Matt Serra: Hero or Villain?

In the world of mixed martial arts, you've got The Iceman, The Pitbull, and the Spider.

And then there's The Terror.

With an MMA record of 16 wins and 4 losses, Matt "The Terror" Serra exploded to the front of the MMA scene by defeating Georges St. Pierre in April of 2007 to win the UFC welterweight championship.

As a youngster, Matt Serra was introduced to martial arts by his father. He later studied Jujitsu under Renzo Gracie and became the first American to earn a black belt in Gracie Jujitsu.

Prior to making his UFC debut in 2001, Serra had won several grappling tournaments including a Gold Medal from the Pan Am Brazilian Jujitsu games in 1999, won a Worlds Brazilian Jujitsu Championship in 1999, and was an Abu Dhabi Qualifier Winner in 2000.

For casual MMA fans, Matt Serra's name wasn't widely known until the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter reality show, dubbed "The Comeback." On the show Matt Serra not only showcased his fighting talent, but also displayed his excellent coaching and leadership skills. During the first episode, he motivated his teammate, Shonie Carter, by shouting instructions that helped Carter win a unanimous decision over
Rich Clementi.

During one episode, Serra locked horns with Brazilian Jiujitsu trainer, Marc Laimon, as the two got into a shouting match. As a seasoned Gracie student, practitioner and trainer, Serra was not happy with the level of disrespect that Laimon showed when he said disparaging remarks about the Gracie family and gloating over Royce Gracie's loss to Matt Hughes at UFC 60. The shouting match with Laimon became one of the top 25 greatest moments in TUF's history.

Matt Serra is a tough guy, but is also good natured and charismatic. During TUF 4, he showed respect for all the fighters, including those on the opposing team. In his bout for the welterweight championship title against Georges St. Pierre at UFC 69, he was considered a huge underdog but pulled out one of the biggest upsets in mixed martial arts history.

Tomorrow night at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada is the rematch. Serra knows it's a very tall order to defeat the talented St. Pierre twice, especially in his home country of Canada. But Serra would want nothing more than to prove that his victory of a year ago, was no fluke.