Maurício Ruffy
Ruffy in 2026
Born Maurício de Lima Santos[1]
(1996-06-17) June 17, 1996 (age 30)
Coruripe, Alagoas, Brazil[1]
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight 155 lb (70 kg; 11.1 st)
Division Lightweight
Reach 75 in (191 cm)[2]
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of São Paulo, Brazil
Team Fighting Nerds
Freestyle Fighting Gym[3]
Years active 2016–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total 16
Wins 14
By knockout 13
By decision 1
Losses 2
By knockout 1
By submission 1
Other information
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Maurício de Lima Santos[1] (born June 17, 1996), known as Maurício Ruffy, is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).[4] As of June 16, 2026, he is #7 in the UFC lightweight rankings.[5]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Ruffy acquired a record of 8–1 with eight knockouts competing exclusively on the Brazilian regional scene. This included a second-round knockout over UFC veteran Ronys Torres.[6]

Dana White's Contender Series

Ruffy was then booked to compete on Week 9 of Season 7 of Dana White's Contender Series on October 3, 2023, against highly touted prospect Raimond Magomedaliev.[7] He would win the fight via third-round technical knockout and was awarded a contract by Dana White.[8]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

After earning his contract, Ruffy made his UFC debut at UFC 301 against Jamie Mullarkey on May 4, 2024.[9] He would win the fight via technical knockout in the first round.[10] This fight earned him a Performance of the Night award.[11]

In his next fight, Ruffy was scheduled to face Charlie Campbell at UFC 309 on November 16, 2024.[12] However, Campbell withdrew from the bout for undisclosed reasons and was subsequently replaced by James Llontop in a catchweight bout of 165 pounds.[13] Llontop weighed in 1.2 lbs over the 165 lb catchweight limit and was fined 20 percent of his purse, which went to Ruffy.[14] Ruffy would win the fight via unanimous decision, marking the first time he would go to the scorecards in his career.[15]

Ruffy would then face King Green at UFC 313 on March 8, 2025.[16] He would win the fight via first-round knockout with a spinning wheel kick.[17] This fight earned him another Performance of the Night award.[18]

Ruffy faced Benoît Saint Denis on September 6, 2025 at UFC Fight Night 258.[19] He lost the fight via a face crank submission in the second round.[20]

Ruffy faced Rafael Fiziev on February 1, 2026 at UFC 325.[21] He won the fight by technical knockout in the second round.[22] This fight earned him a $100,000 Performance of the Night award.[23]

Ruffy faced former three-time Bellator Lightweight World Champion (also former UFC Lightweight Championship challenger) Michael Chandler on June 14, 2026 at UFC Freedom 250.[24] He won the fight by technical knockout via a spinning wheel kick and punches in the first round.[25]

Personal life

Inspired by One Piece, the moniker of Ruffy[a] was given to Maurício by his late brother before his first professional fight.[26]

In 2025, Ruffy announced plans to expand his team, Fighting Nerds, by opening a new training facility in New Hampshire, to provide better facilities for his teammates and other athletes.[27]

Championships and accomplishments

  • Ultimate Fighting Championship
    • Performance of the Night (Three times) vs. Jamie Mullarkey, King Green and Rafael Fiziev[11][18][23]
    • Second most knockdowns-per-minute in UFC Lightweight division history (2.61)[28]
    • UFC Honors Awards
      • 2025: President's Choice Performance of the Year Nominee[29] & Fan's Choice Knockout of the Year Nominee vs. King Green[30]
    • UFC.com Awards
      • 2024: Ranked #4 Newcomer of the Year[31]
      • 2025: Ranked #2 Knockout of the Year vs. King Green[32]
  • Centurion Fight Championship
    • CFC Welterweight Tournament
  • Mega Fight Championship
    • MFC Super Lightweight Championship
  • ESPN
    • 2025 Knockout of the Year vs. King Green at UFC 313[33]
  • theScore
    • 2025 Knockout of the Year vs. King Green[34]
  • MMA Fighting
    • 2025 Knockout of the Year vs. King Green at UFC 313[35]
  • LowKick MMA
    • 2025 Knockout of the Year vs. King Green at UFC 313[36]
  • Bloody Elbow
    • 2025 #2 Ranked Knockout of the Year vs. King Green at UFC 313[37]
  • MMA Mania
    • 2025 #2 Ranked Knockout of the Year vs. King Green at UFC 313[38]
  • Uncrowned
    • 2025 #3 Ranked Knockout of the Year vs. King Green at UFC 313[39]

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
16 matches 14 wins 2 losses
By knockout 13 1
By submission 0 1
By decision 1 0
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 14–2 Michael Chandler TKO (spinning wheel kick and punches) UFC Freedom 250 June 14, 2026 1 4:29 Washington, D.C., United States
Win 13–2 Rafael Fiziev TKO (punches) UFC 325 February 1, 2026 2 4:30 Sydney, Australia Performance of the Night.
Loss 12–2 Benoît Saint Denis Submission (face crank) UFC Fight Night: Imavov vs. Borralho September 6, 2025 2 2:56 Paris, France
Win 12–1 King Green KO (spinning wheel kick) UFC 313 March 8, 2025 1 2:07 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Performance of the Night.
Win 11–1 James Llontop Decision (unanimous) UFC 309 November 16, 2024 3 5:00 New York City, New York, United States Catchweight (166.2 lb) bout; Llontop missed weight.
Win 10–1 Jamie Mullarkey TKO (punches) UFC 301 May 4, 2024 1 4:42 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Return to Lightweight. Performance of the Night.
Win 9–1 Raimond Magomedaliev TKO (punches) Dana White's Contender Series 65 October 3, 2023 3 4:45 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 8–1 Ronys Torres TKO (punches) Centurion FC: Rex Redemptor May 26, 2023 2 4:21 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Won the Centurion FC Welterweight Tournament.
Win 7–1 Corneliu Rotaru Lascar TKO (punches) 1 4:23 Welterweight debut. Centurion FC Welterweight Tournament Semifinal.
Win 6–1 Brenno Luiz Gonçalves TKO (punch) Arena Pride MMA 4 June 26, 2022 1 1:26 Santos, Brazil
Loss 5–1 Manoel Sousa KO (punches) Standout Fighting Tournament 18 November 13, 2019 2 2:41 São Paulo, Brazil Return to Lightweight.
Win 5–0 Derlan Marinho KO (punches) Mega Fight Championship 2 June 22, 2019 1 3:35 Osasco, Brazil Super Lightweight debut. Won the MFC Super Lightweight Championship.
Win 4–0 Rafael Silva TKO (punch) Standout Fighting Tournament 8 December 15, 2018 2 1:08 São Paulo, Brazil Catchweight (168 lb) bout.
Win 3–0 Lucas Costa Jesus TKO (elbows) Batalha MMA 13 June 30, 2018 1 1:42 Osasco, Brazil
Win 2–0 Wendson Santos TKO (punches) Gold Fight 9 August 26, 2017 1 1:04 São Paulo, Brazil
Win 1–0 Marlon Paula de Souza TKO (punches) Premium Fight Championship 6 September 18, 2016 1 0:30 São Paulo, Brazil Lightweight debut.

See also

  • List of current UFC fighters
  • List of male mixed martial artists

Notes

  1. ^ Ruffy was what the character Luffy was called in the first translations of the One Piece manga into Portuguese.

References

  1. ^ a b c "Mauricio Ruffy". Tapology. Retrieved 2025-04-03.
  2. ^ "Stats | UFC". ufcstats.com. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
  3. ^ Patrick Danna (2026-01-29). "Mauricio Ruffy Shuts Down Rumors of Leaving Fighting Nerds, Happy to Have "A Home In Australia" At Freestyle MMA". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 2026-02-21.
  4. ^ "Mauricio Ruffy MMA Stats, Pictures, News, Videos, Biography - Sherdog.com". Sherdog.
  5. ^ "UFC Rankings, Division Rankings, P4P rankings, UFC Champions | UFC.com". www.ufc.com. Retrieved 2026-06-16.
  6. ^ "Centurion FC: REX REDEMPTOR | MMA Event". Tapology.
  7. ^ Bitter, Shawn (October 2, 2023). "DWCS 2023: Episode 9 Breakdown and Predictions".
  8. ^ "DWCS 2023 Week 9 Highlight Video: Mauricio Ruffy Punches Out Raimond Magomedaliev". Sherdog.
  9. ^ Cruz, Guilherme (March 25, 2024). "UFC 301 adds two new fights for May 4 event". MMA Fighting.
  10. ^ Hiergesell, Dan (May 4, 2024). "Highlights! Ruffy Shines In Debut, Compared To 'Young McGregor'". MMAmania.com.
  11. ^ a b Dan Hiergesell (2024-05-05). "Bonuses! Back-flipping Michel Pereira banks $50K for quick submission - UFC 301". mmamania.com. Retrieved 2024-05-05.
  12. ^ Kuhl, Dan (March 5, 2025). "Campbell vs. Ruffy Showdown Added to UFC 309".
  13. ^ Cruz, Guilherme (October 29, 2024). "Mauricio Ruffy gets new opponent for UFC 309". MMA Fighting.
  14. ^ Simon Head (2024-11-16). "UFC 309 weigh-in results: Jon Jones a little lighter, Stipe Miocic a little heavier for heavyweight title clash". sportingnews.com. Retrieved 2024-11-16.
  15. ^ Anderson, Jay (November 17, 2024). "UFC 309: Mauricio Ruffy Goes Distance for the First Time Against Tough-As-Nails James Llontop".
  16. ^ "Caio Borralho Expects Mauricio Ruffy to Crush Bobby Green, Vie for Title in 2026". Sherdog.
  17. ^ "UFC 313 video: Mauricio Ruffy sleeps King Green with spinning kick Knockout of the Year candidate". March 9, 2025.
  18. ^ a b Brian Mazique (2025-03-09). "UFC 313 Results: Bonus Winners, Highlights And Reactions". forbes.com. Retrieved 2025-03-09.
  19. ^ Nolan King (2025-07-31). "Banger alert: UFC Paris adds Benoit Saint-Denis vs. Mauricio Ruffy". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2025-08-01.
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  22. ^ Jay Anderson (2026-02-01). "UFC 325: Mauricio Ruffy Puts Rafael Fiziev on Skates, Earns TKO Finish". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
  23. ^ a b Tristen Critchfield (2026-02-01). "UFC 325 Bonuses: Championship Rematch Gets 'Fight of the Night' Honors". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2026-02-01.
  24. ^ Daniel Cunningham (2026-03-07). "UFC Freedom 250 will feature Michael Chandler – Mauricio Ruffy". empiresportsmedia.com. Retrieved 2026-03-08.
  25. ^ Andrew Richardson (2026-06-15). "Ufc white house results: Mauricio ruffy demolishes michael chandler in one-sided execution". mmamania.com. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  26. ^ "Mauricio Ruffy: Beating King Green 'Propels Me' into Title Contention". MMA Junkie. March 5, 2025. Retrieved March 27, 2025.
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  29. ^ Ultimate Fighting Championship (2026-01-27). "UFC Honors 2025 President's Choice Awards Reveal". ufc.com. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  30. ^ MMA Bulgaria (2025-12-31). "Номинирани за Нокаут на годината 2025 - UFC HONORS". mma.bg. Retrieved 2026-01-06. (in Bulgarian)
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  33. ^ "2025 MMA awards: Joshua Van's breakout year earns him multiple honors". ESPN.com. December 22, 2025. Archived from the original on December 22, 2025. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
  34. ^ Baldwin, Nick (December 26, 2025). "2025 MMA awards: Our top fighters, moments of the year". theScore.com. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
  35. ^ Lee, Alexander K. (December 25, 2025). "MMA Fighting's 2025 Knockout of the Year: Mauricio Ruffy vs. King Green". MMA Fighting. Retrieved December 25, 2025.
  36. ^ "LowKick MMA's 2025 Awards: KO Of The Year – Mauricio Ruffy's Spinning Wheel Kick Over King Green". www.lowkickmma.com. December 31, 2025. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
  37. ^ "UFC star silenced critics to steal the spotlight and win Bloody Elbow's MMA KO of the year for 2025". bloodyelbow.com. December 25, 2025. Retrieved December 25, 2025.
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  39. ^ Riggs, Drake (January 5, 2026). "MMA Knockout of the Year 2025: Lerone Murphy separates himself in a year of spinning strikes". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved January 6, 2026.