Brandon Vera
What a difference a night makes.
After Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua’s (20-6) original opponent Thiago Silva withdrew due to injury, and Rua’s camp declining a fight with Glover Teixeira, he has finally been matched up against ‘The Truth’ Brandon Vera (12-5, 1NC).
Canadian fans hoping to catch the former UFC and PRIDE champ in action will be sorely disappointed as the Rua vs. Vera bout has been bounced to the main event of the UFC on FOX 4 card.
The new main event on August 4 will be a five-round light heavyweight battle between two of the best Muay Thai strikers in the game, Brandon Vera and former champion Shogun Rua. Rua is riding the momentum of the fight of the century against Dan Henderson, while Vera is back in the win column and looking to make a statement after being sidelined earlier this year due to injury himself.
Rua is being plucked from the UFC 149 card in Calgary, where he was set to face Thiago Silva until Silva suffered an injury. Vera, meanwhile, was training for a bout with James Te Huna at the July FUEL TV event. A new opponent for Te Huna is expected to be named shortly.
UFC on FOX 4 (aka UFC on Fox: Shogun vs. Vera) is expected to take place on August 4, 2012 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Rua is 1-2 in his last three and is coming off a memorable “Fight of the Year” battle with Dan Henderson last November at UFC 139. Rua went five rounds with the current No. 1 light heavyweight contender to lose via unanimous decision. His last win was over Forrest Griffin at UFC 134 via knockout.
Vera enters the fight on a win, having beaten Eliot Marshall at UFC 137 last October. ‘The Truth’ had been scheduled to welcome back his nemesis Thiago Silva at UFC on FUEL TV 3 last May but had not fully recovered from a previous injury. Vera and Silva fought in January 2011 with Silva winning by decision. The result was overturned to a “No Contest” after it was revealed that Silva had falsified his urine sample to the Nevada State Athletic Commission.