Mauricio Ruffy during his UFC 309 post-fight interview, with mystery inset. Credit: Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images

UFC fans question who ‘Fighting Nerds’ star is firing shots at in controversial grappling rant

Originally posted on Bloody Elbow
By Christopher De Santiago | Last updated Sep 4, 2025 1:49 AM ET

Mauricio Ruffy had a lot to say at UFC Paris media day.

One of the core four ‘Fighting Nerds’, Brazil’s Ruffy returns this weekend at UFC Paris alongside teammate Caio Borralho, who headlines against top middleweight contender Nassourdine Imavov.

The #15-ranked Ruffy will look to climb the lightweight rankings when he battles France’s Benoit Saint-Denis (#13) in the co-main event of the evening.

Just three fights into his career, Ruffy is up there with the most exciting fighters on the roster, especially after his spinning heel kick knockout of King Green at UFC 313 in March—a ‘KO of the year’ contender.

A striker at heart (and a dynamic one at that), Ruffy turned some heads with his brutally honest opinion on grapplers.

Mauricio Ruffy: ‘Train sambo if you want to put on boring fights’

Khamzat Chimaev’s title-winning performance against du Plessis at UFC 319, that saw him completely dominate from start-to-finish with his grappling, has sparked much chatter in the MMA community.

Chimaev could be who Ruffy is referring to, as the middleweight champ broke the record for most control time in a UFC title fight (21:40 out of 25:00) just a few weeks ago.

“I don’t think a guy that just holds on to you for 25 minutes should be considered the best in the world,” Ruffy said through a translator at UFC Paris media day.

“We have guys like Topuria, who can play jiu-jitsu, wrestle, knock guys out and Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, all these guys have put on a great show.

“I don’t think that’s what the fans really deserve to watch, somebody being held for 25 minutes…

“I have a saying that goes, ‘train Sambo if you want to put on boring fights.'” Ruffy added.

It’s worth noting Ruffy’s remarks on grapplers came right after he talked about Islam Makhachev and his departure from the lightweight division, pointing out how he didn’t stick around to defend the title more.

Fans react to Mauricio Ruffy’s opinion on grapplers

Ruffy’s comments at UFC Paris didn’t go unnoticed.

With the Brazilian mentioning the martial art of Sambo, some fans are led to believe he is talking about former lightweight champions Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev, who realized so much success with their style of grappling.

“I understand his point,” one fan said of Ruffy’s rant.

“But if he’s referring to khabib or Makhachev, he’s out of his mind. They’re entertaining. But nowadays a lot of guys do use control time and clinching against the cage while throwing knees to the thigh to rack up points and win rounds,” the fan added.

I understand his point ….

But if he’s referring to khabib or Makhachev, he’s out of his mind . They’re entertaining .

But nowadays a lot of guys do use control time and clinching against the cage while throwing knees to the thigh to rack up points and win rounds .
— SU (@Nolimitsu_) September 3, 2025

“Islam has finished 8 of his last 9 fights. Khamzat is a finishing machine, in general. What planet is this Connor wannabe on?” another fan said of Ruffy.

“This guy needs 3 years in Dagestan and forget,” a fan said of the striker’s comments.

This article first appeared on Bloody Elbow and was syndicated with permission.

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