Andrey Pulyaev was born on September 10, 1997, in the Zabaykalsky region (often reported as Chita), Russia. Standing at 6′4″ (193 cm) with a reach of approximately 78.5″ (199 cm), he moved to Novosibirsk to train under the Storm Shlemenko Fight Team. Pulyaev fights out of Novosibirsk in the middleweight division and utilizes a southpaw stance.
Pulyaev turned professional in February 2022, debuting at Shlemenko Fighting Championship 3 with a unanimous‑decision victory over Evgeny Chernyshko. Over the next year and a half he built an impressive regional streak, primarily across Shlemenko FC events, collecting five first‑round finishes—including KOs and a technical submission—before suffering his first loss in December 2022 by unanimous decision.
In 2023 and early 2024, Pulyaev tallied multiple wins in RCC and Shlemenko FC promotions, highlighted by a submission over Nikita Kondratov and a knockout of Well Oliveira at SFC 9. His rising profile earned him a 2024 Dana White’s Contender Series appearance, where he defeated Liam Anderson via unanimous decision and secured a contract with the UFC. His UFC debut came on March 22, 2025, at UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Brady, where he lost a unanimous decision to Christian Leroy Duncan, bringing his professional record to 9‑3‑0.