Tag: Mauricio Rua

Booking Roundup: FoGriff vs. Ortiz III and Velasquez vs. Mir in the Works


(Hey Tito, do you mind taking a look at this fungus I’ve got growing on my foot? I figured if anyone could spot a bizarre infection, it would be you.) 

It’s looking like Tito Ortiz will be getting his wish to go out on a hotly contested decision like he’s always wanted. Though the event or location has yet to be determined, Lorenzo Fertitta announced to the Twittersphere last night that the rubber match between Ortiz and Forrest Griffin will in fact be happening, and, just like Ortiz requested, could transpire on Fourth of July weekend.

After saving his Zuffa career by submitting Ryan Bader at UFC 132, Ortiz has dropped two straight to Rashad Evans and Antonio Rogerio Nogueria, both coming by way of TKO. Griffin is also coming off a first round TKO loss, which he suffered in his rematch with fellow former Light Heavyweight champ Mauricio Rua at UFC 134.

Ortiz and Griffin first met way back at UFC 59 in the spring of 2006. At the time, Griffin was on a four fight win streak including his TUF 1 Finale victory over Stephan Bonnar. Ortiz had scored two straight after being knocked out by Chuck Liddell at UFC 47, and would follow his split decision victory over Griffin by beating the piss out of poor Ken Shamrock twice in a row. Their second meeting, which went down at UFC 106, saw Griffin emerge victorious by an equally controversial split decision.

Speaking of trilogies…


(Hey Tito, do you mind taking a look at this fungus I’ve got growing on my foot? I figured if anyone could spot a bizarre infection, it would be you.) 

It’s looking like Tito Ortiz will be getting his wish to go out on a hotly contested decision like he’s always wanted. Though the event or location has yet to be determined, Lorenzo Fertitta announced to the Twittersphere last night that the rubber match between Ortiz and Forrest Griffin will in fact be happening, and, just like Ortiz requested, could transpire on Fourth of July weekend.

After saving his Zuffa career by submitting Ryan Bader at UFC 132, Ortiz has dropped two straight to Rashad Evans and Antonio Rogerio Nogueria, both coming by way of TKO. Griffin is also coming off a first round TKO loss, which he suffered in his rematch with fellow former Light Heavyweight champ Mauricio Rua at UFC 134.

Ortiz and Griffin first met way back at UFC 59 in the spring of 2006. At the time, Griffin was on a four fight win streak including his TUF 1 Finale victory over Stephan Bonnar. Ortiz had scored two straight after being knocked out by Chuck Liddell at UFC 47, and would follow his split decision victory over Griffin by beating the piss out of poor Ken Shamrock twice in a row. Their second meeting, which went down at UFC 106, saw Griffin emerge victorious by an equally controversial split decision.

Speaking of trilogies…

It looks like Urijah Faber and Bantamweight champ Dominick Cruz will be locking horns for a third time this summer, though a date and location is still pending. Faber, who is currently 0-3 in title matches after losing his WEC Featherweight crown to Mike Brown at WEC 36, will be looking to erase the memory of a close but unanimous decision he dropped to Cruz in the pair’s first rematch at UFC 132. A fight apparently so close, that it warranted an immediate rematch. These things happen in MMA. As we know, the two are set to coach opposite one another on the next season of TUF, which will surely have its fair share of stank bref jokes, pranks and blah blah blah cut, print, glass plaque. Moving on.


(MMA Rule #334: Black may not crack, but brown sure as shit does.) 

Coming off a brilliant technical submission victory over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria at UFC 140, a statement that I still have trouble comprehending, it looks like Frank Mir will square off against Cain Velasquez in a battle of former champions, also tentatively scheduled for this summer. Velasquez has been out of action since falling to a first round KO at the hands of Junior Dos Santos, losing his Heavyweight title in the process. Again, no date or venue has been announced. It will be interesting to see how this one plays out; you have to imagine Velasquez will be a little gun shy on the feet, as many fighters are after a KO loss. And despite the fact that he’s never been submitted before, it’s still hard to imagine Velasquez will want to tangle with the likes of Mir on the ground. Then again, Mir has shown a tendency to be overwhelmed by powerful strikers in the past.

Who do you got for these, Potato Nation?

-J. Jones

Pride Fighting Championships: 10 Best Fights in Tournament History

Many casual mixed martial arts fans are familiar with one brand and one brand only: the UFC.However, arguably the organization’s biggest competitor was that of the now defunct Pride Fighting Championships, which was coincidentally purchased by Zuffa, t…

Many casual mixed martial arts fans are familiar with one brand and one brand only: the UFC.

However, arguably the organization’s biggest competitor was that of the now defunct Pride Fighting Championships, which was coincidentally purchased by Zuffa, the subsidiary of the UFC.

The Japanese-based promotion hosted a bevy of memorable fights during its tenure and helped spark the careers of such stars as Quinton Jackson, Kazushi Sakuraba, Mauricio Rua and the legendary Wanderlei Silva, among others.

A cornerstone of Pride was their love of tournaments, which cultivated some of the world’s best all under one roof in an effort to determine who is the real No. 1 fighter in their respective weight classes. 

 

Wanderlei Silva (right) facing Kazuyuki Fujita/ Scott Petersen for MMAWeekly.com

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‘Shogun’ Comments On Amicable Parting of Ways With Longtime Manager Eduardo Alonso


(“Why do you keep following me to these things? I told you you’re fired.”)

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua announced last night via Twitter that he had split from his longtime manager Marcelo Alonso and today went on to explain the reason for his decision

According to Mauricio, he and Alonso had differing opinions of how Rua’s career should be handled. Marcelo apparently felt that he should be in charge of securing sponsorships, co-ordinating fight camps and handling press for the former UFC light heavyweight champion, while his client believed that the tasks should handled by three people.

“What happened was that Eduardo believed in a line of working and I trust another one,” Rua told Tatame. “He believed my career should be managed by one guy, I don’t agree with that.”


(“Why do you keep following me to these things? I told you you’re fired.”)

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua announced last night via Twitter that he had split from his longtime manager Marcelo Alonso and today went on to explain the reason for his decision

According to Mauricio, he and Alonso had differing opinions of how Rua’s career should be handled. Marcelo apparently felt that he should be in charge of securing sponsorships, co-ordinating fight camps and handling press for the former UFC light heavyweight champion, while his client believed that the tasks should handled by three people.

“What happened was that Eduardo believed in a line of working and I trust another one,” Rua told Tatame. “He believed my career should be managed by one guy, I don’t agree with that.”

“To me, some guys has to be leading my training, and it is Andre Dida,” Shogun says.” [I also need] a marketing team to accessorize me and a manager. He didn’t agree with that and said he already knew it could happen.”

It sounds like Alonso didn’t want to share any of the pie and now he’s left with an empty plate. Regardless, Rua says the split was an amicable one and that he’s shopping around for new representation. Alonso has been with Shogun since his UFC 76 loss to Forrest Griffin back in 2007.

Alonso isn’t the only manager to be dropped by a Brazilian fighter in recent weeks. You may recall that Jose Aldo eighty-sixed Black House Management a week or two ago in favor of his longtime coach, Andre Pederneiras, who managed him prior to his WEC title win.

UFC on FOX 2: Jon Jones Say Rashad Evans’ Chin Sucks, Phil Davis Could Win by KO

With UFC on FOX 2 on the horizon, UFC President Dana White released a video blog from Chicago, Illinois (the event takes place at the United Center in Chicago.)As has been the case in the past, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was not shy …

With UFC on FOX 2 on the horizon, UFC President Dana White released a video blog from Chicago, Illinois (the event takes place at the United Center in Chicago.)

As has been the case in the past, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was not shy in voicing his opinion when he made his main event prediction at the end of the video. 

“I can see Phil Davis winning by knockout, man. Really, Rashad’s chin sucks,” Jones said matter-of-factly. ““I can see Rashad winning by taking him down, trying to lay on him. It’s gonna be a great fight.”

Not surprisingly, “Bones” will be rooting for his former teammate turned rival, Rashad Evans, so that the two men can finally settle the score in Octagon. 

“I’m sure Phil Davis has gotten a lot better since his last appearance, Rashad’s showing some changes in his game,” Jones said.

“I’m rooting for Rashad to win the fight, that way I can fight Rashad and just get past it. Get it over with.”

Evans and Jones have been rumored to meet in a title bout for roughly a year now, but injuries to both fighters have prevented the match up from ever coming to fruition. 

“Suga” decided to leave Greg Jackson’s camp after Jones won the title from Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 128 and started the “Blackzilians” training camp in Boca Raton, Florida with several Brazilian fighter who had a fall out with American Top Team. 

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Jon Jones Repping the UFC Like a Champ; May Defend Belt Three or Four Times in 2012


(“We have four times… Can we hear five?”)

ESPN’s Josh Gross caught up with UFC light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones recently and the 24-year-old fighter proved that he is respecting his role as a champion. According to “Bones” he may come back to compete earlier than he anticipated and says that he may possibly defend his belt three or four times if all goes well this year.


(“We have four times… Can we hear five?”)

ESPN’s Josh Gross caught up with UFC light heavyweight kingpin Jon Jones recently and the 24-year-old fighter proved that he is respecting his role as a champion. According to “Bones” he may come back to compete earlier than he anticipated and says that he may possibly defend his belt three or four times if all goes well this year.

“My goal is to finish every fight in 2012. If I do that, a lot of other things will fall into place naturally. I want to finish every opponent,” Jones told Gross.”I’ve been thinking recently about trying to compete four times in the year again. I grew so much as a person that by doing that again in 2012 will just make me a better athlete. Originally I said I wanted to take off four or five months, but I may reconsider and come back sooner and have three or four fights this year.”

Besides the bragging rights and personal satisfaction, a motivating factor for Jones to fight more is the Benjamins. He made $140,000 for his UFC 128 title win over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (no commission he’s fought for since reported what he made) and he picked up “Fight of the Night” bonuses in his two subsequent title defenses. Add to that the mainstream sponsorship deals he struck with Form Athletics and Everlast and endorsements he’s done with Bud Light and K-Swiss and Jones likely doesn’t have to worry about having his power shut off or making his car payments.

Zuffa’s other champs need to take note and pick up their games. Defending their belts less than twice a year is killing us.

Shogun Rua Expects Tough Opponent in His Next Bout

2011 has been an up-and-down year for Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.After relinquishing the UFC light heavyweight title to Jon Jones at UFC 128, Rua followed up with a knockout victory over Forrest Griffin at UFC 134 shortly after. However, the Brazilian found…

2011 has been an up-and-down year for Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.

After relinquishing the UFC light heavyweight title to Jon Jones at UFC 128, Rua followed up with a knockout victory over Forrest Griffin at UFC 134 shortly after. However, the Brazilian found himself on the losing end of a unanimous decision to Dan Henderson at UFC 139.

Despite finishing the year at 1-2 inside the Octagon, Rua is looking toward the future and anticipates a bout against one of the light heavyweight division’s elite fighters.

“This is the most disputed weight class, and I don’t have an opponent yet because it’s too messy right now,” Rua told TATAME.com. “I’m sure it’ll be a tough guy because there’re only tough guys on the division. I’ll keep training to fight the best.”

Rua will enter this year hoping to regain the light heavyweight crown after losing it to Jones, who has since gone on to successfully defend the 205-pound strap on two occasions. “Shogun” praised the 24-year-old’s empathic rise and was optimistic about the champion’s potential.

“He’s very eclectic, a good guy, and absolutely a guy who’s making room for himself in MMA,” he said. “He has beaten many good fighters, top guys of the division and he’s proven to be a good athlete.”

No date has been set for the Brazilian to return, though he has already began training in preparation for a future bout. Rua has yet to know of his next opponent, but he is expected to remain training and stay in shape.

“I don’t know when I’m fighting. Next week I might make some deal, but for now I don’t know anything about it, so I’m taking it easy,” he said.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com