Mario Pinto

Mário Pinto (born 14 March 1998) is a Portuguese professional mixed martial artist. He competes in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since October 2021, he previously competed for FightStar Championship and Levels Fight League. As of 12 September 2026, he is #10 in the Meta UFC heavyweight rankings. Pinto was born in Portugal to parents from Guinea-Bissau before moving to Britain at a young age. He decided to pursue a career in mixed martial arts (MMA) as a teenager and later earned a degree in Sport and Exercise Science. Pinto took his first amateur bout in March 2018 and went on to compile an amateur MMA record of 5–1. He made his professional debut in October 2021 at Contenders 31, where he faced Joffie Houlton and won the bout via first-round technical knockout. He then competed twice for FightStar Championship, defeating Berat Berisha by first-round TKO at FightStar Championship 21. Pinto followed this with his first professional submission victory at FightStar Championship 22, submitting Maxwell Djantou Nana via rear-naked choke.