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LYOTO MACHIDA survived a huge scare against Mauricio Rua as he retained his light-heavyweight title at UFC 104.

The sold-out crowd at the Los Angeles Staples Centre booed as The Dragon was awarded a shock unanimous decision victory.

Machida — who remains unbeaten in 16 professional bouts — was put under pressure immediately with Rua pushing the pace from the opening bell.

The 31-year-old champion was on the back foot for large parts of the clash and Shogun used controlled aggression to stalk him in the first two rounds.

Rua's excellent body and leg kicks prevented the champion from finding his range and rhythm and left severe red streaks across the left side of his ribcage.

More devastating body kicks landed in the third round with Rua threatening to end things early when he followed up with a Muay Thai clinch and almost planted a knee on Machida's chin.

The champ responded with a flurry of punches which had the 27-year-old former Pride star reeling as the seconds ticked away.

But Rua stormed back with a flash right which rocked Machida once again.

Round four saw even more body kicks landed with Shogun's orthodox Muay Thai style giving his opponent all sorts of problems.

Further leg kicks took their toll and Machida was in obvious discomfort going into the final stanza.

Coming out for the fifth round, Machida again struggled to find his range and could not close the distance as Rua continued to find success with leg strikes.

As the pair tagged each other moving towards the cage, Shogun again landed the better strikes as he popped Machida with a devastating elbow and good left hand.

When the final bell sounded, it seemed clear Rua had done enough to outpoint the champion and he raised his arms in celebration prior to the official decision being announced.

But as the judges' scorecards were read out, all three awarded Machida a 48-47 win to see him retain his championship — leaving many in the crowd stunned.

However, Machida confirmed he will grant his fellow Brazilian an instant rematch.

He said: "Whenever he wants, I'll try again

LYOTO MACHIDA puts his light-heavyweight title on the line against dangerous Brazilian striker Mauricio Rua at UFC 104 this weekend.

The Dragon is unbeaten in his professional mixed martial arts career and holds the honour of being the least-hit fighter in the organisation.

His first few UFC fights divided fan opinion with many failing to understand his stick and move style.

Coming from a karate background, Machida likes to circle and sidestep his opponents until openings present themselves, rather than looking to slug it out.

Three decision victories in his opening bouts saw him accused of being boring, over-cautious and even afraid of engaging with his opponents.

But as he grew more confident inside the Octagon, he became more aggressive and less likely to sit back and look for single-strike counters.

His last two fights have shown an aggressive side and a knockout power that few knew he had

MAURICIO RUA has promised fans they will see his best performance ever when he faces Lyoto Machida on Saturday.

Shogun will challenge Machida for his light-heavyweight title in the main event at UFC 104.

The Dragon — officially the least hit fighter in the UFC — is odds-on favourite with bookmakers to retain his crown.

But Rua — who shot to fame after winning Pride's 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix — claims he is in the shape of his life going into the clash against his fellow Brazilian.

He said: "The UFC will see the best Shogun on Saturday. Not the best since Pride, but the best EVER.

"Professionally and personally, I am at my peak now, this is the best time of my life. I've got much more experience than I had when I was in Pride.

"Machida is the champion and starts as the favourite and that is right. Maybe it is a good thing because I haven't lost as an underdog.

"I fight better when I am not under the pressure and now all the pressure is off of me and on the champion.

"With the bookmakers, I don't care what the odds are — I just know what I am going to do in the fight."

Rua, 27, suffered a shock loss to Forrest Griffin in his UFC debut two years ago and spent two years on the sidelines with a series of career-threatening injuries.

But he showed signs of getting back to his best by chalking successive victories over veterans Mark Coleman and Chuck Liddell earlier this year.

He added: "The knee injuries, two surgeries back-to-back — they were dark times in my life.

"There were times when it was very bad for me, especially when I had another surgery right as I wanted to start training again.

"But things happen in life and you have to come through them stronger.

"I've not shown the best of myself in the UFC yet, but this is the perfect time to do that