Kyle Oliveira mixes it up with soccer and martial arts

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This article was published 16/01/2016 (3644 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

His whole life, Kyle Oliveira has been using his feet to chase his dreams.

And while the end goal has changed over time, the target remains the same: make it to the top or get knocked out trying.

With a 3-1 record in mixed martial arts, Oliveira has no doubts he will be in the Ultimate Fighting Championship later this year. But first up is a Feb. 12 bantamweight fight at the Convention Centre. “I’m getting that win for sure,” Oliveira says, confidently.

Oliveira, now 24, used his feet with more finesse earlier in life. An avid soccer player, Oliveira’s skills took him to football’s mecca in Brazil, where he trained.

“I was involved in their national training centre and played at a junior professional level,” he says. “That was my first passion and I wanted to go pretty far with it.”

But upon his return to Canada at age 16, a future in soccer stalled. However, where one door closed, a couple more opened through amateur wrestling and kick-boxing.

“I fell back on martial arts,” Oliveira says. “When I was four years old, I started doing the Brazilian martial art capoeira. I was doing that, so I had that foundation.

“Everything started chaining together. I soon found boxing and wrestling, and Brazilian ju-jitsu fell in right behind it. I competed as an amateur in wresting and boxing, winning golden gloves, provincials and went to nationals and worlds in both sports. I built myself a good pedigree and built confidence and turned pro in 2011 in MMA and in boxing in 2014.”

His road to MMA’s ultimate proving ground — the UFC —isn’t cut and dried. Some fighters, such as featherweight champ Conor McGregor, get in through a mix of incredible skill and a big mouth. Others take their skills to The Ultimate Fighter reality show to try to win a contract.

For Oliveira, his road is dictated by patience, impressive performances and, most importantly, wins.

And Oliveira has been petitioning UFC President Dana White to bring his new show, Looking for a Fighter, to Winnipeg.

“I’ve also been in touch with Sean Shelby (one half of the UFC’s matchmakers). He’s told me to just keep working. They’re interested. They know about me. They told me if I can get a couple more wins I might get a contract. So this year is a big year for me,” he says.

For the time being, Oliveira is in the gym multiple times each day. He eats clean — there’s not a lot of room for “cheat” days. In fact, when he’s cutting 25-30 pounds, he’s doing so nearly with his diet alone.

“It’s long days — I have a pretty good window in the afternoon to get some rest in,” he says. “I feel good when I make weight. There’s a science behind the nutrition.”

Sponsors help Oliveira get by, as does living with his girlfriend. Training is his full-time job for now, hopefully, he says, until he’s making big bucks in the UFC.

“I’ve got a good setup. You have to be creative and open-minded to make this work and not give up. It’s tough, that’s for sure. Fighting close to home is a lot better, as well, as opposed to travelling,” he says. Meanwhile, Oliveira’s one blemish on his record is still met with a hint of disbelief. The official record shows a knockout in 22 seconds.

“I was young, took a tough guy,” he says. “I wanted to fight, I wanted to keep going and not stop. He was very experienced. Yeah, man, I’ve watched the fight a couple times. I can’t point out what I did wrong, it was so quick. He just placed a shot right behind my ear and that was it.”

The fight left him with a concussion and a chance to regroup. And he did, winning his next two fights in convincing fashion.

“My striking got a lot better. It’s nothing I look back on too much or worry about for my future,” he says.

Favourite workout:

I do really enjoy my MMA practices and my MMA sparring on Monday nights. It’s great to bring all the skills together, everything that I train for.

Favourite workout song:

I’m not picky, but probably rap in my downtime, or if I’m taking a nap, maybe some R& B. But for the most part, I’m not picky.

Fitness tip:

Definitely consistency. When you’re planning your week, have it planned, especially when you’re starting out. Don’t do it once and then say you’re too tired or the people at the gym are better than you. That’s because you’re starting out. You’re a sponge, keep learning.

What’s in your fridge:

A lot of vegetables, chicken breasts that I’ve cooked for the week and good fruits. I also love almond milk, but it’s so damn expensive now, so I just have chocolate milk at the moment. I also have a lot of egg whites and Greek yogurt, I love that.

Guilty pleasure:

A good burger. I really like Nuburger. I’m not a big fan of fast food.

Got an idea for the Training Basket? Email Scott at scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca