On the eve of MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko's farewell, let's remember some other big names who, like the Russian, made history without ever stepping foot in the Ultimate Octagon.
The list focuses mainly on retired athletes or those at the very end of their careers, leaving aside names like Patrício Pitbull, Kayla Harrison and AJ McKee, for example.
Constantly considered one of the most talented in the Gracie family, Rickson built a professional record of 11 wins and no losses fighting in the East, where he was revered.
Rickson Grace
Ricardo Arona hit the post twice for PRIDE titles, but is considered one of the most talented and popular of his generation. The 'Brazilian Tiger' left MMA with 14 wins and five losses.
Ricardo arona
Mauricio Shogun's older brother, Ninja shone in PRIDE and was champion in Elite XC, with notable victories in his career, such as against Zé Mário Sperry.
Murilo Ninja
One of the most talented of his generation, Paulão Filho was WEC middleweight champion and, admittedly, did not go any further in his career due to problems outside the cage, mainly related to cocaine addiction.
Paulo Filho
Still active, but already at 42 years old, the Manaus bantamweight was king in Asia, both in Dream and, mainly, in ONE, where he was champion for practically six years.
Bibiano Fernandes
An open weight GP finalist at PRIDE, the Ukrainian was without a doubt one of the most feared athletes of his time, with 41 of his 56 victories achieved by knockout.
Igor Vovchanchyn
Active since 2000, the Russian heavyweight made waves in PRIDE and M-1 and, even at the age of 42, continues to achieve victories on important MMA stages.
Sergey Kharitonov
Considered one of the best lightweights in history, the Japanese is still active at 39 years old, but today he is just a shadow of the excellent fighter who won more than 30 submission victories.
Shinya Aoki
Cyborg's rival and Ronda Rousey's inspiration, the American was one of the pioneers of women's MMA and shone in EliteXC, but retired four years before the UFC promoted fights between women.