Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, a popular UFC light heavyweight and a former champion in both the UFC and the defunct Pride promotion, was reportedly robbed at gunpoint by a group of men in his native Brazil.
The story was reported Friday afternoon by Portuguese-language MMA website PVT and later translated by Guilherme Cruz of MMAFighting:
Shogun Rua robbed at gunpoint by four men with rifles in Brazil (@guicruzzz) http://t.co/uVCgNUNRX8
— Guilherme Cruz (@guicruzzz) May 16, 2014
According to the translated report, the four armed men left Rua on the side of a highway without a shirt, shoes or a car as the former light heavyweight champ drove back to his hotel room following a dinner with manager Eduardo Alonso and fellow UFC fighter Demian Maia.
“We were in Rio de Janeiro with Demian and we went to dinner with Mauricio at a restaurant,” Alonso said, according to the translation. “He was driving a friend’s car at Linha Vermelha and he was forced to stop by another guy with four men armed with rifles. … They took his clothes, money and his friend’s car. They said ‘I know who you are, you’re a fighter. Don’t try anything.’ It was a sad situation.”
Rua was subsequently forced to walk along the highway to safety.
Shogun last fought in the UFC in March, when he lost by TKO to Dan Henderson at UFC Fight Night 38. Rua, 32, is 22-9 in his pro MMA career. He does not yet have his next fight scheduled. Five of his nine professional losses have come in his past eight fights.
Rua may be best known among hardcore fans for winning the Pride 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix, defeating Quinton Jackson, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Alistair Overeem and Ricardo Arona along the way.
In 2010, Rua defeated Lyoto Machida to capture the UFC light heavyweight title. However, he failed to defend the title even once, losing the belt in his next contest to Jon Jones, who has held the title ever since.
The Brazilian is popular for his exciting Muay Thai kickboxing style, though he has slowed in recent years. It is unclear what his future holds in the UFC, though he is still an active fighter. It is also unclear how or even if the robbery might affect Rua’s situation.
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