Marcos Rogério de Lima

Marcos Rogério de Lima (born May 25, 1985) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional since 2009, he formerly competed for Strikeforce, Shooto, and was a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3. As of February 20, 2024, he is #14 in the UFC heavyweight rankings.

Early career
Lima made a name for himself fighting on his home country of Brazil. With an undefeated professional record, Lima surprised when defeated the heavy favorite and former WEC middleweight champion Paulo Filho.

After his win against Filho, Lima was signed by Strikeforce. He made his debut on September 10, 2011, against Mike Kyle at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov, losing the fight via unanimous decision.

Following his debut defeat, Lima was released from Strikeforce. He fought for the Shooto Brazil light heavyweight championship at Shooto Brazil 29 on April 26, 2012, against Carlos Eduardo, losing the fight via knockout in the second round.

The Ultimate Fighter
On February 26, 2014, it was revealed that Lima was selected to be a participant on The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3. Lima defeated Thiago Santos via submission to move into the Ultimate Fighter house, and become an official cast member.

Lima was selected as the first pick (first overall) of coach Chael Sonnen to be a part of Team Sonnen. In his second Heavyweight fight of the season, Lima was selected to fight Jollyson Francisco and won via unanimous decision. He was then scheduled to face Antônio Carlos Júnior for a spot in the final against Vitor Miranda. He was defeated by submission (rear-naked choke).

Ultimate Fighting Championship


Lima made his promotional debut on May 31, 2014, at The Ultimate Fighter Brazil 3 Finale against Richardson Moreira. He won the fight via knockout in the first round.

In his second bout for the promotion, Lima faced Igor Pokrajac in the light heavyweight division on December 20, 2014, at UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Dollaway. He won the fight via TKO in the first round.

He was briefly linked to a bout with Nikita Krylov on June 20, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 69. However, the pairing was booked to take place a week later at UFC Fight Night 70. Subsequently, Lima was removed from the card on June 19, after visa issues restricted his entry to the United States. The bout with Krylov eventually took place on August 23, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 74, with Lima losing by way of submission due to a rear naked choke in the first round.

Lima next faced Clint Hester on April 23, 2016, at UFC 197. He won the one sided fight via submission in the first round.

Lima was briefly linked to a bout with Gian Villante on November 12, 2016, at UFC 205. However, Villante pulled out of the fight on September 21 citing injury and the bout was scrapped. Subsequently, Lima was quickly rescheduled and faced promotional newcomer Gadzhimurad Antigulov the following week at UFC Fight Night 100. He was quickly submitted in the first round.

Lima next faced Jeremy Kimball at UFC on Fox: Shevchenko vs. Peña on January 28, 2017. At the weigh-ins, Lima came in at 209.5 lbs, over the light heavyweight limit of 206 lbs. As a result, Lima was fined 20% of his purse, which went to Kimball and the bout proceeded as scheduled at catchweight. He won the fight via TKO in the first round.

Lima next faced Ovince Saint Preux on April 22, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 108. At the weigh ins, Lima weighed in at 210 pounds, 4 pounds over the light heavyweight limit of 206. This was the second time consecutively Lima missed weight. As a result, he was fined 30% of his fight purse which will go to Saint Preux. The bout proceeded as a catchweight. He lost the fight via submission in the second round.

Lima was expected to face Saparbek Safarov on September 2, 2017, at UFC Fight Night 115. Before the weigh ins, the UFC announced that Lima had failed an out-of-competition drug screening, testing positive for the banned Anabolic steroids. As a result, the bout was cancelled. On April 24, 2018, Lima was cleared of intentional use of Performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) by USADA, where Lima was believed to had taken tainted supplement which contained hydrochlorothiazide and anastrozole from the compounding pharmacies in Brazil. He is eligible to compete immediately as of April 24, 2018.

Lima faced Ruslan Magomedov on November 3, 2018, at UFC 230. However, it was reported on October 24, 2018, that he pulled out from the event due to visa issues and he was replaced by Adam Wieczorek. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Lima faced Stefan Struve on February 23, 2019, at UFC on ESPN+ 3. He lost the fight via submission in the second round.

Lima faced Ben Sosoli on February 23, 2020, at UFC Fight Night: Felder vs. Hooker. He won the fight via TKO in the first round.

Lima was scheduled to face Alexander Romanov on September 5, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 176. However, on September 5, 2020, Lima was tested positive for Covid-19 and the bout against Romanov was cancelled. In turn, the bout was rescheduled and eventually took place on November 7, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Santos vs. Teixeira. Lima lost the fight via a submission in round one.

Lima faced Maurice Greene on May 8, 2021, at UFC on ESPN 24. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Lima faced Ben Rothwell on November 13, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 197. He won the fight via technical knockout in round one.

Lima faced Blagoy Ivanov on May 7, 2022, at UFC 274. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Lima faced Andrei Arlovski on October 29, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 213. He won the fight via rear-naked choke in round one.

Lima faced Waldo Cortes-Acosta on April 29, 2023, at UFC on ESPN: Song vs. Simón. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Lima faced Derrick Lewis on July 29, 2023, at UFC 291. He lost the fight via TKO stoppage in round one after being dropped by a flying knee and then finished with ground and pound.

Lima was scheduled to face Justin Tafa on February 17, 2024, at UFC 298. However, Tafa withdrew the day before the event due to injury. He was replaced by his brother Junior Tafa. Lima won the bout by technical knockout in round two after dropping tafa with leg kicks.