Marlon Moraes may have left the UFC, but apparently the takedowns came with the badge. The former title challenger, now a Florida cop, went viral after bodycam footage showed him dumping an aggressive motorist during a traffic stop that turned ugly fast. And for fight fans, watching ‘Magic’ hit a clean hip toss in full police gear was about as wild as it sounds.
The chaos unfolded March 27 in South Florida, where Moraes, now an officer with the Coral Springs Police Department, found himself dealing with a driver who clearly wanted trouble. The man kept mouthing off at Moraes and the other officers, turning what should have been a routine evening stop into a full-blown confrontation.
“Shut the f— up. I told you I am not driving,” the motorist could be heard telling a female officer at one point.
The man then squared up to Moraes, getting right in the former fighter’s face while continuing to talk trash and provoke the officers.
“Don’t be like that. Don’t be a b—-,” he told the former UFC fighter while pointing toward another officer.
Moraes still tried to cool things down at first, giving the man a light shove just to create some space. But the second the driver learned his car was getting towed, all that restraint went out the window and the confrontation heated right back up.
“You ain’t the big bro,” the man responded. “I can f— you up.”
The 24-13-1 fighter kept warning the man to back off, making it clear that taking another step forward would only make things worse.
“You’re one step away from making it worse for you,” Moraes said in the now-viral video.
Apparently, that warning didn’t do the trick. The motorist took two more steps toward the former UFC fighter, and ‘Magic’ wasted no time responding. He hit him with a quick hip toss, sending the man crashing to the ground with one arm.
The other officers immediately jumped in, slapped the cuffs on him, and brought the whole confrontation to an end.
For Marlon Moraes, this is just the latest twist in what’s been a pretty wild career change. The former UFC title challenger joined the Davie Police Department in Florida back in June 2024 before later making the move to the Coral Springs Police Department.
And the career switch wasn’t simply Moraes looking for something to do after fighting. He told CBS Miami that helping people was a major part of what drew him to the job. “Every time I go to work, I want to help someone,” Moraes said. “When the call comes, I want to be the one.” Coral Springs Deputy Chief Ryan Gallagher said that mindset also stood out during the hiring process, describing Moraes as compassionate and someone who genuinely wanted to serve the community.
And Moraes isn’t the only big MMA name trading fight gloves for a badge. Former UFC champion Anderson Silva started the police academy training process with the Beverly Hills Police Department in California in April 2026, after revealing his plans late last year. ‘The Spider’ is still in training, though, and hasn’t officially become a sworn officer just yet.
But what about ‘Magic’? Is he retired for good?
Marlon Moraes’ MMA career and future
Before swapping his fight gloves for a police badge, Marlon Moraes was already one of Brazil’s most accomplished fighters of his generation. The 38-year-old won the WSOF bantamweight title before making his way to the UFC, where he eventually earned a title shot against Henry Cejudo for the vacant UFC bantamweight title at UFC 238 in June 2019.
However, that did not fare well for ‘Magic’ as he lost via TKO in the third round. Although he did bounce back with a win over Jose Aldo, things didn’t exactly end on a high note in the UFC, though. ‘Magic’ was released in 2023 after dropping four straight fights.
He then lost three straight fights in the PFL, dropping his professional record to 23-13-1 before stepping away from MMA for an extended period.
The Brazilian later teased a comeback after signing with GFL, but the return kept getting pushed back, leaving Marlon Moraes on the sidelines for roughly three years. That drought finally ended on August 28, when the former title challenger headlined Liga Monstro Combate in São Paulo, Brazil.
The comeback couldn’t have gone much better. The 38-year-old picked up a unanimous decision win over Maximiliano Perez, snapping that brutal seven-fight skid and scoring his first victory since 2019.
And despite the long layoff and his new life in law enforcement, Marlon Moraes has made it clear that he’s not necessarily done fighting. In fact, ‘Magic’ told MMA Fighting that he still wants to compete and is hoping to land a deal that would let him fight again in the United States.
So, it would be interesting to see if he lands a gig after this viral video. After all, fight fans would be glad that in a year where we saw names like Dustin Poirier get arrested, it’s refreshing to see someone like Moraes being on the other side of the law.