Ricardo Tirloni is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2005, Tirloni has fought in various promotions, including Bellator, the MFC, and Pancrase.
Tirloni holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and trains at Ataque Duplo with the likes of Thiago Tavares and Nazareno Malegarie. In Tirloni's early career, he fought at MFC 17 against Benson Henderson, who would later go on to become the UFC Lightweight champion. Tirloni did not have a training team at the time, but was still competitive throughout the bout. He was able to knock Henderson down in the first round and had Henderson in a deep triangle choke in the second round. However, in the third round, Tirloni tired after a long period of wrestling with Henderson and he was forced to tap after Henderson caught him with a guillotine choke in the final round. Tirloni was otherwise unbeaten, recording thirteen victories prior to joining Bellator.
In late 2011, Tirloni joined Bellator Fighting Championships. He made his promotional debut against Steve Gable at Bellator 55. Tirloni was able to land multiple knees to Gable's head and body, as well as stop Gable's takedown attempts. Tirloni got into top positionon the ground and was able to open up a cut above Gable's left eye. After Gable rolled onto his stomach, Tirloni locked in a rear naked choke, stopping the fight at 3:54 of the second round. Tirloni was then booked to fight Chris Horodecki at Bellator 57, just three weeks after his win over Gable. However, Tirloni dislocated his ribs in training and was forced to withdraw from the bout. Tirloni was later entered into Bellator's which began at Bellator 62. His opponent was Rick Hawn, a former United States representative in Judo at the 2004 Olympic Games. Hawn was also the runner-up of the previous season's welterweight tournament. Tirloni was able to land with a few leg kicks, but Hawn was able to continue pressing forward. Hawn then landed a right hand which dropped Tirloni. Hawn hit Tirloni with punches and hammerfists on the ground and the fight was stopped at 2:36 of the opening round. Tirloni then entered into the. He faced Rene Nazare in the opening round at Bellator 77. He won the fight via submission in the second round. He faced Dave Jansen in the semifinals on November 16, 2012 at and lost via controversial split decision. Tirloni competed in the Bellator Season 8 Lightweight tournament, fighting American Will Brooks in the opening round at Bellator 87 on January 31, 2013. Tirloni was defeated by unanimous decision. Tirloni faced Rich Clementi on September 27, 2013 at in the Quarterfinals of the Season Nine Lightweight tournament. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Tirloni faced Alexander Sarnavskiy in the semifinal round and lost via submission in the first round.
Post-Bellator career
Tirloni faced Esteban Bonaveri at Arena Tour 2: Malegarie vs. Guerra on March 22, 2014. He won the fight via corner stoppage TKO. In June 2015, Tirloni defeated fellow Bellator veteran E.J. Brooks in the main event of Arena Tour 6.
