Adriano Moraes (fighter)

Adriano Moraes (born April 21, 1988) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division of ONE Championship. He is a former three-time ONE FC Flyweight World Champion. He is currently ranked #1 in the ONE Championship Flyweight rankings.

Background
Moraes was born in Brasilia, Brazil and abandoned by his mother days after birth. He was taken to an orphanage where he lived for three years before being adopted. He was an active child who partook in judo and capoeira. Wanting to learn how to better defend himself, Moraes took up Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

As a member of Constrictor Team, Moraes shined as a submission specialist. Moraes developed his skills and competed in jiu-jitsu tournaments before transitioning into MMA. He made his MMA debut in 2011. He would win the NAGA No-Gi Pro Division Championship in 2014 prior to earning his black belt.

Mixed martial arts career
On September 4, 2011, Moraes made his professional mixed martial arts debut at Precol Combat 5 against Ismael Bonfim. Moraes won by first-round submission (guillotine choke). He would reel off six more victories before joining the longtime promotion Shooto in 2013.

ONE Championship
On November 15, 2013, Moraes made his ONE Championship debut at ONE FC: Warrior Spirit. He lost a split decision to Yusup Saadulaev.

First title reign
After back-to-back wins, Moraes met Geje Eustaquio for the vacant ONE Flyweight Championship. Moraes would capture his first world championship with a second-round guillotine choke on September 12, 2014 at ONE FC: Age of Champions.

Moraes would successfully defend the belt against Riku Shibuya on March 13, 2015 before dropping the title in a close split decision to Kairat Akhmetov on November 21, 2015 at ONE: Dynasty of Champions.

Second title reign
On August 13, 2016, Moraes captured gold once again as he became the interim ONE flyweight champion by defeating Tilek Batyrov via rear-naked choke at ONE: Heroes of the World.

On August 5, 2017, Moraes and Akhmetov fought in a flyweight unification bout. Moraes won the fight by unanimous decision and became the ONE flyweight championship undisputed champion.

On November 10, 2017, Moraes successfully defended the title against Danny Kingad at ONE: Legends of the World by rear-naked choke in the first round.

Moraes was scheduled to defend his title against Reece McLaren at ONE Championship: Visions of Victory on March 9, 2018. However, he suffered a knee injury and was forced to withdraw.

Moraes was set to make his second title defense against Geje Eustaquio at ONE Championship: Pinnacle of Power on June 23, 2018. He lost the fight and the title via split decision.

Third title reign
The pair met in a trilogy match at ONE Championship: Hero's Ascent on January 25, 2019. Moraes re-captured the championship via unanimous decision.

As the first bout of his new four-fight, two-year contract, Adriano Moraes was scheduled to defend his title against ONE Flyweight World Grand Prix Champion and former UFC Flyweight Champion Demetrious Johnson at ONE Championship: Reign of Dynasties on April 11, 2020. The fight was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

After being delayed, Moraes defended his title against Johnson at ONE on TNT 1 on April 7, 2021. The event was held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore and will be broadcast on TNT during US prime time. Moraes won the bout via TKO in round two.

Moraes next defended his title against Yuya Wakamatsu at ONE: X on March 6, 2022. He won the fight via a guillotine choke submission in the third round.

Moraes made the third title defense of his third title reign against Demetrious Johnson at ONE on Prime Video 1 on August 27, 2022. He lost the bout via KO due to a flying knee in the fourth round.

The trilogy bout between Moraes and Johnson for the ONE Flyweight World Championship was held on May 5, 2023, at ONE Fight Night 10. Moraes lost the bout by unanimous decision.

Coaches

 * Head coach: Marcus "Conan" Silveira
 * MMA: Mike Brown
 * Striking: Thiago Alves
 * Wrestling: Steve Mocco
 * Head Strength & Conditioning: Phil Daru
 * Strength & Conditioning/Nutrition: Jose Rojas

Championships and accomplishments

 * ONE Championship
 * ONE Flyweight Championship (Three times)
 * Four successful title defenses (overall)
 * One successful title defense (first reign)
 * One successful title defense (second reign)
 * Two successful title defense (third reign)
 * Interim ONE Flyweight Championship (One time)
 * MMA Knockout of the Year 2021 vs. Demetrious Johnson
 * Shooto
 * Shooto Brazil Flyweight Championship
 * World MMA Awards
 * 2021 Upset of the Year vs. Demetrious Johnson at ONE on TNT 1