“Goodbye Shogun!”
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio Shogun Hua (41, Brazil), who dominated an era, retired in his home country, Brazil.
Mauricio Shogun had a retirement match against Ihor Poteira (26, Ukraine) at the ‘UFC 283: Teixeira vs. Hill’ held at the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on the 22nd (Korean time).
“I wanted to play his last match in Brazil,” Shogun said of his retirement match in his home country. It’s going to be really hard. Every match carries a lot of emotion, adrenaline and tension. But since this is the last match, I will concentrate and overcome it.”
“I intend to completely end my career. Many retire and return after a few years. But I hate that. I will retire completely.”
In fact, the Shogun had been considering retirement for a long time. The reason he delayed retirement was because he wanted to finish his career in his country. He also revealed, “After getting married in 2007, his wife kept encouraging him to retire, and this time he set the right retirement timing.”
Shogun passed his final light heavyweight weigh-in at 205 pounds (93 kg). His opponent Potei also passed with 205 pounds (93 kg).
The Shogun fought without regret. He didn’t back down against young blood with a 15-year gap. Shogun countered with reckless moves, such as staggering Poteira with his back hand counter. However, he was pushed back in his agility. Shogun was defeated by Poteira’s punch rush at 4:05 in the first round by TKO.
“I am the future of the UFC,” Poteira emphatically said in the post-fight interview. It was a word that made me feel great pride in the fact that I had beaten a legend. Daniel Cormier, who is conducting the interview, sensibly passed the microphone to Shogun thinking of the Brazilian home crowd.
Shogun said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t win. Thank you for loving him all this time.” The ‘Legendary’ Shogun received cheers from the home crowd.
Meanwhile, Shogun, who debuted on the professional stage in 2002, drew attention by becoming the Pride FC middleweight (93kg) Grand Prix champion in three years. In 2007, the UFC acquired Pride FC and moved to the UFC. 메이저사이트
Shogun broke records by beating legendary players. He defeated strong opponents such as Quinton Jackson, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Ali Star Overeem, Lyoto Machida and Chuck Liddell.
The reason Pride FC was so popular in Korea in the 2000s is that it is highly recognized in Korea. Currently banned in the UFC, he uses stamping (a technique of stepping on a lying opponent’s face) and soccer kick (a technique of kicking a lying opponent like a soccer ball) and is called the ‘Stamping General’. In 2015, he visited Korea ahead of the UFC Seoul tournament and met Korean fans.
Shogun recorded 27 wins, 1 draw and 14 losses in 42 matches over the past 20 years. He is the last Pride FC left in the UFC. With Shogun’s retirement, Pride FC also became a memory for those who love martial arts.