Mauricio "Shogun" Rua left no doubt about his abilities, knocking out Forrest Griffin in the first round of their rematch at UFC 134 on Saturday night. Rua was one of the many Brazilian-born fighters to win in front of the raucous crowd in Rio de Janeiro.
"Shogun" took advantage of Griffin's aggressiveness, landing a right as Griffin moved in to attack. That knocked Griffin to the ground. Rua finished up with several hammer strikes until the fight was stopped at 1:53 in the first round.
After the bout, a jubilant "Shogun" thanked Brazil several times. Like all of the Brazilian fighters who won at UFC 134, Rua was ecstatic to get to fight in front of a home crowd, and the crowd was just as happy to have Rua win for them.
Griffin won their first fight, at UFC 74 in 2007, with a rear-naked choke. It was Rua's first fight in the UFC after a successful career in PRIDE, and a win that earned Griffin a title shot. Since then, both fighters have held the UFC light heavyweight belt, though neither was able to defend it.
Rua lost the belt to Jon Jones in March, but showed that he is still part of the elite in a crowded UFC light heavyweight field. Griffin, on the other hand, is struggling to show that he belongs with the best. Since winning the belt, he is 2-3.
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