Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira (, born 2 June 1976), better known as Minotauro or Big Nog, is a Brazilian retired
mixed martial artist
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...
. He competed in the
heavyweight
Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling.
Boxing Professional
Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...
division of the
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
(UFC), where he is a former Interim
UFC Heavyweight Champion
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships.
Historical notes
At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...
. He is the twin brother of UFC fighter
Antônio Rogério Nogueira
Antônio Rogério Nogueira (; born 2 June 1976), also known as Minotouro or Lil Nog, is a Brazilian former mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the UFC. He is the twin brother of Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira, the "Minotauro" ...
. Nogueira rose to prominence in Japanese promotions
Fighting Network RINGS where he won the 2000 RINGS King of Kings tournament, and later with
Pride Fighting Championships
PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...
, where he was the first
Pride Heavyweight Champion from November 2001 to March 2003, as well as a
2004 PRIDE FC Heavyweight Grand Prix Finalist. He is one of only three men to have held championship titles in both Pride Fighting Championships and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (the others being
Mauricio Rua Mauricio may refer to:
*Mauricio (given name)
*Maurício José da Silveira Júnior (born 1988), Brazilian footballer known by the mononym Maurício
*Maurício (footballer) (Maurício dos Santos Nascimento, born 1988), Brazilian footballer
*216428 M ...
and
Mark Coleman
Mark Daniel Coleman (born December 20, 1964) is an American retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and amateur wrestler. Coleman was the UFC 10 and UFC 11 tournament champion, the first UFC Heavyweight Champion, and the Pride Fig ...
).
Early life
Born in the town of
Vitória da Conquista
Vitória da Conquista is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in Bahia, Brazil, that has a population of approximately 341,000 people as of 2020, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Ge ...
, Brazil, Nogueira started training in
judo
is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...
at the age of 4, boxing at 14 and Brazilian jiu-jitsu at 18. At age 10, he was accidentally run over by a truck and fell into a four-day coma, losing a rib and part of his liver, and was hospitalized for eleven months. As a result of the accident, he has a large scar, including a noticeable indentation, on his lower back.
MMA career
Nogueira made his mixed martial arts (MMA) debut in the World Extreme Fighting promotion, which often held events in southern parts of the United States. He won his first two fights by submission and then won the WEF Heavyweight Superfight Championship in his 5th pro fight against veteran
Jeremy Horn
Jeremy Graham Horn (born August 25, 1975) is an American mixed martial artist. Horn is best known for fighting in smaller American promotions, he has also competed in some of the premiere mixed martial arts organizations around the world, inclu ...
. A few years after his MMA debut, Nogueira started training with the
Brazilian Top Team
The Brazilian Top Team (BTT) is an academy specialized in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and mixed martial arts. It established in April 2000 by Murilo Bustamante, Ricardo Libório, Mário Sperry and Luis Roberto Duarte, former members of the Carlson Graci ...
.
Rings
Rings: King of Kings 1999
Nogueira debuted in
Fighting Network Rings by taking part in the King of Kings 1999 tournament. He quickly submitted
Valentijn Overeem
Valentijn Overeem (; born 17 August 1976) is a retired Dutch professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer currently signed with United Glory. A professional competitor since 1996, he has previously fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, ...
and
Yuriy Kochkine
Yuriy Kochkine is a Russian mixed martial artist. He competed in the Heavyweight division.
Mixed martial arts record
, -
, Win
, align=center, 7-4-1
, Milco Voorn
, Submission (kimura)
, Rings Russia: CIS vs. The World
,
, align=c ...
before clashing with middle-aged
sambo
, aka = Sombo (in English-speaking countries)
, focus = Hybrid
, country = Soviet Union
, pioneers = Viktor Spiridonov, Vasili Oshchepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev
, famous_pract = List of Practitioners
, oly ...
champion
Andrei Kopylov
Andrei Kopylov is a retired Russian sambist, professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. He competed in the heavyweight division of Fighting Network RINGS. He lost his last fight at PRIDE 22 - Beasts From The East 2 against Mario Sperry o ...
. Nogueira avoided a
kimura lock
An armlock in grappling is a single or double joint lock that hyperextends, hyperflexes or hyperrotates the elbow joint or shoulder joint. An armlock that hyper-extends the arm is known as an armbar, and it includes the traditional armbar, pr ...
attempt through the first round and controlled Kopylov for some minutes, before switching to stand-up in the second round and landing punches for the split decision win. In the next match, however, Nogueira was eliminated by American wrestling champion
Dan Henderson
Daniel Jeffery Henderson (born August 24, 1970) is an American retired mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler, who last competed as a middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the last Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champi ...
in a controversial fight, as it was believed that the Brazilian had controlled the match much more than Henderson.
Kohsaka fight
Nogueira's next fight was against Japanese star
Tsuyoshi "TK" Kohsaka. The bout was back and forth, with Nogueira repeatedly gaining dominant position and striking with short punches, only for his opponent to consistently reverse him, blocking the Brazilian's takedowns and striking as well when possible. After three rounds, the match was ruled a draw.
Rings: King of Kings 2000
At King of Kings 2000, Nogueira was invited back to Rings. He submitted
Achmed Labasanov
Achmed Labasanov (born April 24, 1978) is a former Chechen-Russian mixed martial artist who competed as a heavyweight between 1998 and 2002. During his career he has fought for organisations such as Fighting Network RINGS, IAFC - Absolute Fight ...
before facing another Japanese name in the form of
Kiyoshi Tamura
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Once a student of legendary professional wrestlers Billy Robinson, Lou Thesz and Akira Maeda, Tamura was known for his skills in catch wrestling and is considered to be one of ...
. Nogueira was able to take him down and threaten him with submissions, but the Japanese fighter kept defending them and coming back at openings. Finally, the second round saw Nogueira win using an armbar.
His third match in the tournament was against another sambo champion,
Volk Han
Magomedkhan Amanulayevich Gamzatkhanov (russian: Магомедха́н Аманула́евич Гамзатха́нов; born April 15, 1961),
is a Russian retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler, sambo wrestler and former military ...
, who was almost twice Nogueira's age. Han proved difficult to submit, but Nogueira controlled most of the match. After a
flying kimura Kimura (written: lit. "tree village") is the 17th most common Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*, Japanese novelist
*, Japanese footballer
*, Japanese botanist
*, Japanese idol and singer
*, Japanese footballer
*, Japanes ...
attempt by the Russian, Nogueira countered with an
omoplata
An armlock in grappling is a single or double joint lock that hyperextends, hyperflexes or hyperrotates the elbow joint or shoulder joint. An armlock that hyper-extends the arm is known as an armbar, and it includes the traditional armbar, ...
/
ankle hold combination, until the match went to the judges' decision. The unanimous decision was given to the Brazilian, who advanced to the next round to face
Hiromitsu Kanehara
) is a former Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler of Korean descent. A professional MMA competitor from 1998 until 2012, he found success in Fighting Network RINGS, gaining notable victories over Valentijn Overeem, Alexand ...
. Noguiera won the fight by submission. His final opponent in the tournament was Valentijn Overeem. Nogueira made Overeem tap out quickly and won the King of Kings tournament.
Pride FC
Early PRIDE career and heavyweight championship
Following the end of
Akira Maeda
(born Go Il-myeong (Hangul: 고일명, Hanja: 高日明), January 24, 1959) is a Japanese mixed martial arts promoter, writer and retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist of Korean descent. Maeda was also known by the ring name K ...
's Rings federation, Nogueira was signed by
Pride Fighting Championships
PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...
. He debuted in July 2001 at
Pride 15
The year 2001 is the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
, quickly submitting
Gary Goodridge
Gary Henry Goodridge (born January 17, 1966), nicknamed "Big Daddy", is a Trinidadian-Canadian former heavyweight kickboxer and mixed martial artist fighting out of Barrie, Ontario. Prior to kickboxing and MMA, he was also one of the top ranked ...
by triangle choke. At
Pride 16
The year 2001 is the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
Th ...
, he submitted UFC and Pride Grand Prix champion Mark Coleman by triangle armbar.
Nogueira was crowned as the inaugural
Pride World Heavyweight Champion after defeating
Heath Herring
Heath Herring (born March 2, 1978) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division of Rizin. While perhaps best known for competing in PRIDE, he has also formerly competed for the UFC and K-1.
...
by decision at
PRIDE 17
The year 2001 is the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
. The fast-paced bout, which saw Nogueira's superiority at both grappling and striking, was considered by some the best heavyweight MMA fight of all time.
[
Nogueira next defeated ]Enson Inoue
Enson Shoji Inoue (; born April 15, 1967) is a Japanese-American jiu-jitsu practitioner and retired professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1995 until 2010, he fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, the UFC, Shooto ...
via technical submission due to a triangle choke and then fought for Antonio Inoki
Muhammad Hussain Inoki (born ; February 20, 1943 – October 1, 2022) was a Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, politician, and promoter of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. He was best known by the ring name , a homag ...
's UFO organization, scoring his first MMA KO victory against Sanae Kikuta
is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 1996, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, Pancrase, DREAM, World Victory Road, DEEP, Shooto, and ...
.
Bouts with Sapp, Schilt and Henderson
Nogueira then represented Pride at a co-promotion with K-1, Pride Shockwave
''Pride Shockwave Dynamite!'' is the international PPV broadcast name for the mixed martial arts and kickboxing event co-promoted by the PRIDE Fighting Championships and K-1 on August 28, 2002. It was held at the Tokyo National Stadium in Tokyo, ...
. He was initially offered a kickboxing bout against K-1 fighter Mark Hunt
Mark Richard Hunt (born 23 March 1974) is a New Zealand former mixed martial artist and kickboxer of Samoan descent, currently living in Sydney, Australia. Hunt competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) until 2018 and was the winn ...
, but he proposed instead to fight two separate matches under mixed martial arts and kickboxing rules respectively, which Hunt refused. Nogueira then to fight another K-1 super heavyweight, former American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
player Bob Sapp
Robert Malcolm Sapp (born September 22, 1973) is an American mixed martial artist, kickboxer, professional wrestler, actor, and former American football player. He is currently under contract with Rizin Fighting Federation. Sapp has a combine ...
, who outweighed Nogueira by 127 pounds. Due to this, Nogueira asked for special rules that banned knee strike
A knee strike (commonly referred to simply as a knee) is a strike (attack), strike with the knee, either with the kneecap or the surrounding area. Kneeing is a disallowed practice in many combat sports, especially to the head of a downed opponent. ...
s to a grounded opponent.[Keith Vargo, ''Courage and Controversy reign at Shockwave event'', Black Belt Magazine, January 2003]
The fight soon became a brutal exhibition of technical skill against raw strength, as mere seconds into the match, Sapp would stop Nogueira's first takedown attempt with a sound piledriver which almost ended the fight. The same outcome repeated itself several times, with Nogueira taking several powerbomb
A powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted (usually so that they are sitting on the wrestler's shoulders) and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a sta ...
s and heavy punches every time his huge antagonist managed to power out of his submission attempts. At the end, however, Sapp's stamina started to falter, allowing a very worn out Nogueira to mount him and finally submit him with an armbar.[
After defeating Sapp, Dutch kickboxing champion and former King of ]Pancrase
Pancrase Inc. is a mixed martial arts promotion company founded in Japan in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki.
The name was based on pankration, a fighting sport in the Ancient Olympic Games. Suzuki and Funaki pr ...
Semmy Schilt
Sem "Semmy" Schilt (; born 27 October 1973) is a Dutch former kickboxer, Ashihara karateka and mixed martial artist. He stands 212 cm and weighs 171 kg. He is a four-time K-1 World Grand Prix Champion and one-time Glory Heavyweight Grand Slam ...
was his next opponent. Nogueira scored another victory by triangle choke. He then avenged his only loss against Dan Henderson, when he armbarred him in the 3rd round after Henderson displayed great submission defense for the first two rounds.
Title bouts
Nogueira's first Pride title defense was against Russian sambo champion and Volk Han
Magomedkhan Amanulayevich Gamzatkhanov (russian: Магомедха́н Аманула́евич Гамзатха́нов; born April 15, 1961),
is a Russian retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler, sambo wrestler and former military ...
apprentice Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko ( rus, Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко, r=Fyodor Vladimirovich Yemelyanenko, p=ˈfʲɵdər vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ jɪmʲɪˈlʲjænʲɪnkə, IPA; born ...
at Pride 25
The year 2003 is the 7th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2003 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 25 - Body Blow''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The follow ...
. Nogueira suffered his second career loss, a judges' decision after Emelianenko dominated the fight with his characteristic ground-and-pound
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...
through the guard
Guard or guards may refer to:
Professional occupations
* Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault
* Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street
* Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning
* Prison ...
. In his next fight, Nogueira won a decision against former UFC heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez
Ricco Rodriguez (born August 19, 1977) is an American semi-retired mixed martial artist currently competing in the heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 1999, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, EliteXC, I ...
. Though Rodriguez scored takedowns and maintained top position, Pride's fight-scoring was determined primarily by "effort to finish the fight by KO or submission," and Nogueira's multiple near-submission attempts won him the decision victory.
In November 2003, with heavyweight champion Emelianenko unable to fight due to injuries, Pride elected to crown an interim champion, so top contenders Nogueira and Mirko Cro Cop
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...
were matched up. Cro Cop dominated the first round with his superior striking and a left high kick which knocked Nogueira down in the very end of the round, but in the second round, Nogueira secured a takedown and rolled into an armbar to submit Cro Cop.
2004 Grand Prix
On 25 April 2004, at Pride Total Elimination 2004
The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The followi ...
, the first round of the 2004 Heavyweight Grand Prix was held. Nogueira faced the unbeaten professional wrestler and former judoka Hirotaka Yokoi
(born June 8, 1978) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. A professional MMA competitor from 2000 until 2007, Yokoi fought for PRIDE, Shooto, RINGS, and DEEP, while in professional wrestling he wrestled mainly for P ...
, whom he submitted with the debut of his ''anaconda choke''. He then repeated the move against Heath Herring in the next round to advance to the semi finals where he defeated Sergei Kharitonov
Sergei Valerievich Kharitonov (russian: Серге́й Вале́рьевич Харито́нов, Sergéj Valér'jevich Kharitónov, ; born August 18, 1980) is a Russian professional heavyweight mixed martial artist and former kick ...
to again face Fedor Emelianenko in the finals. The fight was markedly different from their first, with Nogueira able to avoid the damage he suffered from ground-and-pound in their first meeting. However, the bout was stopped when Emelianenko suffered a cut after an accidental head-butt and could not continue, resulting in a no-contest. Another rematch was required to determine the tournament champion and was scheduled for Pride Shockwave 2004
The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The followi ...
on 31 December 2004. In the rematch as in the first bout, Nogueira suffered another unanimous decision loss to Emelianenko after being dominated in the standing positions and being controlled on the ground.
At Pride Critical Countdown 2005
The year 2005 is the 9th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2005 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 29 - Fists of Fire''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
, Nogueira defeated Polish Olympic judoka Pawel Nastula
Pavel ( Bulgarian, Russian, Serbian and Macedonian: Павел, Czech, Slovene, Romanian: Pavel, Polish: Paweł, Ukrainian: Павло, Pavlo) is a male given name. It is a Slavic cognate of the name Paul (derived from the Greek Pavlos). Pav ...
by strikes, and following this, at Pride 31
The year 2006 was the 10th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2006 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 31 - Unbreakable''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The f ...
he beat professional wrestler and fighter Kiyoshi Tamura
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Once a student of legendary professional wrestlers Billy Robinson, Lou Thesz and Akira Maeda, Tamura was known for his skills in catch wrestling and is considered to be one of ...
by armbar for the second time.
2006 Grand Prix
He then entered the 2006 Pride Open Weight Grand Prix, progressing to the semi final by defeating fellow Brazilians Zuluzinho
Wágner da Conceição Martins (born May 19, 1978), better known as Zuluzinho (), is a Brazilian vale tudo fighter and mixed martial artist. He is the son of Vale Tudo legend Casemiro Nascimento Martins ("Rei Zulu"). Wagner was raised by his gran ...
and Fabrício Werdum
Fabrício Werdum (; born 30 July 1977) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Heavyweight Champion who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is also a 4-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, a two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Wor ...
. In the semi final, he faced the American catch wrestler Josh Barnett and lost a controversial split decision in which many people thought Nogueira had won the fight, as both had landed damaging blows and submission attempts without managing to secure a victory. Barnett went on to face Mirko Cro Cop
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...
in the finals, Losing to Cro Cro after submitting to punches and kicks to the face. Nogueira avenged the loss to Barnett with a dominant unanimous decision win in their rematch at Pride Shockwave 2006
''Pride Shockwave 2006'' was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships on December 31, 2006.
Background
The main event was scheduled to be heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko defending his heavyweight championship against ...
.
In an interview with Sherdog.com
Sherdog is an American website devoted to the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). It also has many forums and discussion pages on the many topics of MMA like records, promotions, etc. The site is a member of the CraveOnline network and provides MM ...
, Nogueira stated that the best moments of his career were against Bob Sapp
Robert Malcolm Sapp (born September 22, 1973) is an American mixed martial artist, kickboxer, professional wrestler, actor, and former American football player. He is currently under contract with Rizin Fighting Federation. Sapp has a combine ...
and Mirko Cro Cop
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...
, both matches he won fighting in Pride.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
At UFC Fight Night 9
The year 2007 is the 15th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. In 2007 the UFC held 19 events beginning with, ''UFC Fight Night: Evans vs. Salmon''.
Title f ...
which took place on 5 April 2007, Nogueira was in attendance and was sitting cage side with UFC president Dana White
Dana Frederick White Jr. (born July 28, 1969) is an American businessman who serves as president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a global mixed martial arts organization. In August 2019, White's net worth was estimated at $500 milli ...
. It was subsequently announced at UFC 69
''UFC 69: Shootout'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday, April 7, 2007, at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.
UFC 69 is most remembered for the main event, in which Matt Serra shocked the UFC W ...
, by White, that Nogueira had joined the UFC. He was promoted initially as simply "Minotauro" Nogueira, much like the UFC's promotion of Mirko Filipović
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro C ...
as Mirko "Cro Cop" and Quinton Jackson
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (born June 20, 1978) is an American mixed martial artist, actor and former professional wrestler, who most recently fought in the Bellator MMA. He is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and unified the Pride Middlew ...
as "Rampage" Jackson. In June 2007, he officially left Brazilian Top Team and joined Black House.
His debut in the Octagon was a third fight with Heath Herring at UFC 73
''UFC 73: Stacked'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). It took place on July 7, 2007, at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California and featured a total of nine bouts: four on the preliminary car ...
, promoted under various combinations of his name and nickname, but was officially introduced to the audience under his full name and nickname. Nogueira once again defeated Herring, via unanimous decision. During the first round, Herring landed a head kick that sent Nogueira to the canvas, in which unofficial judge Eddie Bravo
Edgar A. Bravo (''né'' Cano; born May 15, 1970) is an American martial arts instructor, podcaster, stand-up comedian, and musician. After earning a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in 2003, Bravo began teaching his own self-developed style ...
thought the fight could have been stopped. Herring let Nogueira get back to his feet, and Nogueira was then able to recover and come back with a dominant decision victory.
UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship
It was announced during the UFC 79
''UFC 79: Nemesis'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), that took place on December 29, 2007, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Background
The main events featured the fight ...
broadcast and subsequent press conference that Nogueira would be fighting former long time UFC Heavyweight Champion
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships.
Historical notes
At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...
Tim Sylvia
Timothy Deane Sylvia (born March 5, 1976) is an American retired mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, professional wrestler, and a former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion. He has competed as a Super Heavyweight and Heavyweight. While he is best kno ...
at UFC 81
''UFC 81: Breaking Point'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held on February 2, 2008, by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on the Las Vegas Strip.
Background
The main event featured Tim Sylvia and Ant ...
for the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship. Nogueira defeated Sylvia in the third round with a guillotine choke to become the Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships.
Historical notes
At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...
. During the fight Sylvia knocked Nogueira down with punches. After pulling Sylvia into his half guard in the third round, Nogueira quickly secured a sweep
Sweep or swept may refer to:
Cleaning
* Sweep, the action of using a brush to clean
* Chimney sweep, a worker who clears ash and soot from chimneys
* Street sweeper, a person's occupation, or a machine that cleans streets
* Swept quartz, a cleani ...
and attempted an armbar which he missed but immediately transitioned into a guillotine choke as Sylvia tried to regain his feet thus mounting a come from behind victory. Nogueira's coach, Amaury Bitetti
Amaury Bitetti is a Brazilian mixed martial arts former fighter and promoter holding the rank of 7th degree black and red coral belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ). Considered by many as one of the best BJJ competitors of all time, Bitetti is a tw ...
, said that Nogueira had trained for the guillotine well beforehand.
Nogueira and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir
Francisco Santos Mir III (; born May 24, 1979), is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed for Bellator MMA in the Heavyweight division. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for sixteen years. A f ...
were the coaches for the eighth season of ''The Ultimate Fighter
''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...
'' (TUF), which premiered on 17 September 2008, on Spike TV
Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles.
The channel was o ...
. Both winners of ''The Ultimate Fighter,'' season 8, light heavyweight Ryan Bader
Arizona State Sun Devils
Ryan DuWayne Bader (born June 7, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist currently signed to Bellator MMA where he is the current Bellator Heavyweight Champion, the former Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion, a ...
and lightweight Efrain Escudero
Efraín Escudero (born January 15, 1986) is a Mexican mixed martial artist. He trains under Drew Fickett and competes in the 155 lb (70.3 kg) weight class. Efrain was the winner of season eight of Spike TV's reality show ''The Ultimate ...
, were members of Team Nogueira. After the season concluded, coaches Nogueira and Mir met at UFC 92
''UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on December 27, 2008 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Background
The main event featured UFC Ligh ...
for the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship. Mir won a one-sided fight in the second round via TKO due to punches, showing much improved striking by knocking Nogueira down twice in the first round. Herb Dean
Herbert Dean (born September 30, 1970) is an American professional mixed martial arts referee for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and former fighter. UFC president Dana White, UFC color commentator Joe Rogan, articles covering MMA in ESP ...
stopped the match at 1:54 of the second round. The loss marked the first time Nogueira had been stopped in his career.
Two days after the fight, Dana White revealed in an interview that "Nogueira had just gotten over a Staph infection." Nogueira himself verified this fact several months later in his own interview, stating that he had a Staph infection "20 days before the fight, equiring5 days in the hospital." When asked if this infection affected his fight, he answered: "For sure." In addition to this significant illness, his knee was injured during training for which he had surgery in February 2009. Despite these legitimate handicaps, Nogueira offered strong praise for Frank Mir's performance, with particular credit given to Mir's ability to maintain "very good distance."
Non-title bouts
The UFC next wanted to schedule Nogueira to face UFC Hall of Famer
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
and former UFC Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture
Randall Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American actor, former United States Army, U.S. Army sergeant, former mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and former Collegiate wrestling, collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestling, Greco-Roman ...
at UFC 97
''UFC 97: Redemption'' (not to be confused with ''UFC 17: Redemption'') was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on April 18, 2009 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Background
This event broke the UFC attendanc ...
, but Couture had to turn down the fight due to elbow surgery in January 2009. Couture later agreed to fight Nogueira at UFC 102
''UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on August 29, 2009 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. It featured former five-time UFC champion and UFC Hall of Fam ...
in Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
. Nogueira defeated Couture via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, and 29–28). Nogueira showed much improved sharpness on his feet, and displayed his excellent chin by walking through many of Couture's strikes while still throwing punches, eventually gaining the better of the exchanges as he scored two knockdowns of Couture in the fight. Although taken down twice, Nogueira swept from guard on both occasions (after some time on his back) to gain the full mount over Couture. On the floor, Nogueira threatened with two submissions, first with a D'Arce choke and later with an arm-triangle choke.
Nogueira was expected to face undefeated prospect Cain Velasquez
Caín Ramirez Velasquez (born July 28, 1982) is an American professional wrestler and retired mixed martial artist, currently appearing for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). He is widely known for his time in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, ...
on 2 January 2010, at UFC 108
''UFC 108: Evans vs. Silva'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on January 2, 2010, in Las Vegas, Nevada at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Background
The card for UFC 108 was plagued with numerous injuries ...
, but again, Nogueira caught another severe staph infection cancelling the bout. The bout instead took place on 21 February 2010, at UFC 110
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
in Sydney, Australia
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...
. During the bout, Nogueira was out-boxed as Velasquez landed an uppercut-right hook combo that dropped Nogueira early in the first round. Velasquez followed up with five clean shots on the ground, prompting referee Herb Dean
Herbert Dean (born September 30, 1970) is an American professional mixed martial arts referee for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and former fighter. UFC president Dana White, UFC color commentator Joe Rogan, articles covering MMA in ESP ...
to stop the contest, in which Velasquez earned a KO victory. At the time, Nogueira had been knocked out in two of his last three fights.
Nogueira was to face Frank Mir
Francisco Santos Mir III (; born May 24, 1979), is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed for Bellator MMA in the Heavyweight division. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for sixteen years. A f ...
on 25 September 2010, at UFC 119
''UFC 119: Mir vs. Cro Cop'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 25, 2010, at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The event was the first that the UFC hosted in Indiana.
...
in a rematch from the championship bout at UFC 92. Nogueira pulled out of this fight in order to undergo needed surgery on both of his hips as well as his knee and was replaced by Mirko Cro Cop
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...
. He stated on 15 May 2011, that he would fight at the UFC's return to Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
in Brazil. Nogueira defeated ''The Ultimate Fighter
''The Ultimate Fighter'' is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen s ...
'' alumnus Brendan Schaub
Brendan Peter Schaub (born March 18, 1983) is an American podcast host, former professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, and stand-up comedian. He is the host of ''The Fighter and the Kid'' podcast, the ''Below the Belt with Brend ...
by knockout due to punches in the first round on 27 August 2011, at UFC 134
''UFC 134: Silva vs. Okami'' (also known as ''UFC Rio'') was a mixed martial arts (MMA) pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 27, 2011 at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event was the second that t ...
in his home-city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was his first fight in over 16 months (and was billed as his "return fight") and earned him his first ''Knockout of the Night'' bonus. He celebrated his victory by sitting on top of the octagon fence and displaying a Brazilian national flag with Sport Club Internacional
Sport Club Internacional (), commonly known as Internacional or simply Inter, is a Brazilian professional Association football, football club based in Porto Alegre. They play in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, Série A, the first divisio ...
's emblem added to the center of the flag.
Nogueira faced Frank Mir
Francisco Santos Mir III (; born May 24, 1979), is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed for Bellator MMA in the Heavyweight division. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for sixteen years. A f ...
in a rematch on 10 December 2011, at UFC 140
''UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 10, 2011 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was the penultimate event for the UFC in 2011. The event feat ...
. After close early exchanges and a lot of work against the cage, the two separated, and Nogueira rocked Mir with a hard overhand right, jab combo. After Mir fell to the ground, Nogueira continued with ground and pound before attempting a guillotine choke. Mir was able to get out of this and during a scramble, ended in side control
In grappling, side control (often also called side mount, cross mount, 100 kilos) is a dominant ground grappling position where the top combatant is lying perpendicularly over the face-up bottom combatant in such a way that the legs are free and ...
and locked up a kimura Kimura (written: lit. "tree village") is the 17th most common Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*, Japanese novelist
*, Japanese footballer
*, Japanese botanist
*, Japanese idol and singer
*, Japanese footballer
*, Japanes ...
. Nogueira managed to roll Mir, only to be reversed himself. Mir stepped his right leg over the face of Nogueira and cranked the kimura, causing Nogueira's right humerus
The humerus (; ) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extremity consists of a roun ...
to break, thus ending the fight at 3:38 of round 1.
Nogueira was expected to face Cheick Kongo
Cheick Kongo is a French heavyweight Mixed Martial artist and former Kickboxer who fights in Bellator MMA. A professional MMA competitor since 2001, he has also competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of May 10, 2022, he is #4 in the ...
on 21 July 2012, at UFC 149
The year 2012 was the 20th year in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. 2012 started with UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes and ended with UFC 155: dos Santos vs. Velasquez 2 ...
. However, Nogueira pulled out of the bout, citing that his arm injury had not healed enough to resume the proper training and was replaced by Shawn Jordan
Shawn Martin Jordan (born October 24, 1984) is an American professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Professional Fighters League's Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2009, Jordan has also formerly competed for ...
. Nogueira fought Dave Herman on 13 October 2012, at UFC 153
''UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 13, 2012, at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Background
Vitor Belfort was expected to face Alan Belcher a ...
. He won the bout when he submitted Herman in the second round with an armbar. The finish earned him his first ''Submission of the Night'' honors.
Losing streak and retirement
Nogueira coached opposite Fabrício Werdum
Fabrício Werdum (; born 30 July 1977) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Heavyweight Champion who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is also a 4-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, a two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Wor ...
on the second season of '' The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil.'' The two met in a rematch at the conclusion of the season, on 8 June 2013, at UFC on Fuel TV 10
''The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 2'' is an installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series ''The Ultimate Fighter''.
This season consisted of 12 episodes and a live finale in Brazil. The season tournam ...
. This fight was a rematch of their first fight in PRIDE in which Nogueria won by unanimous decision back in 2006. After a back-and-forth first round, Nogueira lost via submission to an armbar in the second round.
Nogueira faced Roy Nelson on 11 April 2014, in the main event at UFC Fight Night 39
''UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs. Nelson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 39'') was a mixed martial arts event held on April 11, 2014, at du Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Background
A heavyweight bout between Roy Nelson and Antônio ...
. After dropping Nogueira several times with punches in the first round, Nelson finished the fight via knockout with an overhand right.
On 17 June 2014, Nogueira underwent successful surgery to repair a partial ACL tear of his right knee. On 9 February 2015, it was announced Nogueira would replace Anderson Silva
Anderson da Silva (; born 14 April 1975) is a Brazilian-American mixed martial artist and boxer. He is a former UFC Middleweight Champion and holds the record for the longest title reign in UFC history at 2,457 days. This started in 2006 and ...
as a head coach on '' The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 4'', after Silva was removed following his failed drug test.
In March 2015, Nogueira revealed in an interview with Combate that he had undergone stem cell therapy on his elbows, hips and knees. Nogueira said,They have a clinic in Kansas where they work with stem cells. What they do is they remove some cells from fat out of your back and then inject them in your joints. I did it on my elbows, my hips and knees. It stimulates cartilage growth. It's pretty cutting edge technique. I'm responding really well so far. It's been helping a lot with my pain. I'm still doing physiotherapy, which is responsible for curing my hips, but I'm now doing this to make it even stronger. I had a break between my last fight and ''The Ultimate Fighter'' shootings, so I decided to go for it.
Nogueira also confessed a desire to fight Frank Mir
Francisco Santos Mir III (; born May 24, 1979), is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed for Bellator MMA in the Heavyweight division. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for sixteen years. A f ...
for a third time saying,In two weeks I'll be cleared to train freely again. First, I will get my body strong enough so I can train and be 100% ready to fight. I intend to fight at UFC 190 in August. I wanted to come back at the TUF finale card, but I'm afraid there won't be enough time. I'll definitely be ready in August. The UFC told me they would put me in a card in August. They didn't say which one, but I'm sure it'll be the one in Rio. I still don't have an opponent. They said there were three different guys I could be fighting, but I can't comment on that. I don't have any preferences really. I just want to come back and fight, but I would like to face Frank Mir again before the end of the year.
In turn, the promotion balked at setting up a third bout with Mir. Instead, Nogueira next faced Stefan Struve
Stefan Jaimy Struve (; born February 18, 1988) is a Dutch former mixed martial artist who competed as a heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). At , he is the tallest fighter in the history of the UFC.
Background
Growing up in th ...
at UFC 190
''UFC 190: Rousey vs. Correia'' was a mixed martial arts event held on August 1, 2015, at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Background
The event was headlined by a UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship bout between former UFC Bantamweigh ...
on 1 August 2015. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. After the fight, UFC president Dana White
Dana Frederick White Jr. (born July 28, 1969) is an American businessman who serves as president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a global mixed martial arts organization. In August 2019, White's net worth was estimated at $500 milli ...
said he would no longer offer Nogueira fights, effectively ending his UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
career. White also indicated that he would instead offer Nogueira a position within the company. In turn, Nogueira confirmed his intention to retire.
Fighting style
Nogueira was universally known as a grappler, drawing strength from his Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills.[Snowden, Jonathan. ''MMA Encyclopedia'', ECW Press, 2010] However, he also had a well-rounded set of MMA abilities, relying on outstanding boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
and a competent takedown game.[ He was especially famous for his affinity to fighting from the bottom, utilizing an offensive ]open guard
Open or OPEN may refer to:
Music
* Open (band), Australian pop/rock band
* The Open (band), English indie rock band
* ''Open'' (Blues Image album), 1969
* ''Open'' (Gotthard album), 1999
* ''Open'' (Cowboy Junkies album), 2001
* ''Open'' ( ...
with masterful skill. His trademark moves were submissions like armbar
An armlock in grappling is a single or double joint lock that hyperextends, hyperflexes or hyperrotates the elbow joint or shoulder joint. An armlock that hyper-extends the arm is known as an armbar, and it includes the traditional armbar, pr ...
s, triangle chokes and variations of both, along with more exotic techniques. His ground game was considered "on a completely different level" from the rest of the sport during his time as an MMA competitor.[ Nogueira was also known for his solid ]chin
The chin is the forward pointed part of the anterior mandible (List_of_human_anatomical_regions#Regions, mental region) below the lower lip. A fully developed human skull has a chin of between 0.7 cm and 1.1 cm.
Evolution
The presence of a we ...
and extreme ability to take punishment, which was showcased in his fights against Bob Sapp
Robert Malcolm Sapp (born September 22, 1973) is an American mixed martial artist, kickboxer, professional wrestler, actor, and former American football player. He is currently under contract with Rizin Fighting Federation. Sapp has a combine ...
, Fedor Emilianenko and Mirko Cro Cop
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...
.[
]
Other media
From 2004 to 2005, Nogueira acted in Yomiuri TV
JOIX-DTV (channel 10), branded as , is the Kansai region flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned by the subsidiary of the eponymous Yomiuri Shimbun#Yomiuri Group, Yomi ...
's sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...
television series ''Africa no Tsume'', playing the character "Nogueira." He cameoed in '' The Expendables'' along with his twin brother.
Personal life
Nogueira has one daughter. On 23 August 2011, Nogueira established a partnership with Brazilian football club Internacional
Sport Club Internacional (), commonly known as Internacional or simply Inter, is a Brazilian professional football club based in Porto Alegre. They play in the Série A, the first division of the Brazilian league, as well as in Campeonat ...
to represent the club's brand in the UFC. In an interview for SporTV
SporTV is a Brazilian pay television sports network owned by Canais Globo, part of Grupo Globo, launched in 1991. It is the most watched sports network in Brazil.
On January 18, 2013, were launched High-definition simulcasts of SporTV and S ...
, Nogueira said, "I'll do my best to represent Internacional in the best possible way. Now I am 100% Internacional."
Championships and achievements
Mixed martial arts
* Fighting Network RINGS
**2000 RINGS King of Kings Tournament Winner
*PRIDE Fighting Championship
PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...
**Pride Heavyweight Championship
Below is a list of Pride Fighting Championships champions and title defenses:
World champions Heavyweight Championship
:Weight limit: Over
Middleweight Championship
:Weight limit: to
Welterweight Championship
:Weight limit: to
Light ...
( One time, first)
** Interim Pride Heavyweight Championship ( One time)
** 2004 PRIDE Heavyweight Grand Prix Runner-Up
** 2006 PRIDE Open-Weight Grand Prix Semi-Finalist
** Tied with Kazushi Sakuraba
is a Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and submission wrestler, currently signed to Rizin Fighting Federation and Pro Wrestling Noah, where he was formerly one-half of the former GHC Tag Team Champions with Takashi Sugiura. ...
for the most submission wins (11) in Pride FC history
*Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
**UFC Hall of Fame
The UFC Hall of Fame is a List of halls and walks of fame, hall of fame which honors mixed martial artists and MMA personalities, established and maintained by the U.S.-based mixed martial arts promotion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). In a ...
** Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship ( One time)
** Fight of the Night ( Two times)
** Knockout of the Night ( One time)
*World Extreme Fighting
**WEF Heavyweight Superfight Champion (One Time)
*Sherdog
Sherdog is an American website devoted to the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). It also has many forums and discussion pages on the many topics of MMA like records, promotions, etc. The site is a member of the CraveOnline network and provides MM ...
**Mixed Martial Arts Hall of Fame
*Wrestling Observer Newsletter
The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.
Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four We ...
** 2002 Fighter of the Year
*Black Belt Magazine
''Black Belt'' is an American magazine covering martial arts and combat sports. The magazine is based in Valencia, California, and is one of the oldest titles dedicated to martial arts in the United States.
History and profile
The magazine was ...
**2002 NHB Fighter of the Year
*Inside Fights
**2009 Fight of the Year - vs. Randy Couture
Randall Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American actor, former United States Army, U.S. Army sergeant, former mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and former Collegiate wrestling, collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestling, Greco-Roman ...
on 29 August
*MMAFighting
** 2003 Fight of the Year vs. Mirko Cro Cop
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...
on 9 November[ards MMAFighting.com 2006 Year End Awards](_blank)
MMA Fighting; retrieved 5 May 2012.
*FightMatrix.com
**2004 Most Noteworthy Match of the Year vs. Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko ( rus, Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко, r=Fyodor Vladimirovich Yemelyanenko, p=ˈfʲɵdər vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ jɪmʲɪˈlʲjænʲɪnkə, IPA; born ...
on 31 December
**2003 Most Noteworthy Match of the Year vs. Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko ( rus, Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко, r=Fyodor Vladimirovich Yemelyanenko, p=ˈfʲɵdər vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ jɪmʲɪˈlʲjænʲɪnkə, IPA; born ...
on 16 March
Submission grappling
* ADCC World Submission Wrestling Championships
**2000 ADCC – 99 kg+: Quarter finals
* CBJJ World Championships
**1999 Black Belt Absoluto: 3rd Place
**1997 Purple Belt Pesadissimo: 2nd place
* CBJJ Pan-American Championships[
**1999 Brown Belt Pesadissimo: 1st Place
**1999 Brown Belt Absoluto: 1st place
* CBJJ Brazilian Championships][
**1998 Brown Belt Pesadissimo: 1st Place
**1997 Purple Belt Super Pesado: 3rd Place
**1996 Blue Belt Absoluto: 1st Place
]
Mixed martial arts record
, -
, Loss
, align=center, (1)
, Stefan Struve
Stefan Jaimy Struve (; born February 18, 1988) is a Dutch former mixed martial artist who competed as a heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). At , he is the tallest fighter in the history of the UFC.
Background
Growing up in th ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, UFC 190
''UFC 190: Rousey vs. Correia'' was a mixed martial arts event held on August 1, 2015, at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Background
The event was headlined by a UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship bout between former UFC Bantamweigh ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, Brazil
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 34–9–1 (1)
, Roy Nelson
, KO (punch)
, UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs. Nelson
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 3:37
, Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area.
...
, United Arab Emirates
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 34–8–1 (1)
, Fabrício Werdum
Fabrício Werdum (; born 30 July 1977) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Heavyweight Champion who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is also a 4-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, a two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Wor ...
, Submission (armbar)
, UFC on Fuel TV: Nogueira vs. Werdum
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 2:41
, Fortaleza
Fortaleza (, locally , Portuguese for ''Fortress'') is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeastern Brazil. It belongs to the Metropolitan mesoregion of Fortaleza and microregion of Fortaleza. It is Brazil's 5th largest city and the t ...
, Brazil
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 34–7–1 (1)
, Dave Herman
, Submission (armbar)
, UFC 153
''UFC 153: Silva vs. Bonnar'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on October 13, 2012, at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Background
Vitor Belfort was expected to face Alan Belcher a ...
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 4:31
, Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, Brazil
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 33–7–1 (1)
, Frank Mir
Francisco Santos Mir III (; born May 24, 1979), is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed for Bellator MMA in the Heavyweight division. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for sixteen years. A f ...
, Technical Submission (kimura)
, UFC 140
''UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on December 10, 2011 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was the penultimate event for the UFC in 2011. The event feat ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 3:38
, Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 33–6–1 (1)
, Brendan Schaub
Brendan Peter Schaub (born March 18, 1983) is an American podcast host, former professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, and stand-up comedian. He is the host of ''The Fighter and the Kid'' podcast, the ''Below the Belt with Brend ...
, KO (punches)
, UFC 134
''UFC 134: Silva vs. Okami'' (also known as ''UFC Rio'') was a mixed martial arts (MMA) pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on August 27, 2011 at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event was the second that t ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 3:09
, Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, Brazil
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 32–6–1 (1)
, Cain Velasquez
Caín Ramirez Velasquez (born July 28, 1982) is an American professional wrestler and retired mixed martial artist, currently appearing for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). He is widely known for his time in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, ...
, KO (punches)
, UFC 110
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 2:20
, Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 32–5–1 (1)
, Randy Couture
Randall Duane Couture (; born June 22, 1963) is an American actor, former United States Army, U.S. Army sergeant, former mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist and former Collegiate wrestling, collegiate and Greco-Roman wrestling, Greco-Roman ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, UFC 102
''UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira'' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on August 29, 2009 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. It featured former five-time UFC champion and UFC Hall of Fam ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
, United States
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 31–5–1 (1)
, Frank Mir
Francisco Santos Mir III (; born May 24, 1979), is an American mixed martial artist who most recently competed for Bellator MMA in the Heavyweight division. He formerly competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for sixteen years. A f ...
, TKO (punches)
, UFC 92
''UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) pay-per-view event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on December 27, 2008 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Background
The main event featured UFC Ligh ...
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 1:54
, Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
, United States
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 31–4–1 (1)
, Tim Sylvia
Timothy Deane Sylvia (born March 5, 1976) is an American retired mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, professional wrestler, and a former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion. He has competed as a Super Heavyweight and Heavyweight. While he is best kno ...
, Submission (guillotine choke)
, UFC 81
''UFC 81: Breaking Point'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held on February 2, 2008, by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on the Las Vegas Strip.
Background
The main event featured Tim Sylvia and Ant ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 1:28
, Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
, United States
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 30–4–1 (1)
, Heath Herring
Heath Herring (born March 2, 1978) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division of Rizin. While perhaps best known for competing in PRIDE, he has also formerly competed for the UFC and K-1.
...
, Decision (unanimous)
, UFC 73
''UFC 73: Stacked'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). It took place on July 7, 2007, at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California and featured a total of nine bouts: four on the preliminary car ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...
, United States
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 29–4–1 (1)
, Josh Barnett
Joshua Lawrence Barnett (born November 10, 1977) is an American mixed martial artist, submission grappler, professional wrestler and color commentator currently signed to Bellator MMA, where he competes in their Heavyweight division. Barnett p ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, Pride FC - Shockwave 2006
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 28–4–1 (1)
, Josh Barnett
Joshua Lawrence Barnett (born November 10, 1977) is an American mixed martial artist, submission grappler, professional wrestler and color commentator currently signed to Bellator MMA, where he competes in their Heavyweight division. Barnett p ...
, Decision (split)
, Pride FC - Final Conflict Absolute
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 5:00
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 28–3–1 (1)
, Fabrício Werdum
Fabrício Werdum (; born 30 July 1977) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Heavyweight Champion who competes in the Heavyweight division. He is also a 4-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, a two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Wor ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, Pride FC - Critical Countdown Absolute
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 27–3–1 (1)
, Wagner Martins
, Submission (armbar)
, Pride FC - Total Elimination Absolute
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 2:17
, Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 26–3–1 (1)
, Kiyoshi Tamura
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Once a student of legendary professional wrestlers Billy Robinson, Lou Thesz and Akira Maeda, Tamura was known for his skills in catch wrestling and is considered to be one of ...
, Submission (armbar)
, Pride 31 - Dreamers
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 2:24
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 25–3–1 (1)
, Pawel Nastula
Pavel ( Bulgarian, Russian, Serbian and Macedonian: Павел, Czech, Slovene, Romanian: Pavel, Polish: Paweł, Ukrainian: Павло, Pavlo) is a male given name. It is a Slavic cognate of the name Paul (derived from the Greek Pavlos). Pav ...
, TKO (punches)
, Pride Critical Countdown 2005
The year 2005 is the 9th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2005 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 29 - Fists of Fire''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 8:38
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 24–3–1 (1)
, Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko ( rus, Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко, r=Fyodor Vladimirovich Yemelyanenko, p=ˈfʲɵdər vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ jɪmʲɪˈlʲjænʲɪnkə, IPA; born ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, Pride Shockwave 2004
The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The followi ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, NC
, align=center, 24–2–1 (1)
, Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko ( rus, Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко, r=Fyodor Vladimirovich Yemelyanenko, p=ˈfʲɵdər vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ jɪmʲɪˈlʲjænʲɪnkə, IPA; born ...
, NC (accidental clash of heads)
, rowspan=2, Pride Final Conflict 2004
The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The followi ...
, rowspan=2,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 3:52
, rowspan=2, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 24–2–1
, Sergei Kharitonov
Sergei Valerievich Kharitonov (russian: Серге́й Вале́рьевич Харито́нов, Sergéj Valér'jevich Kharitónov, ; born August 18, 1980) is a Russian professional heavyweight mixed martial artist and former kick ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 5:00
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 23–2–1
, Heath Herring
Heath Herring (born March 2, 1978) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division of Rizin. While perhaps best known for competing in PRIDE, he has also formerly competed for the UFC and K-1.
...
, Submission (anaconda choke)
, Pride Critical Countdown 2004
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 0:30
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 22–2–1
, Hirotaka Yokoi
(born June 8, 1978) is a Japanese former mixed martial artist and professional wrestler. A professional MMA competitor from 2000 until 2007, Yokoi fought for PRIDE, Shooto, RINGS, and DEEP, while in professional wrestling he wrestled mainly for P ...
, Submission (anaconda choke)
, Pride Total Elimination 2004
The year 2004 is the 8th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2004 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride 27 - Inferno''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The followi ...
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 1:25
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 21–2–1
, Mirko Cro Cop
Mirko Filipović (; born 10 September 1974), better known by his ring name Mirko Cro Cop, is a retired Croatian professional mixed martial artist, kickboxer and amateur boxer. He is mostly known for his time in Pride Fighting Championships. Cro ...
, Submission (armbar)
, Pride Final Conflict 2003
The year 2003 is the 7th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2003 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 25 - Body Blow''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The follow ...
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 1:45
, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 20–2–1
, Ricco Rodriguez
Ricco Rodriguez (born August 19, 1977) is an American semi-retired mixed martial artist currently competing in the heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 1999, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, EliteXC, I ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, Pride Total Elimination 2003
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 19–2–1
, Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko ( rus, Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко, r=Fyodor Vladimirovich Yemelyanenko, p=ˈfʲɵdər vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ jɪmʲɪˈlʲjænʲɪnkə, IPA; born ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, Pride 25
The year 2003 is the 7th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2003 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 25 - Body Blow''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The follow ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 19–1–1
, Dan Henderson
Daniel Jeffery Henderson (born August 24, 1970) is an American retired mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler, who last competed as a middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the last Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champi ...
, Submission (armbar)
, Pride 24
The year 2002 is the 6th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2002 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride FC: The Best, Vol. 1''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
Th ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 1:49
, Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 18–1–1
, Semmy Schilt
Sem "Semmy" Schilt (; born 27 October 1973) is a Dutch former kickboxer, Ashihara karateka and mixed martial artist. He stands 212 cm and weighs 171 kg. He is a four-time K-1 World Grand Prix Champion and one-time Glory Heavyweight Grand Slam ...
, Submission (triangle choke)
, Pride 23
The year 2002 is the 6th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2002 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride FC: The Best, Vol. 1''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 6:36
, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 17–1–1
, Bob Sapp
Robert Malcolm Sapp (born September 22, 1973) is an American mixed martial artist, kickboxer, professional wrestler, actor, and former American football player. He is currently under contract with Rizin Fighting Federation. Sapp has a combine ...
, Submission (armbar)
, Pride Shockwave
''Pride Shockwave Dynamite!'' is the international PPV broadcast name for the mixed martial arts and kickboxing event co-promoted by the PRIDE Fighting Championships and K-1 on August 28, 2002. It was held at the Tokyo National Stadium in Tokyo, ...
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 4:03
, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 16–1–1
, Sanae Kikuta
is a Japanese mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight division. A professional competitor since 1996, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, Pancrase, DREAM, World Victory Road, DEEP, Shooto, and ...
, KO (punch)
, UFO-Legend
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 0:29
, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 15–1–1
, Enson Inoue
Enson Shoji Inoue (; born April 15, 1967) is a Japanese-American jiu-jitsu practitioner and retired professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1995 until 2010, he fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, the UFC, Shooto ...
, Technical Submission (triangle choke)
, Pride 19
The year 2002 is the 6th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2002 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride FC: The Best, Vol. 1''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 6:17
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 14–1–1
, Heath Herring
Heath Herring (born March 2, 1978) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division of Rizin. While perhaps best known for competing in PRIDE, he has also formerly competed for the UFC and K-1.
...
, Decision (unanimous)
, Pride 17
The year 2001 is the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 13–1–1
, Mark Coleman
Mark Daniel Coleman (born December 20, 1964) is an American retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and amateur wrestler. Coleman was the UFC 10 and UFC 11 tournament champion, the first UFC Heavyweight Champion, and the Pride Fig ...
, Submission (triangle armbar)
, Pride 16
The year 2001 is the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
Th ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 6:10
, Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 12–1–1
, Gary Goodridge
Gary Henry Goodridge (born January 17, 1966), nicknamed "Big Daddy", is a Trinidadian-Canadian former heavyweight kickboxer and mixed martial artist fighting out of Barrie, Ontario. Prior to kickboxing and MMA, he was also one of the top ranked ...
, Submission (triangle choke)
, Pride 15
The year 2001 is the 5th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2001 had 6 events beginning with, ''Pride 13 - Collision Course''.
Title fights
Debut Pride FC fighters
The ...
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 2:37
, Saitama, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 11–1–1
, Valentijn Overeem
Valentijn Overeem (; born 17 August 1976) is a retired Dutch professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer currently signed with United Glory. A professional competitor since 1996, he has previously fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, ...
, Submission (arm-triangle choke)
, rowspan=3, Rings: King of Kings 2000 Final
, rowspan=3,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 1:20
, rowspan=3, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 10–1–1
, Hiromitsu Kanehara
) is a former Japanese mixed martial artist and professional wrestler of Korean descent. A professional MMA competitor from 1998 until 2012, he found success in Fighting Network RINGS, gaining notable victories over Valentijn Overeem, Alexand ...
, Submission (rear-naked choke)
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 0:20
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 9–1–1
, Volk Han
Magomedkhan Amanulayevich Gamzatkhanov (russian: Магомедха́н Аманула́евич Гамзатха́нов; born April 15, 1961),
is a Russian retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler, sambo wrestler and former military ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 5:00
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 8–1–1
, Kiyoshi Tamura
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. Once a student of legendary professional wrestlers Billy Robinson, Lou Thesz and Akira Maeda, Tamura was known for his skills in catch wrestling and is considered to be one of ...
, Submission (armbar)
, rowspan=2, Rings: King of Kings 2000 Block A
, rowspan=2,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 2:29
, rowspan=2, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 7–1–1
, Achmed Labasanov
Achmed Labasanov (born April 24, 1978) is a former Chechen-Russian mixed martial artist who competed as a heavyweight between 1998 and 2002. During his career he has fought for organisations such as Fighting Network RINGS, IAFC - Absolute Fight ...
, Submission (armbar)
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 1:38
,
, -
, Draw
, align=center, 6–1–1
, Tsuyoshi Kohsaka
is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist, submission grappler and professional wrestler who competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor from 1994 till 2022, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, RI ...
, Draw
, Rings: Millennium Combine 3
,
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 5:00
, Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Loss
, align=center, 6–1
, Dan Henderson
Daniel Jeffery Henderson (born August 24, 1970) is an American retired mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler, who last competed as a middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the last Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champi ...
, Decision (split)
, rowspan=2, Rings: King of Kings 1999 Final
, rowspan=2,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 5:00
, rowspan=2, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 6–0
, Andrei Kopylov
Andrei Kopylov is a retired Russian sambist, professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. He competed in the heavyweight division of Fighting Network RINGS. He lost his last fight at PRIDE 22 - Beasts From The East 2 against Mario Sperry o ...
, Decision (split)
, align=center, 2
, align=center, 5:00
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 5–0
, Jeremy Horn
Jeremy Graham Horn (born August 25, 1975) is an American mixed martial artist. Horn is best known for fighting in smaller American promotions, he has also competed in some of the premiere mixed martial arts organizations around the world, inclu ...
, Decision (unanimous)
, WEF 8: Goin' Platinum
,
, align=center, 3
, align=center, 8:00
, Rome, Georgia, United States
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 4–0
, Yuriy Kochkine
Yuriy Kochkine is a Russian mixed martial artist. He competed in the Heavyweight division.
Mixed martial arts record
, -
, Win
, align=center, 7-4-1
, Milco Voorn
, Submission (kimura)
, Rings Russia: CIS vs. The World
,
, align=c ...
, Technical Submission (armbar)
, rowspan=2, King of Kings Tournament 1999#King of Kings 1999 Block A, Rings: King of Kings 1999 Block A
, rowspan=2,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 0:40
, rowspan=2, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 3–0
, Valentijn Overeem
Valentijn Overeem (; born 17 August 1976) is a retired Dutch professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer currently signed with United Glory. A professional competitor since 1996, he has previously fought for the PRIDE Fighting Championships, ...
, Technical Submission (americana)
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 1:51
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 2–0
, Nate Schroeder
, Submission (armbar)
, WEF 7: Stomp in the Swamp
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 1:52
, Kenner, Louisiana, United States
,
, -
, Win
, align=center, 1–0
, David Dodd
, Submission (kimura)
, World Extreme Fighting 6
,
, align=center, 1
, align=center, 3:12
, DeLand, Florida, United States
,
Pay-Per-View Bouts
See also
* List of current UFC fighters
* List of male mixed martial artists
References
External links
*
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira's Official MMA Record
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nogueira, Antonio Rodrigo
1976 births
Brazilian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu
People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu
Brazilian male mixed martial artists
Heavyweight mixed martial artists
Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing
Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu
Mixed martial artists utilizing judo
Pride Fighting Championships champions
Ultimate Fighting Championship champions
Brazilian male judoka
Living people
People from Vitória da Conquista
Identical twins
Twin sportspeople
Brazilian twins
Brazilian male boxers
Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters
Sportspeople from Bahia