UFC's Shogun Rua issues first statement following armed carjacking in Brazil

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua was unharmed following an armed carjacking last week in Brazil (details), which put him at the mercy of rifle-wielding thugs who stole everything he had and left him barefoot on the expressway.

Today, "Shogun" gave his account to MMA Fighting:

"I was doing a photoshoot with Jose Aldo for Venum, and a friend of mine, Pixote, drove me there. After that, we picked up Eduardo (Alonso) and Demian (Maia) at their hotel in Barra da Tijuca and went to dinner at a restaurant. We watched the UFC and then left them at their hotel. Pixote was taking me back to Niteroi, and when we were about to get to the Rio-Niteroi bridge, a car stopped in front of us and four men jumped out of it with guns. There was nothing we could have done. I left everything inside the car. I thought about getting my wallet and phone, but maybe they would think I was getting a gun so I left everything there. We were at Linha Vermelha, at 2:30 a.m., and we had to walk two miles to get at the nearest police station. I'm glad no one got hurt."

Rua is not the only UFC fighter to get robbed in Brazil.

The longtime mixed martial arts (MMA) veteran echoed the sentiment of many professional fighters in Brazil, wondering aloud when the country was going to take some of the money it pumps into the world of sports and use it to make sure people can go about their daily business without getting mugged.

Or in some cases much, much worse.