Manvel Gamburyan is an Armenian mixed martial artist who has competed in the UFC's lightweight, featherweight, and bantamweight divisions.
40 Facts About Manny Gamburyan
1.
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In May 1991, Manny Gamburyan's family relocated from Armenia to the United States.
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Manny Gamburyan went on to win junior nationals eight times, the junior Olympics once, and was a member of the 2000 Junior World Team.
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Manny Gamburyan began his career in mixed martial arts in 1999 at the age of 17.
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Manny Gamburyan won his first four fights, then lost a decision to future UFC Lightweight Champion Sean Sherk in 2001.
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In 2007, Manny Gamburyan appeared on the reality show The Ultimate Fighter 5, fighting on Jens Pulver's team.
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Manny Gamburyan's nickname was changed to "Anvil" for his UFC career because "Pitbull" was already taken by other UFC fighters such as Andrei Arlovski and Thiago Alves.
8.
Manny Gamburyan defeated Noah Thomas by kimura lock in the preliminary round.
9.
Manny Gamburyan was considered an underdog in each of his fights, in part due to his short stature.
10.
Manny Gamburyan won his next two UFC fights, defeating Nate Mohr by ankle lock at UFC 79 and Jeff Cox by guillotine choke at UFC Fight Night 13.
11.
Manny Gamburyan raised some controversy in the Cox fight by delivering a spinning leg kick after feigning the mutual tap of gloves that is often seen at the beginning of the match.
12.
Manny Gamburyan returned to action at UFC 87 and was knocked out in 12 seconds by Rob Emerson.
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At UFC 94, Manny Gamburyan lost to Thiago Tavares in a back and forth fight via unanimous decision.
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Manny Gamburyan's first fight at featherweight was a decision win over John Franchi at WEC 41.
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Manny Gamburyan defeated Leonard Garcia on November 18,2009, at WEC 44 via unanimous decision.
16.
Manny Gamburyan fought former WEC Featherweight Champion Mike Brown at WEC 48.
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Manny Gamburyan won by knockout in the first round as well as getting the Knockout of the Night bonus of $65,000.
18.
Manny Gamburyan lost via second-round KO to Jose Aldo in a bout for the WEC Featherweight Championship on September 30,2010, at WEC 51.
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Manny Gamburyan was expected to face Raphael Assuncao on March 19,2011, at UFC 128, but was forced out of the bout with a back injury and replaced by Erik Koch.
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Manny Gamburyan next faced Tyson Griffin on June 26,2011, at UFC on Versus 4.
21.
Manny Gamburyan was expected to face Diego Nunes on September 24,2011, at UFC 135, but was forced to withdraw from the bout after suffering a shoulder injury.
22.
The bout ultimately took place at UFC 141 and Manny Gamburyan lost via unanimous decision.
23.
Manny Gamburyan defeated Michihiro Omigawa via unanimous decision on August 4,2012, at UFC on FOX 4.
24.
Manny Gamburyan was expected to face Chad Mendes on February 23,2013, at UFC 157.
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However, Manny Gamburyan was forced out of the bout with a thumb injury.
26.
Manny Gamburyan was expected to face Hacran Dias on May 18,2013, at UFC on FX 8.
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However, Manny Gamburyan was forced to pull out of the bout citing another injury and was replaced by Nik Lentz.
28.
Manny Gamburyan faced Cole Miller on August 17,2013, at UFC Fight Night 26.
29.
Manny Gamburyan faced Dennis Siver on December 28,2013, at UFC 168.
30.
Manny Gamburyan faced Nik Lentz on May 10,2014, at UFC Fight Night 40.
31.
Manny Gamburyan faced Cody Gibson in a bantamweight bout on September 27,2014, at UFC 178.
32.
Manny Gamburyan won the fight via submission in the second round.
33.
Manny Gamburyan was expected to face Aljamain Sterling on April 18,2015, at UFC on Fox 15.
34.
However, Manny Gamburyan pulled out of the bout citing injury and was replaced by Takeya Mizugaki.
35.
Manny Gamburyan faced Scott Jorgensen on July 15,2015, at UFC Fight Night 71.
36.
Manny Gamburyan next faced John Dodson on April 16,2016, at UFC on Fox 19.
37.
Manny Gamburyan lost the fight via TKO in the first round.
38.
Manny Gamburyan was expected to face Alejandro Perez on September 17,2016, at UFC Fight Night 94.
39.
Manny Gamburyan lost to Johnny Eduardo on November 19,2016, at UFC Fight Night 100 by 2nd-round TKO.
40.
Less than two years into his retirement, Manny Gamburyan appeared on Ariel and the Bad Guy Show and revealed he is returning from retirement and planning to enter competition in mid-2019.