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A trilogy fight between Mauricio Rua and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira has once again been booked, as Dana White revealed during an interview on “Wild Ride” with Steve-O, that the Light Heavyweight showdown will go down on July 25 at an event that is expected to go down on “Fight Island.”
Originally set for the UFC 250 pay-per-view (PPV) event on May 9 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, the bout was scrapped as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The two men have a longstanding history which dates back to 2005, as they met in the Pride Middleweight Grand Prix Quarterfinals. “Shogun” went on to score a decision win over “Lil Nog,” and then defeated him https://www.mmamania.com/2019/11/15/20967098/shogun-rua-announces-retirement-timeline-i-have-two-fights-left-its-true-now-mmaa decade later at UFC 190 in 2015.
Rua last competed in November of 2019, fighting to a draw against Paul Craig. Prior to that, “Shogun” had enjoyed a career resurrection of sorts, winning four if five. Nogueira, meanwhile, hasn’t seen action since getting knocked out by Ryan Spann over a year ago.
If Rua sticks to his word, this could be the second to last fight of his combat career, as he revealed back in November that he only had tow more fights left in his storied mixed martial arts (MMA) career.
The ESPN+-streamed event is set to be headlined by a pivotal Middleweight showdown, as former division champion, Robert Whittaker, will face off against former title contender, Darren Till.