30 of the best MMA knockouts of all time [UPDATED AUGUST 2023]
By Amy Kaplan
20. Shogun Rua evens the score against Lyoto Machida
From UFC 113 – 2010
After falling to former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida at UFC 104 by way of a unanimous decision, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was out for blood.
The original affair between the two Brazilian champions was a back and forth affair, but Machida controlled the fight leading to the unanimous decision victory. The former 2005 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix champion nearing the end of his career knew that he had one more title push left in the gas tank.
It didn’t take long for Shogun to prove how devastating he really is.
At the start of the bout, Shogun came out swinging at Machida, pushing a relentless pace that eventually lead to a stiff right hook which was the beginning of the end for Lyoto Machida.
Once the hook landed, Shogun went right to mount and started bombarding his fellow Brazilian with devastating ground and pound. Eventually, he turned Machida’s head into a speed bag, bouncing it up and down off the canvas until Yves Lavigne had seen enough.
While Shogun was not able to defend his UFC belt, he is still widely regarded as one of the best mixed martial artists in the history of the sport. Unfortunately, he ran into the freight train that is Jon Jones in his first title defense, but followed the Jones fight with a first-round finish of Forest Griffin.