A look back on the career of Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza

Jacare recently retired from professional MMA with a record of 26 wins, 10 losses, and 1 No Contest following his release from the UFC. He fought for the likes of Jungle Fight, DREAM, Strikeforce, and the UFC. Jacare stepped in against some of the biggest legends of his day Gegard Mousasi, Luke Rockhold, Yoel Romero, Matt Lindland, and Robbie Lawler to name a few. We take a look back at his professional career and his greatest hits.

Souza finishes Matt Lindland at Strikeforce: Evolution in December, 2009

Both decorated grapplers, they first competed against one another at ADCC 2003 with Jacare being declared the winner by armbar. They would square up again, six years later in the cage at Strikeforce. Jacare would try to finish Lindland with the same move but he came prepared and slipped out of the armbar. Both relentlessly chained submission attempts to catch the other out but Jacare secured the mount and sunk a head and arm choke.

Souza becomes the Strikeforce Middleweight Champion opposite Tim Kennedy

Jacare looked spectacular in this fight, boxing clever in the opening stanza and then using his ace grappling in later goings to nab himself the belt.

Jacare chokes Robbie Lawler at Strikeforce to defend his title

This a fight where we really got to see an evolution in Jacare’s striking, it really began to look polished and complemented his grappling pedigree. He threw a kicks and feints which panicked the more seasoned striker into countering and opening himself up for the bodylock. He weathered bombs from Lawler after the veteran adjusted. Souza went back to his bread and butter and opted for top control on the ground, eventually taking Lawler’s back and finishing him.

Souza settles an old score with Gegard Mousasi at UFC Fight Night: Jacaré vs. Mousasi back in September 2014

Mousasi knocked Souza out with an upkick in DREAM, which a lot of people considered a fluke win. Souza would later even the score with Mousasi and net himself a win by guillotine choke in the UFC.

Souza was always a man who liked to do things twice, when he was in a rematch he always tried the same move he used to win the first match up. The sequence that he finished Derek Brunson with was quiet similar, he attempted to submit Lindland with an armbar, Mousasi tried to guillotine him in both of their fights so that is what he finished him with. He had his arm broken in Jiu-Jitsu, kept fighting and won the match. He also had that same arm broken in his last fight by André Muniz and had the same reaction…no reaction what so ever.

Jacare was by all accounts an electrifying fighter and has had his name stamped in the annals of MMA History.