Maurício de Lima Santos (born June 17, 1996), known as Maurício Ruffy, is a Brazilian mixed martial artist currently competing in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of June 20, 2026, he is #10 in the Meta UFC lightweight rankings.
Mixed martial arts career Early career Ruffy acquired a record of 8–1 with eight knockouts competing exclusively on the Brazilian regional scene. This included a second-round knockout over UFC veteran Ronys Torres.
Dana White's Contender Series Ruffy was then booked to compete on Week 9 of Season 7 of Dana White's Contender Series on October 3, 2023, against highly touted prospect Raimond Magomedaliev. He would win the fight via third-round technical knockout and was awarded a contract by Dana White.
Ultimate Fighting Championship After earning his contract, Ruffy made his UFC debut at UFC 301 against Jamie Mullarkey on May 4, 2024. He would win the fight via technical knockout in the first round. This fight earned him a Performance of the Night award.
In his next fight, Ruffy was scheduled to face Charlie Campbell at UFC 309 on November 16, 2024. However, Campbell withdrew from the bout for undisclosed reasons and was subsequently replaced by James Llontop in a catchweight bout of 165 pounds. Llontop weighed in 1.2 lbs over the 165 lb catchweight limit and was fined 20 percent of his purse, which went to Ruffy. Ruffy would win the fight via unanimous decision, marking the first time he would go to the scorecards in his career.
Ruffy would then face King Green at UFC 313 on March 8, 2025. He would win the fight via first-round knockout with a spinning wheel kick. This fight earned him another Performance of the Night award.
Ruffy faced Benoît Saint Denis on September 6, 2025 at UFC Fight Night 258. He lost the fight via a face crank submission in the second round.
Ruffy faced Rafael Fiziev on February 1, 2026 at UFC 325. He won the fight by technical knockout in the second round. This fight earned him a $100,000 Performance of the Night award.
Ruffy faced former three-time Bellator Lightweight World Champion (also former UFC Lightweight Championship challenger) Michael Chandler on June 14, 2026 at UFC Freedom 250. He won the fight by technical knockout via a spinning wheel kick and punches in the first round.
Ruffy faced Arman Tsarukyan in the five-round co-main event on September 19, 2026 at UFC 331. He lost the fight by knockout via elbows in the first round.
Personal life Inspired by One Piece, the moniker of Ruffy was given to Maurício by his late brother before his first professional fight.
In 2025, Ruffy announced plans to expand his team, Fighting Nerds, by opening a new training facility in New Hampshire, to provide better facilities for his teammates and other athletes.
Championships and accomplishments Ultimate Fighting Championship Performance of the Night (Three times) Second most knockdowns-per-minute in UFC Lightweight division history (2.61) UFC Honors Awards 2025: President's Choice Performance of the Year Nominee & Fan's Choice Knockout of the Year Nominee UFC.com Awards 2024: Ranked #4 Newcomer of the Year 2025: Ranked #2 Knockout of the Year Centurion Fight Championship CFC Welterweight Tournament Mega Fight Championship MFC Super Lightweight Championship ESPN 2025 Knockout of the Year theScore 2025 Knockout of the Year MMA Fighting 2025 Knockout of the Year LowKick MMA 2025 Knockout of the Year Bloody Elbow 2025 #2 Ranked Knockout of the Year MMA Mania 2025 #2 Ranked Knockout of the Year Uncrowned 2025 #3 Ranked Knockout of the Year World MMA Awards 2024–2025 Knockout of the Year
Mixed martial arts record
|Loss |align=center|14–3 |Arman Tsarukyan |KO (elbow) |UFC 331 | |align=center|1 |align=center|4:56 |Los Angeles, California, United States
|Win |align=center|14–2 |Michael Chandler |TKO (spinning wheel kick and punches) |UFC Freedom 250 | |align=center|1 |align=center|4:29 |Washington, D.C., United States
|Win |align=center|13–2 |Rafael Fiziev |TKO (punches) |UFC 325 | |align=center|2 |align=center|4:30 |Sydney, Australia
|Loss |align=center|12–2 |Benoît Saint Denis |Submission (face crank) |UFC Fight Night: Imavov vs. Borralho | |align=center|2 |align=center|2:56 |Paris, France
|Win |align=center|12–1 |King Green |KO (spinning wheel kick) |UFC 313 | |align=center|1 |align=center|2:07 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Win |align=center|11–1 |James Llontop |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 309 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |New York City, New York, United States
|Win |align=center|10–1 |Jamie Mullarkey |TKO (punches) |UFC 301 | |align=center|1 |align=center|4:42 |Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
|Win |align=center|9–1 |Raimond Magomedaliev |TKO (punches) |Dana White's Contender Series 65 | |align=center|3 |align=center|4:45 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
|Win |align=center|8–1 |Ronys Torres |TKO (punches) |rowspan=2|Centurion FC: Rex Redemptor |rowspan=2| |align=center|2 |align=center|4:21 |rowspan=2|Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
|Win |align=center|7–1 |Corneliu Rotaru Lascar |TKO (punches) |align=center|1 |align=center|4:23
|Win |align=center|6–1 |Brenno Luiz Gonçalves |TKO (punch) |Arena Pride MMA 4 | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:26 |Santos, Brazil
|Loss |align=center|5–1 |Manoel Sousa |KO (punches) |Standout Fighting Tournament 18 | |align=center|2 |align=center|2:41 |São Paulo, Brazil
|Win |align=center|5–0 |Derlan Marinho |KO (punches) |Mega Fight Championship 2 | |align=center|1 |align=center|3:35 |Osasco, Brazil
|Win |align=center|4–0 |Rafael Silva |TKO (punch) |Standout Fighting Tournament 8 | |align=center|2 |align=center|1:08 |São Paulo, Brazil
|Win |align=center|3–0 |Lucas Costa Jesus |TKO (elbows) |Batalha MMA 13 | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:42 |Osasco, Brazil
|Win |align=center|2–0 |Wendson Santos |TKO (punches) |Gold Fight 9 | |align=center|1 |align=center|1:04 |São Paulo, Brazil
|Win |align=center|1–0 |Marlon Paula de Souza |TKO (punches) |Premium Fight Championship 6 | |align=center|1 |align=center|0:30 |São Paulo, Brazil |
See also List of current UFC fighters List of Dana White's Contender Series alumni List of male mixed martial artists
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