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Andre Muniz breaks Ronaldo Souza's arm at UFC 262: 'I heard it snap'

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is known as “the gentle art,” but there was nothing gentle about the way that Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza lost on Saturday at the Toyota Center in Houston in the featured preliminary bout of UFC 262.

Andre Muniz got Souza’s back, but his hips were too high and they went to the ground. But Souza, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belts and one of the great BJJ practitioners in the history of mixed martial arts, left his right arm out.

Muniz transitioned quickly from attempting a triangle to an armbar. He pulled back and Souza’s arm loudly snapped, audible to those around the cage and watching on television.

“I heard it snap and I let go not only out of respect, but I knew it could hurt him even more,” said Muniz, who said Souza is his idol.

The injury to Souza’s right arm ended the fight at 3:59 of the first. It was the second consecutive UFC pay-per-view show in which a fighter suffered a broken bone. At UFC 261 in Jacksonville, Florida, last month, former middleweight champion Chris Weidman broke bones in his right leg when he kicked Uriah Hall.

This loss could spell the end of Souza’s legendary career. It was his fourth in a row and his fifth loss in his last six outings. And at 41, with a long rehabilitation ahead of him, it may have been his final time inside the Octagon.

Muniz hopes to use the victory to land better opposition.

“I’m here to stay,” he said. “I deserve a Top 15 opponent right now.”

HOUSTON, TEXAS - MAY 15: (L-R) Andre Muniz attempts to submit Ronaldo Souza of Brazil in their middleweight bout during the UFC 262 event at Toyota Center on May 15, 2021 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC)
HOUSTON, TEXAS - MAY 15: (L-R) Andre Muniz attempts to submit Ronaldo Souza of Brazil in their middleweight bout during the UFC 262 event at Toyota Center on May 15, 2021 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC)

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