What a difference a year can make.
At this time last year, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua was crowned the UFC light heavyweight champion following a knockout victory over Lyoto Machida. However, his reign was cut short in part to Jon Jones, in a bout that saw the 23-year-old dominate Rua like never before and reclaim the title at UFC 128.
Now, at 29 years old, Rua will begin his path back to the title and face familiar foe Forrest Griffin at UFC 134 in Brazil. Griffin and Rua previously met at UFC 76 where the former UFC light heavyweight champion was fed to the Brazilian, who was making his debut for the organization. Griffin did the unthinkable and defeated Rua via submission in the third round, pulling off one of the biggest upsets in UFC history.
Much like his title bout against Jones, Rua entered his bout with Girffin coming off an injury, resulting in a poor performance out of the Brazilian. However it has continued to be a recurring theme throughout his tenure in the UFC and it certainly questions his longevity in the sport.
Even more so, the fact that Rua has sustained injuries at an age where most athletes are in their physical prime hinders his chances of being seen as a credible and legitimate contender for the light heavyweight crown ever again.
Recently, Rua made some necessary changes to his training camp and reunited with former Chute Boxe coach, Rafael Cordeiro, in hopes of rekindling his aggressive style that brought him success while competing in Pride FC. Obviously it is a step in the right direction and is a valuable asset to utilize against an opponent like Griffin.
Griffin has evolved since the last time him and Rua squared off in 2007, but still has a tendency to brawl every now and again. Rua will bring that aggressive style with him to look for the knockout.
Adjusting accordingly to his camp and competing in front a pro-Brazilian crowd, makes Rua the odds-on favourite to defeat Griffin. But it also puts pressure on Rua to perform well, especially against an opponent who already holds a victory over him. Also, he won’t have a long layoff to deal with and should be injury-free heading into his bout with Griffin, so anything but a victory would be considered a disappointment.
Rua has all the tools and potential to regain the light heavyweight title someday, but at this stage in his career, it is doubtful to ever see him compete at 100 percent again. However with the motivation to earn a victory over Griffin, Rua should perform better this time around.
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