Antonio Rodrigo Minotauro Nogueira said goodbye to his MMA career this Tuesday.

One of the greatest stars in the sport’s history, he was champion of four different MMA organizations: Rings, WEF, Pride and the UFC.

He was also the protagonist of some of the most thrilling matches of all times.

Like this one here against Mark Coleman, at Pride 16, on September 2001.

The armbar from the triangle set-up was one of the finest examples of how Minotauro used his Jiu-Jitsu to win his MMA matches.

Minotauro also announced that he’s going to be an ambassador to UFC fighters in Brazil.

We say thanks to Minotauro for the thrills he offered us in 16 years as a professional with 34 wins and 10 defeats.

(Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Wanderlei Silva released a video saying he is done with MMA.

The former Pride FC champion and one of the most popular fighters of all times released a video this Friday stating his reasons for the retirement.

Lately involved in a series of controversies regarding doping control, Wand is being investigated by the Nevada Athletic Comission after evading a surprise drug test before his scheduled fight against Chael Sonnen.

For that, Silva was scratched from the card and replaced by Vitor Belfort, but the fight ended cancelled after Sonnen failed a drug test himself.

In the video, Wand also slams the UFC (without naming it) for what he sees as the event’s mistreatment of fighters.

Watch the video and tell us what you think.

Wanderlei retires with a 35-12 record in an career that started in 1996, in bare-knuckle fights in Brazil.

Roger Gracie is in Rio de Janeiro for his holiday vacations.

GRACIEMAG’s Marcelo Dunlop talked to the three-time black belt absolute world champion about his future.

His answers were straightforward, as always.

After an ill-fated incursion in the UFC, where he lost to Tim Kennedy and was let go by the organization, Roger went back to training without knowing exactly his future would be.

He still doesn’t know: “I may stay on MMA, go back to Jiu-Jitu or retire.”

The Gracie that holds no less than 10 gold medals in Jiu-Jitsu world championships and has a 6-2 MMA record says why he is thinking of retiring: “My family is bigger now with the birth of my daughter Maya. My academies in London are doing great, so I have a lot going on.”

Asked if he would consider face one of the young guns of Jiu-Jitsu like Marcus Bucehcha or Rodolfo Vieira in a superfight like the one he did in 2012 with Buchecha at Metamoris, he didn’t close that door: “It would have to be something very good for me and I would have to be very well prepared. I don’t want to live another experience like Metamoris, when I got carried away and went on with a fight in a bad physical condition, coming from a very bad infection.”

Regarding the continuity of his MMA career, Roger says he still has the drive to fight: “The tendency is to fight for a few more years and then retire naturally. I’m still 32 so I think I can be in top shape for few years longer. My manager Jorge Guimarães is looking for a good event while I think all that over”.

Former two-division UFC champ B.J. Penn says he’s enjoying what he’s doing, which includes kicking back in Hawaii and not cutting weight. Ugh, lucky!

But that doesn’t keep “The Prodigy” from being on the fence from coming back to the UFC. In this video, Penn talks with Fuel TV about when and if he’ll come back to the Octagon. Check it out.

Following his loss at Bellator 96, Renato “Babalu” Sobral retired from MMA. Photo by Esther Lin.

Renato “Babalu” Sobral made a brilliant career in MMA. Thirty-seven years old, 16 of those years being a career in MMA, the fighter participated in 48 fights, had 37 wins and earned 19 of them thanks to his Jiu-Jitsu. The black-belt has fought in the biggest MMA events and was successful in the heavyweight and light heavyweight divisions. He is a former Strikeforce champion, and fought for the title in the UFC.

Monday night, June 19, Babalu said goodbye to the cage after being knocked out by Jacob Noe at Bellator 96. The Brazilian started the fight well, but failed to take the opponent to the ground. In the third round, however, Noe landed some good shots, which left Babalu bewildered. The referee did not wait and declared the victory of the American. This led to protest by Babalu, who pushed the referee, but later accepted the result with resilience and declared retirement, placing his gloves on the ground.

Watch the fight here:

Babalu was signed by Bellator earlier this year, and had a fight before this, but on the occasion also suffered a knockout.

The victory of Jacob Noe places the American at the final of the summer tournament. He will face King Mo Lawal, professional wrestler and former Strikeforce champion, who won the other semifinal of the night against Seth Petruzelli by knockout.

Check out the full results of Bellator 96 by clicking here.

Forty-two-year-old Dan Henderson (pictured) fights this coming June 15, the 16th anniversary of his professional debut. (Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Dan Henderson sat over his New York strip steak, looking at the hearty slab of protein in anticipation of enjoying two things: the taste, of course, and the fact that it’s on someone else’s dime.

The look on his face was one that described satisfaction. Maybe it was the fact that it was prepared exactly to order. Or maybe it was because Zuffa was picking up the bill.

“Gotta stick it to Dana [White] somehow,” joked Henderson, adding that the only reason he picked the plate was because it was the most expensive thing on the menu.

The table laughed and Henderson clarified that his relationship with the UFC president isn’t bad. The two don’t text each other as often as they used to, the fighter said, but all is well between them. If White has something to say, he reaches out, and the same goes for “Hendo.”

One could analyze why Henderson and White don’t casually communicate with each other as much as they used to. From Henderson’s departure for Strikeforce before Zuffa purchased the now-defunct MMA promotion to White’s focus on his younger champions, the list of potential reasons goes on and on.

At 42 years old, Hendo doesn’t come off as someone who worries about that stuff. Instead, the fighter from Temecula, Calif. stays focused on the fight in front of him and how many he has left.

“It’ll be a couple years,” Henderson said when asked how much longer he thinks he’ll compete in MMA. “I want to make sure my gym’s doing well. Then I could relax and focus on coaching guys and some other little things.

“I suppose I’d have a little more time with my backhoe.”

By the time Henderson has his next fight, a match with Rashad Evans to headline UFC 161, the former two-division Pride champion will celebrate his 16th year as a professional MMA fighter. Exactly 16 years, to be exact, dating back to his debut on June 15, 1997.

Hendo didn’t necessarily plan on fighting this long. According to one of his coaches, Henderson’s retirement could have come around the time the fighter left the UFC in favor of Strikeforce. In 2008, Gustavo Pugliese was brought on to Henderson’s team as a striking coach with the intension of helping him for just a few more matches.

“When I first started training him, he said maybe three more fights,” Pugliese recalled. “10 fights later, look where he is.”

Henderson said the thing that keeps him going is that he loves the sport. As he gets older, he said, it gets harder, but at the same time easier because he’s more experienced. He added that he still feels good and capable of beating people, so why not get paid to do it?

It’s no secret that Henderson is approaching the end of his career as a fighter. Naturally, time is working against his pursuit of championship belts, pay-per-view cuts and other imaginable items sought by MMA’s best. But the competitor in him, beyond all else, makes for a mentally tough athlete that leaves little doubt from his camp’s perspective.

“Of course he is approaching the end, but not as fast as people may think he is,” Pugliese said. “He has an abnormal mind strength, which is the reason why he is still competitive aside from his skills. He still has goals to accomplish in the sport so he will delay the retirement until he has fulfilled them.”

In Henderson’s mind, time on the backhoe will have to wait. His UFC 161 fight with Evans is the only thing he’s keeping his eyes on, while retirement plans get buried by wrestling drills and sparring sessions.

Beyond the delectable New York strip steak he devoured over lunch, the only thing Henderson tastes is a victory over Evans this Saturday in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

“Honestly, I haven’t thought about what’s going to happen if I lose because it doesn’t seem like it would even happen to me,” Henderson said. “I’m just focusing on what I’m going to do and when I visualize that, it’s never losing.”

Check out Dan Henderson’s first professional fight against Crezio de Souza in Brazil

Dan Henderson vs Crezio de Souza by Crimson_Fury

Shane Carwin (pictured) weighs in for what would be his last fight, a match with Junior dos Santos at UFC 131. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin, 38, announced his retirement from MMA, according to a post he made on Twitter late Tuesday.

“Officially retired today,” Carwin wrote. “I thank my family, friends and fans. Dream big and God bless you.”

Known for heavy hands, Carwin won seven of his 14 fights by knockout. He suffered only two losses in his career: A loss to Brock Lesnar to unify the heavyweight title at UFC 116, and a hard and bloody battle against Junior dos Santos at UFC 131. These were his last fights.

After months recovering from back surgery, the heavyweight returned to the UFC as one of the coaches on the 16th edition of the “The Ultimate Fighter,” leading the his team against rival coach Roy Nelson. The two were supposed to face each other in December 2012, but a new and serious knee injury kept Carwin from fighting.

Carwin finished his MMA career with a 12-2 overall record.

Beneil Dariush mounting his opponent in his third MMA fight

The level of dedication required for any top athlete to succeed is great. So great, in fact, that Beneil Dariush realized he had to choose between two aspects if he wants to succeed at either. The choice made was between Jiu-Jitsu gi competition and MMA. He sided with his MMA route and has officially determined his retirement from the gi.

Benny is no stranger to the competition mats despite avoiding most voluntary exposure. Since 2007 he trained with Bruno “Mamute” Paulista and quickly went up the ranks while landing on the podium at many large tournaments.

At blue belt he won Pan Ams and placed second at Worlds, and placed second at both of those when he reached purple belt. By 2011 he had his brown belt, placing third at Pan Ams and second at Worlds in 2012. His most notable matches were his wars against Alec Baulding from team Alliance, often meeting him at purple and brown belt but perhaps the close matches against Kron Gracie and DJ Jackson were both enough to solidify him on the map.

The picture that best captures Beneil Dariush’s reaction to his black belt promotion / Photo by Laron Vincent

Benny received his black belt from both his long-time coach, Bruno “Mamute” Paulista and his more recent mentor, Romulo Barral from Gracie Barra. The promotion was an unexpected one on June 30 as Romulo had been set to teach the Saturday class at Ralph Gracie OC. The surprise promotion came at the end of class making it a special occasion for him to have both his mentors and all of his BJJ family present.

In response to receiving his black belt, he describes it as “better than cookies and cream ice cream, and I thought nothing was better than cookies and cream.”

Set for his new journey in the realm of black belt, it was MMA that made him stray from serious training in the gi. Benny spends a lot of his time at Kings MMA preparing for fights that come, most recently fighting in Brazil. His professional record is 4-0-0 with two submission wins, one TKO and one decision. Every finish was made in the first round.

Benny with his mother

The choice for Benny to choose boiled down to financial reasons. The Assyrian family man has made the decision to spend his time making money in MMA so that he can support his family here in the states. Because of exchange rates in Iran, the currency of his family cannot easily be transferred to the U.S.

“I wanted to retire at 25,” Benny says regarding his concrete plans. A man of values and keeping his word, he is also adaptable. In this case, he is retiring two years before his original goal at the age of 23. But it is no surprise that any decision announced is final.

You can see Benny fight next on January 19 in Pomona, CA. This will be his fifth professional MMA fight.

For more information regarding Beneil Dariush you can visit his facebook page here.

Dan Severn celebrates after winning the 8-man tournament at UFC 5 on April 7, 1995 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Dan Severn, mixed martial arts pioneer and one of the first fighters to compete in the UFC’s early days, retired from competition on Tuesday.

Severn made the announcement through his official website, stating he’s calling it quits after matches with Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock and Mark Coleman never came to fruition.

“I was attempting to do my own self-directed retirement tour in the last couple of years, reaching out to only three people: Mark Coleman, Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie,” Severn wrote on dansevern.com. “I spoke with two of them (Mark and Ken), and through [a] representative for Royce. It seems as though these matches will not take place for whatever reasons and my life now goes on to the next chapter.”

Severn added that he will still be involved with MMA, working with various companies to support the industry in roles such as play-by-play commentator, ambassador, as well as doing appearances.

“The MMA workshops and seminars will continue,” he wrote. “I have a lot of fun with them and enjoy the interaction with the young competitors … ”

Severn’s first documented MMA fight came at UFC 4, where he took on Anthony Macias in the first round of the promotion’s then-tournament format. He submitted Macias, as well as Marcus Bossett in the semifinals, both by rear-naked choke.

“The Beast” moved onto the finals where he met Royce Gracie. The two battled for nearly 16 minutes, but Severn was eventually submitted via triangle choke by the tournament champion.

Severn has also excelled as a professional wrester, and announced that 2013 would be his last year participating as an entertainer.

Severn finished his MMA career with a 101-19 record.

For more UFC and MMA coverage,

visit GRACIEMAG.com’s Choke MMA section

Superstar Tito Ortiz smiles during pre-UFC 140 open training in Toronto. Photo: Josh Hedges/Zuffa.

Tito Ortiz, as he told his buddies at MiddleEasy.com, wants one more for the road.

The ex-light heavyweight champion of the UFC, who turns 37 next Tuesday, wants to have his final MMA fight on the July 4 weekend, preferably against Forrest Griffin or Chuck Liddell.

“I hope to fight on July 4 and then wrap up my career. That will be the time to go,” said the “Bad Boy of Huntington Beach”. “It could be with Forrest Griffin. Or would anyone like to see me face Chuck Liddell? Who knows? I’m going to get together with Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White next week to work it out. We’ll make my last fight something memorable,” he added.

With 16 wins in his 27-fight career, the Californian star has faced a Who’s Who of the MMA world, winning against the likes of the aforementioned Griffin, Vitor Belfort, Wanderlei Silva, Ken Shamrock; and coming up short against Frank Shamrock, Randy Couture, Lyoto Machida, as well as the also mentioned Chuck Liddell between the years 2004 and 2006.

WRESTLING AND JIU-JITSU EFFECTIVE IN ADCC

The greatest lesson Tito will leave Jiu-Jitsu practitioners doesn’t have to do with technique. We could bring up the triangle he sunk on Lyoto, missing a splendid opportunity to finish or, if he’d kept his calm, to mount. Or the bronze medal won at ADCC 2000, when he was already a UFC star and waded into the grappling mix against guys like Matt Hughes, Mike Van Arsdale and Rumina Sato, stopping only at Ricardo Arona. (Watch Tito vs. Rumina Sato below.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcA7K84pTFE

Or we could underscore the two submission holds from the superstar’s career, which always featured safe movement on the ground. But the lesson left by Tito, the man who successfully defended his belt five times between 2000 and 2002, is otherwise.

Tito Ortiz dove into his career with the momentum a practitioner should in going for a sweep, or when there’s a stray arm in the cross hairs. If you’ve made up your mind, if it’s your objective, go for it. Even if that implies abdicating certain things, like security or comfort. If you’re going to do it, go all the way. If you go all the way, be authentic and do it with style.

That’s what Tito had in mind when he went and became a fighter to be remembers, one who spoke out and even called out Dana White when he felt he was in the right, and who will never be seen as a Pete Sampras, the brilliant tennis player with a charisma deficit.

If you’ve ever rooted for Tito Ortiz before, as you surely must have, there’s no problem. Now you just have to get inspired by what he did right, and we bet that come July 4 at least part of you will be there egging him on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wkxUdcyYT0

Rominho using tooth and nail at 2011 Worlds. Photo: John Lamonica.

At the last World Championship, in June, Romulo Barral, 28, intrigued and stirred emotions in a lot of people upon leaving his gi and belt on the mat, as he left the match areas beaten by Alliance’s Sérgio Moraes (by a takedown) in the medium heavyweight final.

A title collector, the Gracie Barra teacher living in Los Angeles demonstrated through the gesture that his body was too tired for any further battles. Following a week of reflection and doing what he loves most, which is teaching his students – from unknowns to movie star Kevin James –, Romulo had a chat with GRACIEMAG.com. And the good news: he will be competing again, so long as the competitions don’t get in the way of his greater goal. Here’s what he had to say:

Did you really quit?

It’s way hard to stop once and for all, isn’t it? Truth is that I’ve been thinking about taking a break from competition, to focus on other things. It had nothing to do with what happened specifically at this last Worlds; I’ve been thinking about it for a long time now. These days I’m focused on other things, but next year, if I can manage to train without having to travel all the time, I may well show up to throw some weight around. But it’s not my main focus.

What is your main focus then? Teaching class? An eventual career in MMA, where you already have two wins in two fights?

Look, I’m really happy teaching class. I’ve been teaching for a long time now, but now things are different. These days my greater focus is conveying what I’ve learned; now it’s time to worry about my students, not myself. I had my moment, when I was a competitor and teacher. Now I’m a teacher first and foremost. Of course I’ll be a competitor for the rest of my life because it’s in my blood – I’ll always be training, always be ready to compete. But MMA is off in the distance; no, no I’m not going to be fighting for now.

What was your happiest moment in the gi? And your most unpleasant?

The moment that marked me most was when I got my black belt (in 2005, at 22 years of age). Unpleasant? I haven’t had one. Losing, getting hurt, referee errors – that’s all part of the journey. So no, I’ve never had an unpleasant moment; I’d rather take it all as a learning experience. Unpleasant is a really negative word.

Speaking of error, do you think the refereeing influenced your match against Sérgio, the medium heavyweight final at the Worlds?

I don’t like talking about refereeing. I don’t know if there was an error or not, but if there was it’s over and done. I’m not concerned about it. Props to the champion.

Alliance won the 2011 Worlds by a large margin as a team. Do you feel GB is preparing to usurp the throne in the coming years, through talent like your purple belt Felipe Pena, the younger brother of Augusto “Tio Chico” who turned heads and won the absolute?

Yes, Felipe will tear things up at black belt soon, you’ll see. He may be an excellent example for the new crop to train even harder and stand up to any team out there. Alliance has a really strong team and is focused on competition; it’s to be congratulated. But I always believe in GB as the major champions factory that it is, and I’m certain the team will get back its throne.

Ninjãa against Rampage in 2005 in Japan / Photo: Susumu Nagao, GRACIEMAG archives

The year 2011 hasn’t been an easy one on MMA fans. After Randy Couture, Ricardo Cachorrão and Kevin Randleman hung up their gloves, Murilo Ninja has now joined the list of recent retirees.

The exciting Chute Boxe fighter of days gone announced over Twitter that he is calling an end to his career after losing to Tom Watson by knockout at Bamma yesterday in London, England. The fight was worth the promotional title.

“I’d like to officially announce this evening that I am retiring from professional MMA,” he tweeted.

“It was a fantastic trip and this is a very difficult moment. But there comes a time for everything in life. I’m proud of everything I’ve done in MMA and all the experiences I’ve had in this profession that I lovingly embraced. I’m going to carry on working with MMA by teaching seminars, class, training athletes, and doing my part to help this sport that I love so much,” said Ninja, before thanking some special people in his life. “Life goes on, the memories remain forever, and MMA will always be a part of my life. Thank you all very much!”

Also over Twitter, his brother Mauricio Shogun remarked on the end of Ninja’s career in the ring. “I’m proud of him. If MMA is where it is today, it’s because of warriors like him,” said Shogun.

An idol from the days of Pride FC, where he fought between 2001 and 2006, Murilo “Ninja” Rua (20w, 12l) was born in 1980 and had memorable battles against Dan Henderson, Ricardo Arona, Zé Mario Sperry, Kevin Randleman, Joey Villaseñor and Quinton Jackson.

Check out a video of Ninja’s career highlights.