Mauricio “Shogun” Rua entered UFC Fight Night 26 in a must-win scenario if he hoped to remain in title contention. Unfortunately for the Brazilian and his fans, that was not the case.
Most pictured this fight ending in a decision if Chael Sonnen were to have his hand raised. Very few, if any, had Sonnen winning via submission. Yet Sonnen was able to tap out a well-respected grappler in Shogun inside the first round.
Now questions surrounding Rua are on the tip of everyone’s tongue. Is he still a legit 205er? Does he have anything left in the gas tank? Should he drop to middleweight?
All these questions will no doubt come up when Rua‘s management team discusses what’s next with the UFC.
These five matchups should be on the horizon when those discussions go down.