Author: By Thomas Gerbasi

“It’s nerve racking,” said Ross Pearson, and you could hear the anxiety in his voice, almost as if he was reliving everything all over again. In his first fight after winning season nine of The Ultimate Fighter, he was going to make his proper debut as a UFC fighter in his home country of England, and he felt every emotion a human being could muster.

“There were over 16,000 screaming English fans there, and I could feel it,” he said. “I was nervous, I’m not gonna lie, and it’s all those fears of impressing and doing everything perfect and right because you know your friends and family are there. You want to win, obviously, but you have all those fans, which adds to that pressure.”

Based on that description of UFC 105 at the M.E.N. Arena in November of 2009, you would probably guess that things didn’t turn out too well for the Sunderland native. But instead, Pearson made an immediate statement to the lightweight division with a dominant second round TKO of rugged veteran Aaron Riley. So much for those butterflies in the stomach.

But what Pearson found out that night in Manchester was that while being the hometown hero does have some perks, being the guy in the black hat in someone else’s backyard ain’t so bad either. This Saturday night, Pearson, fighting Brazil’s Edson Barboza in Brazil, is likely going to be that black hat wearing challenger. And though it may be odd at first for the popular Brit to hear some boos, he doesn’t have any problem with it.

“In the UFC it’s gonna be weird, because I’ve built up quite a fanbase in the UFC coming through The Ultimate Fighter series, and fortunately, people seemed to like us from the show, so I’ve built up quite a good fanbase and I’ve never actually heard bad things or boos from a crowd in the UFC,” he said. “But back in the day, when I was fighting in the smaller shows, I fought on other guys’ home shows and I’ve been the bad guy, so I’ve heard, on a smaller scale, boos and things like that. So I’m just gonna block it out. I’m preparing for it, and I expect Edson to be the crowd favorite because it’s his hometown. I was like that in Manchester, so I know how it feels for him, and the pressure he has. But when the cage door closes, it’s just me and him in there.”

And unlike his fight with Riley, Barboza is expected by many fans and pundits to be the favorite entering this highly-anticipated main card bout. Again, it doesn’t jar Pearson in the slightest. In fact, being considered the underdog has motivated him even more.

“When I fought Aaron Riley, I wasn’t going in there as the favorite to win the fight,” he said. “He was an experienced guy and a lot of people doubted us back then and I came out and put on a show and that’s exactly what I intend to do for this fight. Although I’ve been in the UFC longer and fought tougher guys and more well-rounded guys, I’m probably gonna go in there and be the underdog. A lot of people and critics are doubting me, and I’m just gonna go in there and rise to the occasion and prove all my doubters wrong.”

Muay Thai specialist Barboza has earned the praise he’s gotten thus far, winning all eight of his bouts, including two in the UFC. But while the hype machine has kicked into high gear for the Brazilian, Pearson’s solid run in the Octagon has been overlooked by some. No one put it on Riley like Pearson did in 2009, he beat Dennis Siver for the Germany resident’s only loss in his last nine fights, and he’s coming off a UFC 127 win over Spencer Fisher. The lone hiccup is a submission defeat to Cole Miller last September in a bout where Pearson tore cartilage and chipped a bone in his knee early in the fight. But Pearson isn’t one to moan or complain or scream to the media that he’s not getting his just due. The way he sees it, there’s always room for improvement, and when his time comes, the world will know it.

So for this training camp, he quietly made the trip across the pond and settled into the Alliance Gym in San Diego, California.

“From the very first session that I trained, I fit in with every one of the guys in the gym, and with the standard of the training partners that we have here, it was just an opportunity I couldn’t turn down. The standard is right up there at the top and it’s bringing my game on so much.”

Home to the likes of Dominick Cruz, Phil Davis, and Brandon Vera, Alliance has become a second home for the affable Pearson, and for the record, it was a move fully endorsed by those closest to him.

“Everyone back home in England – my family, friends, even my teammates – said that if I want to evolve and become a world champion in the sport, I have to go out here and train with the best,” he said. “There was nothing but positive vibes coming from people back home, telling me I was doing the right thing coming out here. I had sorta become a big fish in a little pond training in England, where out here, I’m just a little fish in a very big pond.”

Sounds like everyone just wanted to get rid of him…

“Everyone probably but me mum,” he laughs.

But on a serious note, Pearson’s continuous search for knowledge and top level training opportunities bodes well for his future, especially since his goal isn’t fame or fortune, but only to place a world championship belt around his waist.

“I just want to go in there and prove to everyone that I’m a mixed martial artist and I’m well-rounded,” he said. “I want to take this to the next level. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, and I’ll always say it – I want to be a world champion and I don’t think anyone does the things I do to get there. If I could move mountains to become a world champion, I’ll do it. I want it so bad.”

Saturday night, he’ll get to see how bad Edson Barboza wants it. If it’s even an ounce less than Pearson does, “The Real Deal” may walk away with this one. If they both want it equally as much, those “Fight of the Night” predictions will likely come true. Either way, Pearson doesn’t look at Barboza as an unbeatable phenom; he’s just another man, and any man can be beaten.

“There’s a way to beat everyone,” he said. “No one’s unbeatable, no one’s God; there’s always a way to beat someone and to find out how to win. It’s like a game of chess, finding a crack in the code and sticking to it, and that’s what I’m out here at Alliance for. There are some of the best coaches in the world here, like Eric Del Fierro and Adrian Melendez, and we’ve got Phil Davis wrestling, Brandon Vera Muay Thai, and Dominick Cruz, who’s a world champion, so he knows all about how to win. And that’s why I’m out here, learning how to win. I’m not out here for a holiday and to have a nice, easy training camp; I’m learning how to win, I’m learning the gameplan, sticking to it, and knowing how to beat this guy. This fight is on the main card, it’s a great opportunity, and there’s gonna be millions of people watching this show, so I think a big win on this card is gonna put my career on to that next level and show people what I can really do.”

After two consecutive losses, both by knockout, the buzz on Luiz Cane had started to fade.

Initially the second coming of Wanderlei Silva, the hard-punching, free-swinging “Banha” brought a level of aggression to the Octagon that made him an immediate fan favorite.

Even his debut UFC loss, a disqualification defeat to James Irvin in December of 2007, was written off because the illegal knee he landed was just another example of the finishing rage he brought into his fights. He made it legal in the next two bouts, finishing Jason Lambert and Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, before scoring a punishing three round decision win over Steve Cantwell.

But then came the defeats, TKOs at the hands of Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Cyrille Diabate that put his future in the 205-pound title picture in doubt. But there was little doubt from Sao Paulo’s Cane, whose response to the setbacks wasn’t to tweak some things here and there. Instead, he underwent a complete overhaul.

“I changed the way I train, the way I eat, the way I take my career and my life,” he said. “I’m sure that those two losses made me a better athlete and a better person.”

Already having started the full migration to Florida for training camp, Cane solidified his team with the stalwarts at The Armory, which is also affiliated with Imperial Athletics and Pablo Popovitch’s Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu center, and altered his approach to the game. No longer would he completely abandon his gameplan once he got hit in an attempt to even the score; he knew that to make it in the UFC, he had to practice a controlled aggression.

The first victim of the “new” Cane was Eliot Marshall, who lasted just two minutes and 15 seconds with him at UFC 128 in March.

Meet the new aggression. Same as the old aggression. He didn’t doubt it for a second.

“I was in the best shape of my life and I was very confident that I would win that fight,” said Cane, who improved to 12-3 with 1 NC.

And in that less than two and a half minute outing, Cane almost immediately regained the luster he had lost in his previous two bouts. It’s the wonder of the fight game, where ‘what have you done for me lately?’ is the rule rather than the exception. And be honest, you can probably think of a half-dozen intriguing matchups for the 30-year old right off the top of your head. It will even get easier when you hear him say that “I see myself getting better every day and I know I haven’t reached my prime.”

That’s scary, and it makes this Saturday’s UFC RIO match with Bulgaria’s Stanislav Nedkov an even more intriguing one. Not only is Cane looking to build on the momentum of the win over Marshall while doing it in his first bout on home soil since 2006, but in Nedkov, he’s facing a wrestler and jiu-jitsu black belt. Cane’s history has shown him to be cruel to groundfighters, but when asked about this, he will simply say, “I’m very confident in my skills and in the training camp that I had. In my mind I have no doubts that I’ll win this fight.”

If he does, and does so in typical Cane style, the sky’s the limit for him in a crowded light heavyweight division. He refuses to look that far ahead though, another key element of his fistic resurrection in 2011.

“I’m sure I’m ready for the next level, but I have a tough and dangerous fight in Nedkov,” he said. “So now I’m just thinking of him.”

In fact, the only future event Cane will discuss in depth is Rio, and he couldn’t be more excited to represent his sport back home again.

“I’m sure they (the fans) will see the biggest show in the UFC history,” he said. “They’ve never seen a crowd like they will see in Rio. I’m very excited for this fight and I’m very proud to fight for my people.”

Mature. Energized. Focused on the present and not the future. Meet Luiz Cane 2.0.

This Friday, Yushin Okami returns to the Octagon for the first time since 2013 to battle Ovince Saint Preux in the UFC Fight Night main event at Saitama Super Arena. It’s a tall order for Okami, coming in on short notice to move up a weight class and face OSP, but when the call came to step in for the injured Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, he didn’t hesitate.“I always wanted to make a comeback to the UFC so I am just very happy,” Okami said. Winner of four in a row, the former middleweight title challenger has gone 5-2 since his last UFC appearance against Ronaldo & … Read the Full Article Here

UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, a man considered by most to the best fighter in the world, pound for pound, returns to the Octagon on August 27th to defend his crown against the last man to beat him, Yushin Okami, in the main event of UFC RIO. A win would add to his record-setting reign and further distance him from his peers.

So how did he get here? Let’s find out…

Carlos Newton – March 16, 2003 – PRIDE 25
Result – Silva KO1
Newton, a former UFC welterweight champion just eight months removed from a rematch loss to Matt Hughes, was returning to PRIDE for the first time in over a year, and with a four fight Japanese winning streak under his belt, his bout with the virtually unknown (at least to casual fans) Silva was a big deal. Well, if fans didn’t know who Silva was before the bell rang, they certainly knew who he was by the time his flying knee crashed into Newton’s head and sent him crashing to the canvas. Frighteningly, with the respectful and quiet nature of the Japanese crowd, Silva’s knee slamming into Newton was audible to all in attendance and those watching on TV. Bottom line, the man doing the Michael Jackson impression after the fight was one scary fighter.

Tony Fryklund – April 22, 2006 – Cage Rage 16
Result – Silva KO1
After the win over Newton, Silva would go 5-3 over his next eight fights, losing by submission to Daiju Takase and Ryo Chonan and by disqualification to Yushin Okami, while putting together wins over UFC vets Jeremy Horn, Lee Murray, Jorge Rivera, and Curtis Stout. The next UFC vet on his plate was Miletich Fighting Systems’ Tony Fryklund, and though the result shows up as a KO1 for Silva, it was the way he did it that was simply amazing. Throwing a back elbow out of nowhere, Fryklund collapsed to the canvas and was so concussed that his immediate attempts to get back up were for naught. It was a spectacular show of Silva’s striking prowess, versatility and creativity.

“That’s what makes a difference,” said Silva when asked what makes him try moves most fighters wouldn’t dare to. “I don’t think I’m better than anyone, I just like to prove to myself that things I imagine can be done. Expect the unexpected.”

Chris Leben – June 28, 2006 – UFC Fight Night
Result – Silva KO1
The UFC signed Silva in the time after the Fryklund fight, and while the diehards knew who “The Spider” was, to the casual fan, The Ultimate Fighter season one’s Chris Leben – then on a five fight winning streak – was truly the one moving in on a shot at middleweight boss Rich Franklin. But as soon as the bell rang, it was clear that this was a new kind of striker, one who easily avoided Leben’s crude attacks and fired back with blistering combos that left ‘The Crippler’ defenseless. The end came at the 49 second mark of the first round, and Franklin had himself a new prospective contender.

Rich Franklin I – October 14, 2006 – UFC 64
Result – Silva KO1
With only one UFC win under his belt, Silva was granted a shot at Franklin, who had over a year at the top and title defenses over Nate Quarry and David Loiseau under his belt. And though Silva had walked through Leben to earn his title fight, many saw the bout as a pick ‘em. Again, that was until the bell rang, and Silva caught Franklin in a plumb clinch that the champion was unable to break loose from. While in the clinch, Franklin ate knee after knee, with the telling blow shattering his nose. At 2:59 of the first round, there was a new sheriff in town, and his name was Anderson Silva.

“That fight was a huge turning point in my career,” said Silva. “It fulfilled a lifetime dream of mine and has changed my life in many ways.”

Rich Franklin II – October 20, 2007 – UFC 77
Result – Silva TKO2
Silva didn’t sit on the title after beating Franklin, submitting Travis Lutter and stopping Nate Marquardt. But it was the rematch with the man he beat for the crown that got the fight world buzzing. To add to the intrigue, the return bout was held in Franklin’s hometown of Cincinnati, but despite the home Octagon advantage, the result was the same. Sure, Franklin made it to round two, but Silva was just ferocious, ripping off combination after combination that left “Ace” bewildered by the assault. Now mind you, Rich Franklin is one of the best middleweights of this era. To do to him what Silva did is nothing short of incredible.

Dan Henderson – March 1, 2008 – UFC 82
Result – Silva Wsub2
After running through all his previous UFC opponents, the whispers started – was anyone going to even challenge Anderson Silva, let alone beat him? Dan Henderson, the only man to hold PRIDE titles in two weight classes simultaneously, felt that he was the man to do it, and after the first five minutes of their UFC 82 bout, he was certainly on his way, as he tagged Silva with his right hand and kept the champion from mounting any significant offense. But Silva, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, kept his characteristic cool, and after jarring Henderson with strikes in the second round, the bout went to the mat and he finished ‘Hendo’ off with a rear naked choke. Pound for pound the best in the world? Absolutely.

Forrest Griffin – August 8, 2009 – UFC 101
Result – Silva KO1
Following less than memorable wins over Patrick Cote and Thales Leites, fight fans were getting restless and practically demanding a return to form from Silva when he tested the 205-pound waters a second time against former light heavyweight champ Forrest Griffin. Well, whether Silva wanted to silence the critics or just deliver a defining performance for himself, the end result was a brilliant display of flashy defense and pinpoint striking accuracy as he blasted Griffin out in the first round and left a packed house at the Wachovia Center with their mouths open in awe.

Chael Sonnen – August 7, 2010 – UFC 117
Result – Silva Wsub5
The “renewed” Silva was nowhere to be found in his dismal UFC 112 decision win over Demian Maia, but when matched with Chael Sonnen in 2010, the number one contender from Oregon made sure that there was no shortage of motivation for the champion, as he trash talked Silva at every turn in the lead-up to the bout. Surprisingly though, the deceivingly quick Sonnen was able to close the gap on Silva with ease once the bell rang, allowing him to take his foe down with relative ease. What followed was a beatdown by Sonnen for four plus rounds, with Silva only having periodic moments of daylight. But in that fifth and final round, Silva showed the heart of a champion, roaring back from a certain points defeat to catch Sonnen with a triangle choke / armbar that forced the challenger to tap out with 1:50 left in the fight. It was the defining win of his reign.

Vitor Belfort – February 5, 2011 – UFC 126
Result – Silva KO1
After more than four years at the top, the tendency is for any champion to lose motivation. The war with Sonnen would have also been a perfect reason for Silva to have a letdown in his next bout, but with countryman and former training partner Vitor Belfort standing across the Octagon from him at UFC 126, Silva was more fired up than ever before, and this was evident at the heated pre-fight weigh-in. On fight night, Silva made sure he wasn’t going to keep Belfort around for five rounds like he did other fellow Brazilians Leites and Maia, and when the opening came, he delivered a front kick to the head that dropped Belfort like he was shot. At 3:25 of the first, Silva had ended a rivalry in a split second. Now he’ll look to do the same thing against Okami on August 27th.
 

 

When you think of Brazilian fighters in the UFC, what are the moments that immediately pop into your head? In advance of the organization’s return to Brazil for UFC RIO, here are a few to jog your memory before more additions ultimately make the list on August 27th.

Royce Gracie introduces Jiu-Jitsu to the world
If you thought Royce Gracie had a chance of winning the first Ultimate Fighting Championship tournament in 1993, you were either A) crazy B) a jiu-jitsu practitioner or C) a member of the Gracie family. For everyone else, the arrival from seemingly out of nowhere of this young man from Rio de Janeiro to win three fights in one night over bigger and stronger opposition wasn’t just a remarkable athletic feat; it started a revolution and a sport. All in four minutes and 59 seconds.

The Phenom
By the time UFC 12 rolled around in 1997, UFC fans had seen some pretty remarkable fights and fighters. But they had never seen anything like Vitor Belfort. Just 19 years old, Rio’s “Phenom” blasted through Tra Telligman and Scott Ferrozzo in a combined two minutes on February 7th of that year to win that night’s tournament, but it was the way he did it that amazed fight fans. With speed, power and extreme confidence, Belfort was MMA’s Mike Tyson. 14 years later, when you mention his name to fans, that’s still the first picture that pops into view.

The Spider arrives
Anderson Silva was no stranger to diehard fight fans when he signed with the UFC in 2006, but for newer followers of the sport, the lanky middleweight from Curitiba was a mystery, so much so that many believed his debut on June 28th was a pick ‘em fight. Uh uh. Showing off a level of speed, power, and technical striking prowess that was a joy to watch. Silva picked Chris Leben apart with ease, knocking him out in just 49 seconds. If you want to make a statement in your debut, this was the way to do it. Five years later, he remains without a loss in the Octagon.

The Dream Match Finally Happens
For years, the idea of a dream match between PRIDE champion Wanderlei Silva and his UFC counterpart Chuck Liddell was just that – a dream. But after years of starts and stops, the two 205-pound legends met at UFC 79 on December 29, 2007, and despite coming four days after Christmas, it was a belated gift for all fight fans. Yes, the two were past their primes, but on this night, it didn’t matter, as each blistering exchange was met with a rousing and deserved roar from the packed house in Las Vegas. Liddell would beat Silva that night via decision, but after having the honor of watching both fighters throw hands with each other, the end result really didn’t matter.

Karate is back
Lyoto Machida is unlike any Brazilian fighter in history. He’s not a jiu-jitsu ace like Royce Gracie or Demian Maia, or an unrepentant knockout artist like Wanderlei Silva or “Shogun” Rua. Instead, Machida came to the UFC armed with a unique style of karate taught to him by his father Yoshizo, and for years, no one – including BJ Penn, Tito Ortiz, or Rich Franklin – was able to decipher it. At UFC 98 on May 23, 2009, Machida knocked out Rashad Evans in the second round to win the world light heavyweight title. When his dazzling performance was over, the first thing Machida had to say was “Karate is back.”

The Rock stops a Tank
One of the most highly anticipated bouts of the UFC’s first trip to Brazil was between popular brawler Tank Abbott and unbeaten local prospect Pedro Rizzo. For the 5-0 Rizzo, it was his first major step up in competition, and he was doing it in front of his home country fans in his UFC debut. For Abbott, it was another night in the office, and an important bout considering he was riding a two fight winning streak. “The Rock” made sure it wasn’t going to be three in a row, as he delivered a crushing knockout at the 8:07 mark. Rizzo would go on to fight in the Octagon 13 more times, becoming one the best UFC fighters to never win a title. Abbott wouldn’t fight in the UFC or anywhere for nearly five years.

Minotauro turns back the clock
After his 2008 loss to Frank Mir, the consensus was that years of unforgettable wars had finally caught up to former PRIDE / UFC heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira. Bringing him to Oregon to face Pacific Northwest favorite Randy Couture in the main event of UFC 102 was just going to be more of the same. But as Nogueira told me afterward, “when they start to talk about me like I was done, ‘ah, Nogueira’s over, blah, blah, blah’, I just went back to show why I’m still in the game. When they talked bad, it gave me motivation.” Did it ever. So for three rounds in August of 2009, two of the greats put on a spectacular fight that was one of the best in UFC history. Nogueira won via decision that night, and if you’re a boxing fan coming over to MMA, think of this fight as MMA’s “Thrilla in Manila.”

Bustamante’s double tap
A jiu-jitsu master of the highest order, newly crowned UFC middleweight champion Murilo Bustamante was likely to get his ground game tested by Olympic wrestler Matt Lindland in his first title defense on May 10, 2002. Late in the first round though, it was Bustamante scoring the takedown and seemingly ending the fight with an armbar. Notice the word “seemingly.” Lindland protested and referee John McCarthy decided to restart the action. Stunned by this turn of events, Bustamante was still able to clear his head, and in the third round he finished the fight for good via guillotine choke.

Gonzaga Cro Cops Cro Cop
As a rising heavyweight star, Gabriel Gonzaga had many fight fans believing that if he was able to implement his ground game on former PRIDE superstar Mirko Cro Cop at UFC 70 in 2007 that he had a good shot of winning. Standing with the Croatian knockout artist? That was another story entirely, so when the two fighters were stood up late in the first round after a dominant ground and pound attack from “Napao,” most figured it was now time for Cro Cop to unleash a fight ending kick to the head. Well, a fight ending kick to the head was unleashed, but it was by Gonzaga, who knocked Cro Cop out cold in a stunning turn of events that will live on in highlight reels forever.

Ruas chops down Varelans
Not only was Marco Ruas owner of one of the coolest nicknames ever, but “The King of the Streets” was a calm, cool, and collected bad ass in the early days of the UFC. This notion was turned into fact in his first night as a UFC fighter, as defeated three opponents to win the UFC 7 tournament in September of 1995. The final win of the three was the biggest – literally – as the 6-foot-1 Ruas took on 6-8, 300 pounder Paul “The Polar Bear” Varelans. On paper it was a mismatch; in reality, Ruas sent the first salvo to those who believe leg kicks don’t win fights, as he battered Varelans with shot after shot to the leg until the giant finally fell at the 13:17 mark.

Shogun’s time comes
After a stellar career in the PRIDE organization in Japan, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua hit hard times when he came to the UFC, thanks to a debut loss to Forrest Griffin and a series of devastating knee injuries that kept him from showing more than glimpses of his prodigious talent. That all changed on May 8, 2010, when he finally made it back to the top of the MMA mountain, knocking out countryman Lyoto Machida in their UFC 113 rematch. It was the feel good story of the year, and a crowning achievement for the Muay Thai machine from Curitiba.

Aldo brings state of the art featherweight MMA to the UFC
Sure, the fighters from the featherweight division of the WEC started making their way to the Octagon in late 2010, but for all intents and purposes, the man everyone was waiting to see didn’t arrive until April of this year. But when he did, UFC featherweight boss Jose Aldo showed the world what high-level 145 pound prizefighting looked like in a thrilling five rounder with Mark Hominick at UFC 129. If you’re a fight fan, you know how exciting the division is – and who better to lead them but Aldo.

Silva’s championship heart
The drama before this UFC 117 bout took place couldn’t hold a candle to what happened on fight night, as Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen engaged in a championship fight for the ages. Yes, Sonnen dominated the majority of the bout with his ground and pound attack, but each moment before he would take the previously untouchable title holder to the mat was filled with tension as Silva unleashed the strikes many believed would end the fight. But even though he got rocked on a few occasions, Sonnen was resolute in his attack, and as the seconds ticked by, he was getting closer and closer to one of the sport’s great upsets and the realization of a dream. Then, like the truest of true champions, Silva pulled off a fifth round submission. Calling it a spectacular comeback simply doesn’t do it justice.

Introducing “Cigano”
If Junior dos Santos takes the UFC heavyweight title from Cain Velasquez later this year, the trivia question will be: “Who did dos Santos beat in his UFC debut?” But the victory of “Cigano” back at UFC 90 wasn’t trivial at all; in fact, it sent shockwaves through the MMA world when the unknown prospect starched top contender Fabricio Werdum in 81 seconds in their 2008 bout. But as a testament to his talent and work ethic, dos Santos has gone on to be more and more impressive in each bout as he’s compiled a 7-0 Octagon record.

A little over two years into his UFC career, Forrest Griffin had established himself as not only a crowd-pleasing light heavyweight contender, but a free spirit who could always be counted on to go against the grain in whatever he decided to do. But when he asked for a fight with UFC debutant and former PRIDE Grand Prix champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in 2007, this was going a little bit too far.

Why? Just look at Rua’s resume before he entered the Octagon for the first time at UFC 76.

In addition to the aforementioned PRIDE Grand Prix title, which he won in 2005 by defeating Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Alistair Overeem, and Ricardo Arona, the aggressive native of Curitiba, Brazil had also taken out Cyrille Diabate, Kevin Randleman, Kazuhiro Nakamura, and Akihiro Gono in the organization, leading many to consider him the best 205-pound fighter in the world.

The last hill to climb would be in the UFC, and the majority of fight fans saw the scrappy Griffin, who was just one win over Hector Ramirez removed from a knockout loss to Keith Jardine, as a high-profile sacrificial lamb for “Shogun.”

There was one believer though; the man with the gloves on his hands.

“He’s one of the best in the world,” said Griffin at the time. “That’s why I wanted to fight him.”

But why now, at the height of his powers?

“Why not?” responded Griffin. “I’ve watched him fight for years. I see a guy with aggression, great cardio, good jiu-jitsu, but I think there are a lot of holes and I think he can be caught. If I play fast and loose, I think I can catch him.”

As for the critics that saw him as the highlight reel victim for Rua’s long-awaited UFC debut?

“I don’t care,” he said. “I didn’t even think about it, to be honest.”

And what people forgot is that when it comes to grit, determination, and doing whatever it takes to win a fight, Griffin had it. He knew what his strengths were, and more importantly, he was aware of his weaknesses. Plus, this was a new venue – literally – for Rua, whose PRIDE career took place in a ring. Moving to the UFC Octagon for the first time was an overlooked factor in this bout. But it wasn’t overlooked by Griffin.

“It’s gonna be something I can hold him against and hold him down on, and make it hard for him to work his jiu-jitsu game with a combination of elbows and using the cage to smash him up against.”

Rua was well aware of the transition he was making too, and he said all the right things before fight night in Anaheim, California.

“I’m not concerned about the transition,” said Rua in a pre-fight interview. “My training in the last two months is inside the Octagon, and a few years ago I fought twice in the Octagon. The main difference is in the rules, but my team is making the adjustments and from now my kicks can be replaced by the elbows.”

It wasn’t really a fair trade, considering that the stomps and soccer kicks allowed in PRIDE rings were a huge part of Rua’s fight game and his intimidation factor. With Griffin not having to worry about either technique, it left him on a fairly even playing field. What wasn’t revealed until after the fight was that Rua was dealing with a knee injury that would require multiple surgeries over the ensuing years. But he was not going to let his fans down, and he felt that he had enough in the tank to get through the fight. He also didn’t pay attention to those who made him a huge favorite in a year that contained some of the biggest upsets in UFC history, including Matt Serra’s knockout of Georges St-Pierre and Gabriel Gonzaga’s knockout of Mirko Cro Cop.

“In this sport it is very difficult to talk about being the favorite before the fights,” said Rua at the time. “See the example of (Mirko) Cro Cop and (Gabriel) Gonzaga. So to be honest, I don’t spend my time thinking about that; I prefer to be focused in my training, and well prepared so I will always be confident for any fight.”

With Rua injured or not, Griffin wasn’t about to let this opportunity slip away though, and the fighter who entered the Octagon on September 22, 2007 would have been a handful for any light heavyweight on the planet, performing so well that you believe any version of Rua wouldn’t have had a chance that night.

This is how we called it that night:

In the eyes of many, PRIDE veteran Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was one of the best – if not the best – light heavyweights in the world. But in his UFC debut tonight at the Honda Center, Forrest Griffin elevated his own status in the 205-pound weight class at the expense of the feared Brazilian, dominating him throughout their three rounder and then finishing the bout with a submission at the 4:45 mark of the final round.

From the outset, Griffin showed no fear of the Curitiba resident, landing with strikes and fighting off Rua’s takedown attempts as the crowd chanted his name. With a little over a minute gone though, Rua got his takedown and started to open up with forearms in Griffin’s guard. Griffin fought his way back to his feet with a little under half the round gone, and after some trading of punches, he scored his own takedown, followed by some ground strikes before the two combatants, both showing swelling on their faces, stood and traded again, with Rua getting Griffin to the mat with 30 seconds to go. By the end of the frame, Griffin had reversed position and was in control at the bell.

Again standing in the pocket with Rua, Griffin scored early with strikes in the second until ‘Shogun’ got the takedown and bloodied his foe’s forehead with ground strikes. Incensed at seeing his own blood, Griffin fought back harder, reversing position on Rua and landing with his own strikes on the mat before the two stood again. With under two minutes left in the round, the two traded punches, with Rua looking to be the more fatigued. Griffin, tired himself, nonetheless worked Rua over when the bout hit the mat again, with referee Steve Mazzagatti watching the action closely.

Rua opened his final round offense with a takedown, and Griffin tried to pull a fast one with a submission that was turned away. While on the ground, Rua fired away with the occasional elbow while Griffin fired back and continued to outwork his more celebrated opponent from all angles, eventually getting into a dominant position where he locked in a rear naked choke and finished off Rua with just 15 seconds left.

At the time of the stoppage, Griffin was leading 20-18 on all three scorecards.

The celebration after the finish by Griffin was something to see, as the stunned Honda Center crowd was silent for a moment, and then erupted. In his next bout, on July 5, 2008, the Ultimate Fighter season one winner shocked the world once again when he won a razor-thin five round unanimous decision over Jackson to win the UFC light heavyweight title. It was one of the greatest fights in organization history, but Griffin’s reign was short lived, as he was halted in three rounds by Rashad Evans in December of 2008. A disappointing KO loss to Anderson Silva followed, but Griffin has since defeated Tito Ortiz and Rich Franklin in back-to-back bouts, putting him back in the title picture, especially should he repeat his win over Rua at UFC RIO on August 27th.

Rua’s road back was a little more stressful. After a number of knee surgeries that came before and after fights in the UFC, many wondered whether he had left his game in Japan. But after a sluggish outing against Mark Coleman, Rua got back on track in April of 2009 with a knockout of Chuck Liddell. Six months later, he engaged in a five round battle with 205-pound champ Lyoto Machida, only to lose a highly controversial decision. Rua took the judges out of the equation in their May 2010 rematch, thrilling fans around the world as he became a UFC champion via first round knockout. In March of this year, Rua lost his title to 23-year old phenom Jon Jones, but with a training camp with his original Chute Boxe coach, Rafael Cordeiro, under his belt, Rua is expected to be coming out with all guns blazing in Brazil a week from Saturday. And what better way to begin the road to another title than by beating the man who spoiled his UFC debut?

It’s high stakes and high noon in Rio.