Mauricio Ruffy had one of the best performances at UFC 301. Ruffy’s first-round finish of Jamie Mullarkey bagged him a $50K bonus from the company. Even UFC CEO Dana White praised the Brazilian on his official social media. With a style reminiscent of prime Conor McGregor, Ruffy has set his sights on the lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.
In the featured matchup of the early prelims, Ruffy showcased his striking prowess to score a first-round finish against Mullarkey. With precision counterstriking mixed with kicks and jabs, Ruffy stood like an enigma in front of Mullarkey. A series of pinpoint strikes after a brutal knee to the face forced referee Mike Beltran to halt the contest. In his octagon interview, Ruffy had a message for the lightweight champion.
I have a message for Islam Makhachev: Enjoy your days at the top. I know you’re upset cause I beat your friend. But enjoy your days, because a new king is coming.
Mauricio Ruffy via UFC 301 Octagon interview
Ruffy entered the UFC with a finish of Raimond Magomedaliev in Dana White’s Contender Series. After two hard-fought rounds, Ruffy finished Magomedaliev in the third round. Leg kicks were the main reason for the finish. Magomedaliev was a teammate of Islam Makhachev, hence the mention in Ruffy’s octagon interview.
Since Dana White personally applauded Ruffy via his social media, great things are ahead of the Brazilian. Nicknamed “One-Shot”, Ruffy trains at the the Fighting Nerds Combat Club in Sao Paulo with Caio Borralho, who also had a KO victory and performance bonus at UFC 301.
Mauricio Ruffy speaks on the Conor McGregor comparison
Prime Conor McGregor was a beast. With his precision counterstriking in Karate stance, McGregor wreaked havoc in the UFC’s featherweight division. Sans a decision victory against Max Holloway, McGregor finished all his featherweight fights via finish and earned bonuses in all. For context, McGregor had suffered an ACL injury midway through the fight with Holloway.
Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 301 (Image via: Instagram)No other fighter has replicated the success of McGregor’s fighting style inside the octagon. After all, McGregor had power in his left hand and was agile in his movements. That changed at UFC 301, Mauricio Ruffy fought like McGregor, against Mullarkey. Ex-UFC middleweight Derek Brunson stated the similarity was striking. Ruffy talked about the comparison in the post-fight press conference.
The guy [Conor McGregor] had a great history in the UFC. I try to mirror myself in him. He’s a guy who taught everyone how to make money in fights.
Mauricio Ruffy via UFC 301 post-fight press conference
McGregor will make his anticipated return at UFC 303 on June 29th. The teaser of the event, featuring only McGregor, has gone viral on social media. Even though Michael Chandler, McGregor’s opponent at UFC 303, has predicted a knockout victory, the overwhelming sentiment is that McGregor will make his comeback in style via finish.
!
