Sherdog’s Top 10: Brazilian Mixed Martial Artists

7. Mauricio Rua

If ever there was a fighter destined for greatness, “Shogun” was the guy. The Brazilian first appeared in the Pride ring in 2003 and proceeded to destroy everything in sight. When he soccer kicked Quinton Jackson in April 2005, the MMA world realized the kind of star it had on its hands.

Rua was an amazing force in his prime, as he knocked off Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Ricardo Arona, Alistair Overeem (twice) and Cyrille Diabate. Only Nogueira managed to go the distance with him. Rua’s sensational victory over Arona completed his remarkable run through the 2005 Pride middleweight grand prix. “Shogun” arrived in the UFC with plenty of hype, only to be derailed by a rear-naked choke from “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 1 winner Forrest Griffin.

While Rua eventually claimed the UFC light heavyweight championship by wrecking Lyoto Machida at UFC 113, he has never fully recaptured the magic he created in Pride. Recurring knee injuries bear a majority of the blame. While he took care of Chuck Liddell and won rematches with Griffin and Nogueira, those victories were largely overshadowed by losses to Jon Jones, Dan Henderson (twice), Chael Sonnen and Alexander Gustafsson.

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