(Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images North America)
UFC on FOX 4 headliners Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua (20-6) and Brandon ‘The Truth’ Vera (12-5) will be battling for a No. 1 contender spot for the UFC light heavyweight title this Saturday.
UFC president Dana White announced the news to reporters on Monday during a live conference call for the FOX televised event.
Despite the skepticism of many of the media on the call, White maintained his conviction that the winner of Rua vs. Vera would be the next man to face the winner between current champ Jon Jones vs. Dan Henderson.
UFC on FOX 4 takes place this Saturday (August 4, 2012) at the Staples Center in Las Angeles, California.
“‘Shogun’ Rua just came off a ‘Fight of the Year’ last year,” White stated in reference to Rua’s five-round non-title fight with Henderson last November at UFC 139. “He’s probably one of the best fighters of the last decade. Think about it. This guy knocked out ‘Rampage’ (Jackson), knocked out Chuck Liddell, knocked out Mark Coleman, knocked out Lyoto Machida, knocked out Forrest Griffin, knocked out Alistair Overeem twice, submitted Kevin Randleman. A win versus [Vera] puts him right back in position, and then he’s probably the number two guy in the world.”
Rua is 1-2 in his last three matches, having fought Henderson at UFC 139 in his last match. The win came in a rematch versus Forrest Griffin in August of last year at UFC 134, with ‘Shogun’ winning that match by knockout. The other match ended in a title loss for Rua at the hands of Jon Jones at UFC 128.
Vera, who returned to the Octagon with a decision victory over Eliot Marshall at UFC 137 last October, had been released by the promotion following a third straight loss. The defeat at UFC 125 was overturned to a “No Contest” after it was discovered that opponent Thiago Silva had falsified his urine test. The other losses in that run for ‘The Truth’ were to Jon Jones and to Randy Couture.