"It was a fantastic road and this is a very trying time. But there comes a time for everything in life, and it's time to move on. I'm proud of everything I've done in MMA and all the experiences I had in this profession that I embraced with love. Now it's time to help others, and enjoy my family, my wife, my children, and move on." -Murilo Rua

Murilo "Ninja" Rua has officially announced his retirement after the former Chute Boxe Academy fighter lost to British fighter and Jackson Submission Fighting team member Tom Watson by knockout from a headkick in the third round.

Ninja, relatively young at age 31, has enjoyed an illustrious career spanning the last eleven years where he fought in PRIDE, Cage Rage, Strikeforce, DREAM, and EliteXC, where he was crowned the first middleweight champion in the promotions' history.

He has competed against some of the best fighters in the world, including such greats as Dan Henderson, Ricardo Arona, Kevin Randleman, Sergei Kharitonov, and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. In addition, he is the co-founder of the Universidade da luta (University of Fighting) in Curitiba, Brazil along with his brother and former UFC light-heavyweight champion Maurico "Shogun" Rua.