Mauricio Ruffy is a Brazilian lightweight who lost to Arman Tsarukyan by first-round knockout at UFC 331 on September 19, 2026, in a fight that carried a title shot for the winner. His real name is Maurício de Lima Santos. He was born on June 17, 1996, making him 30 years old. He is Brazilian, from São Paulo. Before any of that, he was a bodyguard for a Chinese millionaire in Taiwan. His professional MMA record is 14-3, with 13 of those 14 wins by knockout.
Was Mauricio Ruffy Really a Bodyguard?
Yes. Before going full time in MMA, Ruffy struggled to fund the fighter lifestyle. A close friend and fellow fighter named Flavio Alvaro introduced him to a Chinese millionaire businessman who was investing in up-and-coming fighters. Ruffy took the job and spent stretches split between São Paulo and Taiwan, doing security work while training in whatever gyms were available wherever the job took him.
The money was good but the situation wasn’t easy. He couldn’t speak the language, couldn’t follow conversations, and had to navigate a completely foreign environment while keeping someone else safe. Three months in, he was ready to go home.
“I was his bodyguard and would go to a bunch of gyms there to train,” Ruffy said. “He paid us good money and invested in our careers, but I couldn’t wait to get back to Brazil. It was really tough not actually engaging in any conversation for three months. I’ve learned a lot there, though. In general, it was a great experience.”
What Is Mauricio Ruffy’s Real Name?
His real name is Maurício de Lima Santos. The nickname Ruffy was given to him by his brother before his first professional fight. It was inspired by Monkey D. Luffy, the main character from the anime series One Piece. His brother later died by suicide. Ruffy has spoken openly about how that loss shaped him and deepened his Christian faith. He describes himself as “God’s servant” and has been public about how faith helped him through that period of his life.
The name stuck. He has competed under Ruffy his entire professional career and it is the only name most fight fans know him by.
What Is Mauricio Ruffy’s MMA Background?
Ruffy is a Brazilian fighter from São Paulo. His specific ethnic background has not been publicly disclosed. He fights like he’s always one punch or one kick away from ending the night. He’s 14-3 as a professional with 13 of those wins by knockout, 9 of them in the first round. In 17 professional fights, he’s only been to a decision once.
He came into the UFC and made an immediate impression. At UFC 313 in March 2025, he knocked out King Green with a spinning wheel kick and picked up a Performance of the Night bonus.
How Did Ruffy Lose at UFC Paris?
On September 6, 2025, Ruffy fought Benoît Saint Denis at UFC Paris and ran into a grappling problem he couldn’t solve. Saint Denis got him down early, controlled the first round, and locked up a rear-naked choke in the second. Ruffy tapped. The loss put a real question on the table about what happens when he can’t keep the fight standing, and nobody was shy about asking it out loud.
Four months later he had his answer.
How Did Ruffy Knock Out Rafael Fiziev at UFC 325?
Ruffy came back at UFC 325 on January 31, 2026 against Rafael Fiziev, one of the better strikers in the lightweight division, and put him away in round two. He dropped Fiziev with a right hand and finished at 4:30. After the Paris loss the grappling question was the main thing following him around, and a knockout of a quality striker like Fiziev answered it in the most direct way possible.
What Happened After Ruffy Knocked Out Michael Chandler at the White House?
UFC Freedom 250 on June 14, 2026 was held on the South Lawn of the White House. Ruffy fought Michael Chandler in that setting and stopped him in the first round at 4:29, landing spinning heel kicks that rocked Chandler before finishing with punches until the referee stepped in.
Then he got down on one knee on the White House lawn and proposed to his girlfriend Nadine.
“I want to be the champion of this division,” Ruffy said after the fight. “I do believe I’m next up for this title shot. We’ve been talking.”
How Did Mauricio Ruffy Lose to Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 331?
Tsarukyan stopped Ruffy at 4:56 of the first round in the co-main event at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The finish came against the cage: a left elbow to the eye, then a right elbow that put Ruffy down, and referee Jason Herzog stepped in immediately. Ruffy had landed early and forced Tsarukyan to wrestle, but struggled once the fight got to the clinch.
A title shot had been on the line for the winner. Tsarukyan claimed it afterwards, saying: “Of course, for my next fight, the title fight, I needed that finish.” It was his sixth straight win.
Before the fight Ruffy had been direct about the stakes. “Beating Arman Tsarukyan takes us straight to the title,” he said. He went in at number 7 and 14-2, and came out at 14-3 with the first knockout loss of his UFC run.
Who Does Mauricio Ruffy Fight Next?
Nothing has been announced. Ruffy is 30 and remains in the lightweight top 10, but the title shot that was in front of him went to Tsarukyan. Full results from the card are in the UFC 331 live results and recap.
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