Chael Sonnen has made up his mind about his future with the UFC, and that future will be at the 205-pound weight limit. Sonnen’s first opponent at light heavyweight will be a familiar face, not only to fans of the UFC, but to Sonnen as well as he…
Chael Sonnen has made up his mind about his future with the UFC, and that future will be at the 205-pound weight limit. Sonnen’s first opponent at light heavyweight will be a familiar face, not only to fans of the UFC, but to Sonnen as well as he faced the man he will meet in the Octagon on December 29 once before.
On Tuesday night Sonnen, appearing on Fuel TV’s UFC Tonight announced that he would be meeting Forrest Griffin in Las Vegas. The fight does not have a venue as of yet.
In their first meeting the 7-1 Griffin moved to 8-1 when he submitted Sonnen by, you guessed it, a triangle choke. The loss dropped Sonnen’s record to 6-2-1. That loss took place on the September 6, 2003, IFC Global Domination card. That one-night tournament featured, in addition to Sonnen and Griffin, Jeremy Horn, Trevor Prangley, Mauricio Rua and the eventual winner of the tournament, Renato “Babalu” Sobral.
In addition to announcing his fight against Griffin on UFC Tonight, Sonnen made it clear who and what his ultimate goal is going to be once he begins fighting in the UFC’s light heavyweight division, Jon Jones and the belt he wears around his waist:
Sure I could go up to 205 and I could take Jon Jones’ belt away the same as I could take his candy on Halloween. He’s a little punk kid, I could snatch it away all I want, but there’s something to be said in sportsmanship for earning your shot, and on the 29th of December, I’m going to go through Forrest to do it.
Check out the video to see Griffin and Sonnen in their younger, pre-UFC days.
Former UFC middleweight title contender Chael Sonnen is facing off against Forrest Griffin on Dec. 29, and I couldn’t be happier. Not because I have a grudge against Griffin, but because Sonnen is the shot in the arm that the light heavyweight div…
Former UFC middleweight title contender Chael Sonnen is facing off against Forrest Griffin on Dec. 29, and I couldn’t be happier. Not because I have a grudge against Griffin, but because Sonnen is the shot in the arm that the light heavyweight division’s title picture needs.
Sonnen made this announcement on Tuesday’s edition of UFC Tonight on Fuel TV.
Since champion Jon Jones has effectively cleared out the 205-pound division, the aging Dan Henderson is all that stands between “Bones” and a barren weight class full of defeated former champions and still-too-green contenders.
But Chael Sonnen can save us from all that with a couple of solid wins at light heavyweight.
True, Griffin won in their only previous bout in 2003 with a triangle choke submission in the first round, but he’s honestly little more than a stepping stone at this point.
Instead of the never-say-die marvel that upset Shogun Rua at UFC 76, or the careful tactician that grounded Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 86 with leg kicks, Sonnen will have a rematch with a faded opponent who’s just barely hanging on to a spot in the division’s top 10 rankings.
Despite the fact that Sonnen’s been in the MMA circuit longer than Griffin, the accumulated years of wear and tear have done far more damage to the former light heavyweight champion. It’s Sonnen’s fight to lose, and there aren’t many scenarios that will favor the original Ultimate Fighter winner.
Chael Sonnen can beat Forrest Griffin. After that, he should notch one more fight against the likes of Shogun Rua—or the winner of Quinton Jackson vs. Glover Teixeira.
That’s all the setup that the UFC needs to pit Sonnen against Jon Jones. It’s the path that makes the most sense and the next-biggest fight that Dana White can make for the 205-pound phenom.
Following his performance at UFC 148 against Tito Ortiz, Dana White was extremely critical of former light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin. He thought that Griffin looked old, which in fight talk is usually when someone is on their last legs. …
Following his performance at UFC 148 against Tito Ortiz, Dana White was extremely critical of former light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin. He thought that Griffin looked old, which in fight talk is usually when someone is on their last legs.
White wasn’t wrong either. Griffin looked tired entering the third round and won a close decision over Ortiz in the Huntington Beach Bad Boy’s retirement fight. It probably didn’t help matters that Griffin stole the spotlight and caused controversy when he stormed out of cage only to return and interview Ortiz in his send off.
Following the UFC on Fox 4 pre-fight press conference, White spoke with Bleacher Report and attending MMA media. The subject of retirements came up and Griffin is one fighter in particular that the White believes should hang it up.
“I would like Forrest to retire. There’s nothing left for Forrest to prove either. He won the Ultimate Fighter, he’s had an amazing career, won the title when people thought he couldn’t,” White told Bleacher Report. “He became a huge star and made sh*t loads of money, he’s got a beautiful wife and a baby.”
“If you don’t want to be a world champion and you’re still not ‘in the mix’ like I call it, why? What’s the point? I get it. It get it,” White added. “It’s hard to walk away from walking into an arena with the big crowds and all the sh*t, but there’s a point in time when I’m just like ‘you’ve done your thing man. You’ve had an amazing career, you’ve done great things.’
“There’s nothing left to prove.”
It’s up to Griffin if he wants to keep fighting, but the president is right. He has nothing left to prove. Unless he wants to make a final and real last run at the top, it may be a good idea to go out on a win.
Over the last ten years, we’ve watched Mauricio “Shogun” Rua go from young phenom to living legend. Though injuries and and controversial judging have occasionally slowed his momentum during the second half of his career, Shogun enters next weekend’s UFC on FOX 4 matchup with Brandon Vera as a standard-bearer for his generation of fighters, and is still considered among the elite of the light-heavyweight division.
In honor of Rua’s continuing legacy, we’ve picked out the 16 videos that best summarize his journey as a fighter — from the past to the present, from his most unforgettable triumphs to his most crushing defeats. Enjoy, and pay your respects in the comments section.
Mauricio Rua vs. Rodrigo Malheiros de Andrade. Shot in 1998 when Rua was just 16 years old, this footage shows the future PRIDE/UFC star competing in a Muay Thai smoker in somebody’s house in Curitiba, Brazil. Though Shogun shows flashes of his trademark aggression, his technique hasn’t quite blossomed yet, and he winds up getting head-kick KO’d at the video’s 7:15 mark.
Mauricio Rua vs. Rafael Freitas, Meca World Vale Tudo 7, 11/8/02. Rua was 20 years old when he made his official MMA debut against Rafael “Capoeira” Freitas, who was tenacious in his attempts to put Shogun on his back. But Freitas couldn’t keep him there, and the standup exchanges were lopsided in Rua’s favor. After a few minutes of abusing his opponent with knees, punches, and stomps, Shogun finally puts Freitas out cold with a head-kick.
Over the last ten years, we’ve watched Mauricio “Shogun” Rua go from young phenom to living legend. Though injuries and and controversial judging have occasionally slowed his momentum during the second half of his career, Shogun enters next weekend’s UFC on FOX 4 matchup with Brandon Vera as a standard-bearer for his generation of fighters, and is still considered among the elite of the light-heavyweight division.
In honor of Rua’s continuing legacy, we’ve picked out the 16 videos that best summarize his journey as a fighter — from the past to the present, from his most unforgettable triumphs to his most crushing defeats. Enjoy, and pay your respects in the comments section.
Mauricio Rua vs. Rodrigo Malheiros de Andrade. Shot in 1998 when Rua was just 16 years old, this footage shows the future PRIDE/UFC star competing in a Muay Thai smoker in somebody’s house in Curitiba, Brazil. Though Shogun shows flashes of his trademark aggression, his technique hasn’t quite blossomed yet, and he winds up getting head-kick KO’d at the video’s 7:15 mark.
Mauricio Rua vs. Rafael Freitas, Meca World Vale Tudo 7, 11/8/02. Rua was 20 years old when he made his official MMA debut against Rafael “Capoeira” Freitas, who was tenacious in his attempts to put Shogun on his back. But Freitas couldn’t keep him there, and the standup exchanges were lopsided in Rua’s favor. After a few minutes of abusing his opponent with knees, punches, and stomps, Shogun finally puts Freitas out cold with a head-kick.
Mauricio Rua vs. Angelo de Oliveira, Meca World Vale Tudo 8, 5/16/03. Brutal and short, Shogun’s second pro fight ended with him literally soccer-kicking his opponent out of the ring.
Mauricio Rua vs. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos, Meca World Vale Tudo 9, 8/1/03. In his early heyday, Cyborg — the original, male one — seemed more animal than man. Watch how absurdly fast he starts out against Shogun, who has no choice but to fire back and hope for the best. Deciding he’s had enough, Shogun wisely takes the fight to the ground, where he scores full mount and fires down punches until Cyborg rolls over and concedes defeat.
Mauricio Rua vs. Akihiro Gono, PRIDE Bushido 2, 2/15/04. Rua began his PRIDE career with four consecutive first-round knockouts against Japanese opponents. Gono was able to last a full nine minutes thanks to his solid defense, grappling, and a few offensive tricks of his own. (Check out that trip-throw at 4:36.) But at the 10:15 mark, Shogun lights up Gono with strikes, and the Japanese fighter collapses into soccer-kick range. Checkmate.
Mauricio Rua vs. Hiromitsu Kanehara, PRIDE 29, 2/20/05. Rua tries to show off some of his grappling, before realizing that it would be a hell of a lot easier to stomp another one of these jokers to death. No highlight reel of Shogun’s savage finishes would be complete without this one.
On the next page: Shogun becomes a legend in PRIDE — and a bust in the UFC.
When you look at the headlining fight for the UFC’s fourth show on Fox, most fans would predict that the heavily favored man with more name recognition and career success will win, that being Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. I would be a liar if I sa…
When you look at the headlining fight for the UFC’s fourth show on Fox, most fans would predict that the heavily favored man with more name recognition and career success will win, that being Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
I would be a liar if I said that at first glance this fight didn’t appear to be a one-sided mismatch.
The facts are that after Brandon Vera defeated Frank Mir, Vera has only posted a record of 4-5 with one loss that resulted in Vera being released from the company, only to be brought back when the contest was overturned to a no-contest.
So why would anyone even consider picking against the previous UFC Light Heavyweight champion?
First off, let’s focus on the history of Mauricio Rua since he has entered the UFC.
Rua came into the UFC being regarded as the best light heavyweight in the world defeating such men as Quinton Jackson, Rogerio Nogueira, Kevin Randleman and Alistair Overeem.
His debut match inside the Octagon came against someone who many would believe was just a stepping stone, Forrest Griffin.
Griffin would go on to not only defeat Shogun but actually submit him much to the amazement of the majority of fans and experts alike.
Rua would go on to have another very poor performance against Mark Coleman, a fighter who was well past his prime but earned a stoppage victory.
Next up were the the remnants of Chuck Liddell, a fighter much like Coleman who had seen his better days pass him by.
Rua would soon after win the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, lose it in his first defense, redeem himself against a declining Forrest Griffin, and then he came up short in a historic fight against Dan Henderson.
Now with the history lesson concluded, let’s focus on the real statistic and a very important, somewhat shocking fact.
Mauricio Rua is only a .500 fighter in the UFC with a record of 4-4. Three of those wins are over fighters who were well past their primes and really showed it.
Still though this doesn’t give a direct answer to the outcome. It just shows that Rua isn’t the untouchable fighter who he has been made out to be.
Vera will enter this fight standing 6’3″ tall and having a reach of 78″ which will give him a 2″ reach advantage which will be multiplied with his height advantage of 3″.
Furthermore, Vera is a kickboxer who knows how to use a reach advantage. Let’s not forget that of Vera’s recent losses, two of them were very close contests.
Overlooking Vera would be Rua’s biggest question mark, and personally I just feel that he isn’t going to show up in the best condition that he can and should.
Vera will be at the disadvantage if this fight hits the ground but should be able to defend himself. However, if the match stays standing I fully expect Rua to be at the disadvantage.
What is completely overlooked here is the hunger that Vera has, and now is the time for him to show that he isn’t just the guy who never turned the corner.
Vera is searching for a win that would catapult him back into the mix as a contender, and Rua would be the perfect opponent to get him where he wants to be.
Vera should be considered a very dangerous opponent for Shogun if not for anything else than he has everything to gain and nothing to lose, but Shogun’s biggest obstacle may just be himself.
Rua has all the tools to win this fight, but if he steps into the Octagon looking past his opponent and isn’t fully prepared, I expect Brandon Vera to pull off a massive upset victory.
Former UFC middleweight title contender Chael Sonnen is facing off against 