5 legends of MMA who joined the UFC too late

#4 Renzo Gracie

One of MMA's pioneers, Renzo Gracie didn't fight in the UFC until he was 42 years old

One of MMA’s original pioneers, Renzo Gracie was basically fighting before the sport had even begun, as he was widely known for competing in the infamous ‘Gracie Challenge’ fights that would see a member of the Gracie family demonstrating the power of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu against usually hapless foes.

By the time modern MMA as we know it now emerged in the mid-1990’s, Gracie was already in his 30’s and was probably coming towards the end of his prime – but despite his cousin Royce’s success in the early UFC events, and the fact that he was based in New York, Renzo never made the move into the UFC, instead choosing to compete largely in Japan.

By the mid-2000’s, Gracie was essentially retired from active competition, taking on the odd fight but largely sticking to coaching, and when he picked up a disqualification win over fellow veteran Frank Shamrock just weeks before his 40th birthday, it appeared that we’d seen the last of him in MMA.

That wasn’t the case though, and surprisingly, he was signed by the UFC in early 2010 – 3 years after his last fight – to take on former UFC Welterweight champion Matt Hughes at the UFC’s first ever event in Abu Dhabi. Unfortunately, the fight didn’t go to plan for him at all.

Gracie looked slow and plodding on the feet – hardly a surprise given he was in his early 40’s at the time – and was eventually TKO’d by Hughes in the third round of a largely uneventful fight. Had Renzo entered into the UFC during his prime years – essentially the mid-1990’s – he may well have eclipsed the legend of his cousin, but sadly, UFC fans only got a chance to see him as an aged relic.