29–2 Dakota Cochrane Submission (rear-naked choke) Bellator 128 October 10, 2014 1 2:32 Thackerville, Oklahoma, United States 160 lb. catchweight bout.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 28–2 Drew Brokenshire Submission (rear-naked choke) Plotforma S-70 5 August 9, 2014 2 4:08 Sochi, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 27–2 Yukinari Tamura Submission (rear-naked choke) Ural Fight League - Resurrection May 24, 2014 3 4:54 Ekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 26–2 Alexander Butenko Decision (unanimous) Union of Veterans of Sport - Cup of Champions December 21, 2013 3 5:00 Novosibirsk, Russia
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 25–2 Will Brooks Decision (unanimous) Bellator 109 November 22, 2013 3 5:00 Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States Bellator Season 9 Lightweight Tournament Final
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 25–1 Ricardo Tirloni Submission (triangle choke) Bellator 105 October 25, 2013 1 1:08 Rio Rancho, New Mexico, United States Bellator Season 9 Lightweight Tournament Semifinal
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 24–1 Marcus Davis Submission (rear-naked choke) Bellator 101 September 27, 2013 1 1:40 Portland, Oregon, United States Bellator Season 9 Lightweight Tournament Quarterfinal
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 23–1 Atchin Chaoshen Ne Submission (armbar) FEFoMP: Mayor Cup 2013 May 25, 2013 1 1:35 Khabarovsk, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 22–1 Thiago Michel Submission (rear-naked choke) Bellator 87 January 31, 2013 2 3:43 Mount Pleasant, Michigan, United States Bellator Season 8 Lightweight Tournament Quarterfinal
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 21–1 Tony Hervey Decision (unanimous) Bellator 82 November 30, 2012 3 5:00 Mount Pleasant, Michigan, United States
style="background: #ffdddd; color: black; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; " class="table-no2" |Loss 20–1 Rich Clementi Decision (split) Bellator 77 October 19, 2012 3 5:00 Reading, Pennsylvania, United States Bellator Season 7 Lightweight Tournament Quarterfinal
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 20–0 Maykel Becerra KO (knee) FEFoMP: Mayor Cup 2012 May 26, 2012 1 1:24 Khabarovsk, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 19–0 Len Bentley Submission (triangle choke) Saturn: Martial Arts Festival February 11, 2012 1 1:50 Omsk, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 18–0 Sergio Cortez Submission (rear-naked choke) M-1 Challenge XXX: Zavurov vs. Enomoto II December 9, 2011 1 1:46 Costa Mesa, California, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 17–0 Thomas Deak Decision (unanimous) Union of Veterans of Sport: Russia vs. Europe November 19, 2011 2 5:00 Novosibirsk, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 16–0 Marcio Cesar Submission (rear-naked choke) League S-70: Russia vs. Brazil August 5, 2011 1 1:04 Sochi, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 15–0 Doug Evans Submission (triangle choke) FEFoMP: Mayor's Cup 2011 May 7, 2011 1 2:40 Khabarovsk, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 14–0 Beau Baker Submission (rear-naked choke) M-1 Challenge XXIV: Damkovsky vs. Figueroa March 25, 2011 2 2:32 Norfolk, Virginia, United States
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 13–0 Arsen Ubaidulaev Submission (rear-naked choke) M-1 Challenge XXII: Narkun vs. Vasilevsky December 10, 2010 1 0:43 Moscow, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 12–0 Victor Kuku KO (spinning back fist and punches) M-1 Challenge XXI: Guram vs. Garner October 28, 2010 1 0:13 Saint Petersburg, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 11–0 Aleksey Ershik Submission (rear-naked choke) FEFoMP: Open Championship of Vladivostok October 23, 2010 1 0:30 Vladivostok, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 10–0 Karen Grigoryan Decision (split) M-1 Selection 2010: Eastern Europe Round 3 May 28, 2010 3 5:00 Kiev, Ukraine M-1 Eastern European Championship Semi-Final.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 9–0 Maxim Kuptsov Submission (rear-naked choke) M-1 Selection 2010: Eastern Europe Round 1 February 26, 2010 1 4:03 Saint Petersburg, Russia M-1 Eastern European Championship Quarterfinals.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 8–0 Mamour Fall Submission (triangle choke) Saturn & RusFighters: Battle of Gladiators February 13, 2010 2 1:50 Omsk, Russia World Championship Final.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 7–0 Timur Daurenuly KO (punches) Saturn & RusFighters: Battle of Gladiators February 13, 2010 1 0:35 Omsk, Russia World Championship Semi-Final.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 6–0 Maratbek Kalabekov Decision (split) ProFC: Union Nation Cup 4 December 19, 2009 3 3:00 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 5–0 Vladimir Simonyan KO (punches) ProFC: Union Nation Cup 3 October 30, 2009 1 0:17 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 4–0 Kardash Fatakhov TKO (punches) Siberian League: Tomsk Challenge July 2, 2009 1 8:40 Tomsk, Russia Russian Championship Final.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 3–0 Islam Mamedov KO (punches) Siberian League: Tomsk Challenge July 2, 2009 1 5:34 Tomsk, Russia Russian Championship Semi-Final.
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 2–0 Andrei Koshkin Submission (triangle choke) Siberian League: New Hopes April 27, 2009 1 2:15 Novokuznetsk, Russia
style="background:#bfd; color:black; vertical-align:middle; text-align:center; " class="table-yes2" |Win 1–0 Rishat Gilmitdinov Submission (triangle choke) Universal Fighter December 12, 2008 1 2:00 Ufa, Russia

See also

References

External links