Julio Cesar (mixed martial artist)
# Julio Cesar (mixed martial artist)

Julio Cesar Neves Jr. (born 25 April 1994) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who has most notably competed in the featherweight division of Bellator MMA.

## Background

Julio Cesar was born in Brazil. He achieved a coveted 30-0 record after defeating Poppies Martinez at Bellator 125, an unheard of accomplishment in mixed martial arts competition, given his age and the time span in which he competed.

## Mixed martial arts career

### Early career

Neves had been competing in the Brazilian circuit since late-2011, amassing 28 bouts and early finishes in a very condensed period of time before signing with Bellator MMA. He was doing so at a very young age, being only 19-years-old when he was signed to Bellator. He was expected to face Yuri Maia at Golden Fighters 7 on 9 November 2013, but it was cancelled because of the subsequent signing to Bellator.

### Bellator MMA

Neves made his Bellator debut on 18 April 2014 (just days before his 20th birthday) at Bellator 117 against Josh Arocho. The 19-year-old was successful in his debut, defeating Arocho in the second round via TKO.

In his second bout with the promotion, Neves faced Poppies Martinez on 19 September 2014 at Bellator 125. He won via TKO in the first round.

In his third bout with the promotion, Neves faced fellow up-and-comer Jordan Parsons at Bellator 137 on 15 May 2015. He lost the back and forth fight via submission in the third round. This marked the first professional defeat of his career.

In June 2015, it was revealed that Neves, along with his brother Rafael Silva, were among 8 fighters released from the promotion.

### Criticism

Neves' record has been subject of controversy in his home country of Brazil. According to many local MMA resources and forums, Neves built his undefeated record facing mostly "cans" and opponents with irregular MMA records while avoiding tougher challengers. Some of his opponents' records, in order, are: 0-3, 0-2, 3-2, 0-2, 9-8, 4-3, 0-1, 2-3, 1-3, 1-1, 0-3, 1-7, 1-1, 0-2, 12-10 and 0-2.

## Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown :

| 36 matches | 35 wins | 1 loss |
| - | - | - |
| By knockout | 19 | 0 |
| By submission | 10 | 1 |
| By decision | 6 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
| Win | 35–1 | Kevin Park | Decision (unanimous) | Battlefield FC 2 | 27 July 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Macau, China | |
| Win | 34–1 | Roger Sampaio | Submission (guillotine choke) | Aspera FC 57 | 9 September 2017 | 1 | 1:14 | Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 33–1 | Fernando Colman | Decision (unanimous) | Brave CF 4 | 18 March 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Parana, Brazil | Catchweight 150 pounds |
| Win | 32–1 | Carlisson Diego Santos | Submission (anaconda choke) | Smash Fight 4 | 28 October 2016 | 2 | 4:08 | Curitiba, Parana, Brazil | |
| Win | 31–1 | Ranieri Zenidim | Decision (unanimous) | Aspera FC 40 | 18 June 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Loss | 30–1 | Jordan Parsons | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Bellator 137 | 15 May 2015 | 3 | 4:09 | Temecula, California, United States | |
| Win | 30–0 | Poppies Martinez | TKO (spinning back-kick to the body and punches) | Bellator 125 | 19 September 2014 | 1 | 2:16 | Fresno, California, United States | |
| Win | 29–0 | Josh Arocho | TKO (elbows) | Bellator 117 | 18 April 2014 | 2 | 2:37 | Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States | |
| Win | 28–0 | Nelson Junior | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Sparta MMA 9 | 15 September 2013 | 1 | 0:57 | Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 27–0 | Maikon de Carvalho | Decision (unanimous) | Sparta MMA 8 | 24 August 2013 | 3 | 5:00 | Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 26–0 | Dener dos Santos | KO (cartwheel kick) | Watch Out Combat Show 28 | 10 August 2013 | 1 | 2:42 | Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil | |
| Win | 25–0 | Hamilton Ferreira | TKO (punches) | Watch Out Combat Show 26 | 24 May 2013 | 1 | 1:50 | Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 24–0 | Renato Gabardi | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Island Fighting Championships 1 | 26 April 2013 | 2 | 4:47 | Palhoça, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 23–0 | Alex de Souza | TKO (punches) | Sparta MMA 5 - Encontro de Campeoes | 20 April 2013 | 1 | 0:36 | Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 22–0 | Kaique Silva | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Nocaute Fight Champion | 13 April 2013 | 2 | 2:18 | Curitibanos, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 21–0 | Danilo Santos | TKO (head kick) | BingoFight | 22 March 2013 | 2 | 2:11 | Blumenau, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 20–0 | Mauricio Machado | KO (flying knee) | Sparta MMA 4 - Julio Cesar vs Bad Boy | 16 March 2013 | 1 | 0:37 | Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 19–0 | Tiago Esquilo | TKO (punches) | CTA Combat - MMA & Muay Thai | 9 March 2013 | 1 | 1:08 | Palmeira das Missões, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil | |
| Win | 18–0 | Kelvin Kuster | TKO (punches) | Sparta MMA 3 - Class | 23 February 2013 | 2 | 2:10 | Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 17–0 | Ramones Silva | TKO (punches) | Tavares Combat 5 | 16 February 2013 | 1 | 2:47 | Jaguaruna, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 16–0 | Rafael Bixão | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Tavares Combat 4 | 3 February 2013 | 1 | 3:26 | Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 15–0 | Vitor Miranda | KO (head kick) | Tavares Combat 2 | 24 January 2013 | 1 | 2:34 | Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 14–0 | Maicon Silva | KO (flying knee) | Sparta MMA - Sparta Qualify 1 | 12 January 2013 | 1 | 3:14 | Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 13–0 | Joao Capoeira | KO (punch) | Corupa Fight Champion | 22 December 2012 | 1 | 3:37 | Corupá, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 12–0 | Guilherme Nascimento | Submission (armbar) | Tavares Combat | 8 December 2012 | 1 | N/A | Palhoça, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 11–0 | Guilherme Severo | Decision (unanimous) | Golden Fighters 4 | 1 December 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil | |
| Win | 10–0 | Antonio Bezerra | KO (flying knee) | Soul Fight Night | 11 August 2012 | 2 | 3:11 | Pirabeiraba, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 9–0 | Luiz André | TKO (punches) | Soul Fight Night | 11 August 2012 | 1 | 1:16 | Pirabeiraba, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 8–0 | Gustavo Mendonca | KO (flying knee) | Connect Fight Night 2 | 17 June 2012 | 2 | 1:16 | Biguaçu, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 7–0 | Fernando Giacometti | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Energy Force | 19 May 2012 | 1 | 1:50 | Navegantes, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 6–0 | Lucas Moraes | TKO (elbows) | Connect Fight Night | 31 March 2012 | 3 | 3:04 | Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 5–0 | Jonathan Giocomossi | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | Blufight MMA - Blufight 2 | 10 March 2012 | 1 | 3:10 | Blumenau, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 4–0 | Apostolis Andrade Halianis | Decision (unanimous) | Nitrix Champion Fight 10 | 11 February 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Camboriu, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 3–0 | Renato Monaco | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Blufight MMA - Blufight 1 | 3 December 2011 | 1 | 1:57 | Blumenau, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
| Win | 2–0 | Fabio Japones | KO (flying knee) | FPMMA - Combat | 13 November 2011 | 1 | 2:17 | São Caetano do Sul, São Paulo, Brazil | |
| Win | 1–0 | Maicon Gregor | KO (flying knee) | Octagon MMA | 1 October 2011 | 1 | 4:12 | Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil | |
