MMA’s Rookie of the Year is Jailton Almeida

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31-year-old Brazilian Jailton Almeida has been voted the 2022 MMA Fighting Rookie of the Year, after he scored 3 victories and 3 first-round finishes, in seven months. Having made his mark in the Contender Series in 2021, Almeida was signed by the UFC where he made his debut against Danilo Marques.

Some powerful pounding and punches later, he conclusively defeated Marques in three minutes, thereby signaling that the light-heavyweight division had a new contender. Almeida then decided to move to the heavyweight division. His second fight against Parker Porter also ended in a first-round finish where he resorted to a rear choke. His third fight against Anton Turkalj ended in similar fashion, after a takedown in the opening moments of the fight, to put his record at 3-0.

Almeida’s record could have been more impressive if not for the cancellation of two separate fights in October and November which he will be looking to compensate that in his January fight against heavyweight fighter Shamil Abdurakhimov.

Overall, Almeida is expected to debut in a major promotion soon and having compared himself to ex-UFC light-heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira, he has similar plans for himself. Riding on a 12-fight winning streak overall, Almeida’s speed, technique and power has the potential to propel him to champion status, in multiple divisions.