George Sotiropoulos (born 9 July 1977) is an Australian former professionalmixed martial artist who most notably fought in theUltimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in theirLightweight division. He is well known for appearing as a fighter on the TV showThe Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra, fighting on TeamSerra and as the coach for Team Australia onThe Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes.^[5]

George Sotiropoulos
Born	(1977-07-09)9 July 1977 (age 47) Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight	155 lb (70 kg; 11.1 st)
Division	Lightweight (2009–present) Welterweight (2007–2008)
Reach	71 in (180 cm)
Stance	Orthodox
Team	Impact Jiu-jitsu[1] American Top Team (2012–2016)[2][3] Omega Jiu Jitsu & MMA (2018–present)[3]
Rank	2nd degree black belt inBrazilian jiu-jitsuunderFabiano Scherner[4]
Years active	2004–2014, 2023
Professional boxing record
Total	1
Wins	1
Losses	0
Mixed martial arts record
Total	22
Wins	14
By knockout	1
By submission	8
By decision	5
Losses	7
By knockout	2
By decision	4
By disqualification	1
No contests	1
Other information
University	Victoria University, Melbourne
Website	www.georgesotiropoulos.com
Boxing record fromBoxRec
Mixed martial arts record fromSherdog

Sotiropoulos grew up inGeelong, Victoria, changing schools multiple times due to occasional physical altercations he got into.^[6] Despite the scuffles, Sotiropoulos fared well in his studies and got hisassociate's diploma ininternational trade fromVictoria University, Melbourne.^[1] Subsequently, he graduated with bachelor's degree in banking and finance, and international trade in 2001.^[1]

Sotiropoulos began training inBrazilian jiu-jitsu in 1997 at the age of 19, and was promoted to black belt in 2004.^[7] In 2003 and 2007, he represented Australia in the Submission Wrestling World Championships. Sotiropoulos has also competed in amateur boxing, and in 2004, won aVictorian State Amateur Boxing Championship.^[8]

Prior to his MMA career in the UFC, Sotiropoulos trained with veteran UFC andPRIDE fighterEnson Inoue. The two met during a winning bout Sotiropoulos had with Sergio Lourenço inGuam. He has remained affiliated withEnson Inoue's Purebred gyms throughout his career since then.^[9][10][11]

Following his appearance onThe Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra, Sotiropoulos moved toLong Island, NY to train at withMatt Serra^[9][12] Sotiropoulos then relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada, and trained atXtreme Couture. During this time period he also trained at10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu withEddie Bravo.^[13]

Sotiropoulos made his professional debut in 2004 against fellow Australian Gavin Murie, in which Sotiropoulos was able to win via armbar submission in the first round. He went on to win two more fights until his first career loss via split decision toKyle Noke in 2005, one year later he was able to avenge his first loss by defeating Noke by unanimous decision. Sotiropoulos went on to have a 7–2 record in small MMA organizations, until he was invited to participate inThe Ultimate Fighter in 2007.

Sotiropoulos defeatedJared Rollins in the first round of the competition byKO.^[14] He went on to defeatRichie Hightower in the quarterfinals via submission due to a kimura.^[15] Sotiropoulos was then defeated byTom Speer in the semi-finals by knockout, shortly after an accidental thumb to the eye.^[16]

Sotiropoulos defeated Billy Miles atThe Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs Team Serra Finale via submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:36 of the first round.^[17]

Sotiropoulos defeatedRoman Mitichyan atUFC Fight Night 13 on 2 April 2008 by TKO in the second round.^[18]

He was scheduled to fightjudokaKaro Parisyan atUFC 87, however Sotiropoulos was forced to withdraw due to injury.

Sotiropoulos was then expected to faceMatt Grice atUFC Fight Night 17, but was forced to withdraw due to another injury and was replaced by Matt Veach.^[19][20]

After an 18-month break in his career, Sotiropoulos switched weight classes, and was expected to faceRob Emerson atUFC 101 on 8 August 2009.^[21] However, Emerson withdrew from the bout due to a cut and was replaced byGeorge Roop.^[22] During the bout, he showcased his high level grappling skills, passing Roop's guard with ease. Sotiropoulos eventually forced the tap out with a kimura lock in the second round.^[23]

Sotiropoulos defeatedUltimate Fighter 9 alumniJason Dent in the second round via armbar submission on 21 November 2009, atUFC 106.^[24] In a post-fight interview following the win, Sotiropoulos stated his desire to compete at theUFC 110 card, inSydney, Australia.^[25] Sotiropoulos' wish was granted and facedJoe Stevenson on 21 February 2010 atUFC 110.^[26] Making his first appearance on the main card of a UFC pay-per-view event, Sotiropoulos improved to 5–0 in the UFC as he defeated Stevenson via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) in a dominant performance, promptingDana White to say that Sotiropoulos was "in the mix" for a title shot.^[27] The fight earned Sotiropoulos his firstFight of the Night award in the UFC.^[28]

Sotiropoulos foughtKurt Pellegrino atUFC 116 on 3 July 2010, and won by a commanding unanimous decision.^[29]

Sotiropoulos then facedJoe Lauzon on 20 November 2010 atUFC 123.^[30] Sotiropoulos survived a fast start by his opponent, thus gassing Lauzon in one round, and allowing Sotiropoulos to dominate the next round, winning by kimura in the second round in a bout that wonFight of the Night honors.^[31][32] The win pushed Sotiropoulos to a perfect 7–0 record in the UFC and established him as one of the top contenders in the UFC's lightweight division.

Sotiropoulos suffered his first UFC loss toDennis Siver via unanimous decision atUFC 127.^[33] Sotiropoulos was unable to take the fight to the ground and was forced to strike with the German Kickboxing Champion Siver.^[34] The loss setback Sotiropoulos' chances of a title shot.^[35]

Sotiropoulos was expected to faceEvan Dunham on 2 July 2011 atUFC 132.^[36] However, Dunham was forced out of the bout with an injury, and replaced byRafael dos Anjos.^[37] Sotiropoulos was knocked out just 59 seconds into the first round.^[38]

Sotiropoulos was expected to face formerPRIDE Lightweight ChampionTakanori Gomi on 26 February 2012 atUFC 144.^[39] However, Sotiropoulos was forced out of the bout with an injury and replaced byEiji Mitsuoka.^[40]

In July 2012 Sotiropoulos was confirmed as the Australian coach forThe Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes, and facedRoss Pearson on 15 December 2012 at the finale -UFC on FX 6.^[41] Pearson dominated him throughout the fight, and although he narrowly avoiding being knocked out several times, Sotiropoulos was visibly rocked in all three rounds; being knocked down in two of them. He eventually lost the fight via third-round TKO from Pearson.^[42]

Sotiropoulos faced HawaiianK. J. Noons on 19 October 2013 atUFC 166.^[43] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.^[44]

After losing four in a row, Sotiropoulos was released from his UFC contract on 18 December 2013.^[45]

On 22 January 2014 it was announced that Sotiropoulos had signed a four-fight contract withTitan Fighting Championship and was expected to debut on 25 April atTitan FC 28^[46] againstMike Ricci however Ricci withdrew from the bout due to injury.^[47] The bout was rescheduled and took place at Titan FC 29 on 22 August 2014. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.^[48]

Almost a decade removed from his previous bout, Sotiropoulos faced Josh Togo at HEX Fight Series 26 on 26 May 2023.^[49] The bout ended in a no contest in the second round after an accidental eye poke rendered Togo unable to continue.^[50]

Sotiropoulous is featured inUFC Undisputed 3 as a Lightweight fighter alongside the likes ofClay Guida,Dennis Siver,Joe Lauzon andFrankie Edgar.^[51]

After years of living inWashington state and New York City,^[52][53] Sotiropoulos moved toMelbourne, Australia in 2016 and currently manages his own MMA gym, Omega Jiu-Jitsu & MMA there.^[3]

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Fight of the Night (Two times)vs.Joe Stevenson andJoe Lauzon^[28][32]
  • UFC.com Awards
    • 2010:Ranked #4 Fighter of the Year^[54] &Ranked #7 Fight of the Yearvs.Joe Lauzon^[55]

• Official website
• Professional MMA record for George Sotiropoulos fromSherdog 
• Official UFC Profile