5 Things You Might Not Know About Natan Schulte

Two-time Professional Fighters League lightweight champion Natan Schulte will set out on his quest for a third $1 million payday when he faces Steven Ray as part of the PFL 3 undercard on Friday inside The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas. The Brazilian won PFL tournaments at 155 pounds in 2018 and 2019.

The 31-year-old Schulte enters his 2023 campaign on the strength of back-to-back wins. He last appeared at the 2022 PFL Championships, where he subdued Jeremy Stephens with an arm-triangle choke in the second round of their Nov. 25 pairing. Schulte owns a 12-2-1 record across his 15 assignments in the PFL, having lost only to Olivier Aubin-Mercier and Marcin Held.

As Schulte makes final preparations in advance of his forthcoming battle with Ray, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He survived a baptism by fire.

Schulte made his professional mixed martial arts debut at the age of 19 when he put away Piero Severo with a front kick and follow-up punches in the second round of their Dec. 12, 2011 encounter in the Monster Black Combat banner. He went on to suffer back-to-back defeats to Yuri Maia and Pedro Gostinski Jr. before he rebounded and emerged as one of the top prospects in Brazil.

2. Tournament competition has long been a forte.

“Russo” won an eight-man lightweight grand prix in the Xtreme Fighting Championships International promotion in 2014. Schulte cut down Geovanny Arroyo with third-round punches in the quarterfinals, punched out Gilson Lomanto a little more than four minutes into their semifinal showdown and laid claim to a unanimous decision over Glaucio Eliziario in the final.

3. Not many have walked in his shoes.

Schulte remains one of only four fighters to win multiple Professional Fighters League championships. Featherweight Lance Palmer, welterweight Ray Cooper III and women’s lightweight Kayla Harrison are the others. Harrison was denied her bid for a third title at 155 pounds in November, when she was upset by Larissa Pacheco at the 2022 PFL Championships.

4. He shines brightest in the grappling phase.

The Joinville, Brazil, native holds the rank of black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and puts those skills to use quite often. Ten of Schulte’s 23 career victories have resulted in submission, including rear-naked choke finishes of Igor Egorov, Jason High, Yincang Bao and Ramsey Nijem.

5. World-class training fuels his success.

Schulte dropped anchor at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, where esteemed coaches like Marcos da Matta, Marcus “Conan” Silveira, Vitelmo Kubis Bandeira, Steve Mocco and Mike Thomas Brown mentor him on a regular basis. Other top-shelf lightweights at the school include Dustin Poirier, Mateusz Gamrot and Grant Dawson.