Renato Sobral

Renato “Babalu” Sobral started out as a wrestler before joining the Gracie Barra Combat Team in Ruas Vale Tudo, Brazil, where he studied Jiu-Jitsu. His mixed martial arts career began in 1999 with the Rings promotion, where he went 9-0 until his first loss to Dan Henderson in 2000. After going 4-1 over his next five, he got a UFC fight in UFC 28.

Sobral won only four of his next seven fights; one of those losses was to Chuck Liddell and another to Fedor Emelianenko. He then fought in the IFC promotion and won a Light Heavyweight Championship by beating Jeremy Horn in a unanimous decision. That was part of a ten-fight win streak that included three UFC fights. He was given another shot at Liddell for the title at UFC 62, but was stopped in the first round when he couldn’t handle Liddell’s strikes. His next fight was at UFC 68 where he was upset by Jason Lambert, once again by strikes.

Sobral is a ground fighter whose success depends on getting his opponent down. Fighters with good takedown defense and strong striking have given Sobral trouble over his career. His stand-up game must improve if he hopes to be a dominate Light Heavyweight Champion, but his expertise on the ground makes him a threat to beat anyone in the division if the fight plays out to his strengths.

Sobral’s next fight will be his last chance to stay in contention for the Light Heavyweight belt. He is set to fight David Heath, who is coming off his first loss in eight fights. Heath is a wrestler/boxer and Renato should be able to use his experience to his advantage against the younger Heath. The two have a lot on the line, and the fight will put the winner in a good position for a title shot in the near future.