Ricardo "That Monkey Guy" Morra.
This guy was a natural athlete. During training he would do things like jump on to a tree branch where he would then grab a coconut and smash it with one strike.
He had a unique monkey/caporiea style but was also good at karate and wrestling (in the video footage below he demonstrates a double leg takedown in his first fight followed by a ground n pound style utilizing karate chops). His unique style made him very elusive and often frustrated opponents.
I have no doubt that if he were around today he would be a UFC champion. Imagine a guy as elusive as Machida, faster than Anderson Silva, as unorthodox as Jon Jones, who also had a very strong wrestling base, high level karate training, combined with a style no one's seen since.
Unfortunately in those days safeguards weren't in place like they are today. During an open weight "no rules" tournament Morra had to fight the Sumo specialist Pumola who outweighed him by close to 200 lbs. He put up a valiant effort, keeping Pumola off balance and delivering a good karate chop, but Pumola's size proved too much. Morra was caught in a bear hug and refused to tap. His spine was broke before the ref could step in and Morra's career was tragically cut short when he immediately died from the injury.
RIP
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