Tag: Shogun Rua

Tito Ortiz Ready For UFC Return, Wants to Fight ‘Shogun’ Rua in Retirement Bout

Tito OrtizTito Ortiz is ready to call it a career in combat sports and intends on retiring under the bright lights of the UFC. Ortiz, 47, has stayed fairly active in combat sports since his exit from the UFC 10 years ago. Under the Bellator banner, Ortiz won three out of four bouts before moving onto […]

Tito Ortiz

Tito Ortiz is ready to call it a career in combat sports and intends on retiring under the bright lights of the UFC.

Ortiz, 47, has stayed fairly active in combat sports since his exit from the UFC 10 years ago. Under the Bellator banner, Ortiz won three out of four bouts before moving onto a short political career that was marred in controversy.

Now the ‘Huntington Beach Bad Boy’ is ready for one more fight and wants to do it in the Octagon with fellow former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua.

“It’s never over and I think I made that mistake with the UFC when I said I’ll never fight for the UFC ever again,” Ortiz said while speaking to Helen Yee Sports. “And now that I think about it, that’ll be an amazing last fight for myself and for Shogun Rua.

“Shogun has his last fight with the UFC, we’re in kind of the same era, so it would be nice to see a Tito Ortiz vs. Shogun. I would like that.”

Tito Ortiz Believes ‘Shogun’ is The Perfect Opponent For His Retirement

Despite both being signed by the promotion from 2007 to 2012, Ortiz and Rua never crossed paths. Now with ‘Shogun’ on the final fight of his UFC contract and facing retirement himself, Ortiz believes it’s the perfect opportunity to book a contest between the two icons.

“I have a lot of respect for Shogun, I think he’s an amazing former champion, an amazing fighter,” said Ortiz. “I watched his last fight. I thought he won the fight, but they ended up giving it to OSP. Let’s see what happens in the future.”

‘Shogun’ has dropped his last two contests. Most recently he was on the losing end of a close split decision to Ovince St. Preux at UFC 274. 

On the flip side, Ortiz has won his last three mixed martial arts bouts. In 2018, Ortiz defeated his UFC rival Chuck Liddell in a trilogy bout under the Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions label. Ortiz followed that up with a first-round submission over Alberto Rodriguez, better known to WWE fans as Alberto Del Rio. 

Do you want to see Tito Ortiz return to the UFC for a retirement bout against ‘Shogun’ Rua?

Tito Ortiz Pitches Double-Retirement Fight With Shogun Rua

Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Tito Ortiz is looking to make a return to MMA, and believes he’s identified the perfect opponent. Ortiz, a 34-fight mixed martial arts veteran, hasn’t entered the cage since 2019. Across his last three bouts, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” defeated a trio of notable names. After besting Chael Sonnen…

Continue Reading Tito Ortiz Pitches Double-Retirement Fight With Shogun Rua at MMA News.

Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Tito Ortiz is looking to make a return to MMA, and believes he’s identified the perfect opponent.

Ortiz, a 34-fight mixed martial arts veteran, hasn’t entered the cage since 2019. Across his last three bouts, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” defeated a trio of notable names. After besting Chael Sonnen at Bellator 170, Ortiz completed his trilogy (regrettably, in the eyes of many) with longtime rival Chuck Liddell under the banner of Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions.

His third consecutive win and latest appearance came against former WWE star Alberto Del Rio, whom the former UFC champion submitted in round one via rear-naked choke at Combate Americas 51.

Despite being inactive for over two years, aside from a brutal knockout loss to Anderson Silva in the ring last year, and largely turning his attention to politics in the period since his last MMA fight, Ortiz is back in training and looking to throw down with the presence of some surrounding steel.

And despite a rocky relationship with the UFC, which once saw him claim that he’d never fight in the promotion ever again, the 47-year-old is looking to bid farewell to the Octagon with one final walk to it.

Ortiz Targets UFC Swansong Versus A Legend

During a recent interview with Helen Yee, Ortiz admitted that he’d like to end his career in the UFC, pitching a potential double-retirement fight with fellow former light heavyweight titleholder Maurício “Shogun” Rua.

“It’s never over. I think I made that mistake with UFC when I said, ‘I’ll never fight for the UFC ever again,’” said Ortiz. “Now I think about it, that’d be an amazing last fight for myself and for Shogun Rua. I know Shogun has his last fight with the UFC, we’re in kind of the same era, so it’d be nice to see Tito Ortiz vs. Shogun. I’d like that.

“I have a lot of respect for Shogun, I think he’s an amazing former champion, an amazing fighter. I watched his last fight, I thought he won but they ended up giving it to ‘OSP.’ So, I don’t know, let’s see what happens in the future,” concluded Ortiz.

Rua was recently in action at the UFC 274 pay-per-view on May 7. After a largely unentertaining main-card rematch against Ovince Saint-Preux, the Brazilian fell on the wrong side of a split decision verdict, marking back-to-back losses for Shogun for the first time since 2014.

Having not been badly beaten or looked unfit to fight, UFC President Dana White confirmed that the 40-year-old will be given the opportunity to fight out his contract, which has just one bout remaining.

Could it be against Tito Ortiz? We’ll let you decide if that’s a desirable matchup.

How do you think a fight between Tito Ortiz and Shogun Rua would play out?

Continue Reading Tito Ortiz Pitches Double-Retirement Fight With Shogun Rua at MMA News.

Saint Preux Looks To Make Statement Against Rua That No One Else Has

UFC light heavyweight Ovince Saint Preux has his eyes on an MMA first when it comes to defeating fellow veteran Maurício Rua. On the main card of tonight’s UFC 274 pay-per-view, Rua and Saint Preux will run it back. The pair first shared the Octagon in the main event of UFC Fight Night 56, held…

Continue Reading Saint Preux Looks To Make Statement Against Rua That No One Else Has at MMA News.

UFC light heavyweight Ovince Saint Preux has his eyes on an MMA first when it comes to defeating fellow veteran Maurício Rua.

On the main card of tonight’s UFC 274 pay-per-view, Rua and Saint Preux will run it back. The pair first shared the Octagon in the main event of UFC Fight Night 56, held in Uberlândia, Brazil, back in 2014. On that night, “OSP” made short work of the former champion, knocking him out in just 34 seconds.

Now, with both men reaching the back-end of their careers, they’ll collide again in one of two veteran bouts set for Saturday’s main slate, the other being Donald Cerrone vs. Joe Lauzon.

At the age of 40, and given the way he was beaten by Paul Craig last time out, it seems another convincing defeat could mark the end of “Shogun” Rua’s in-cage career.

During his appearance at UFC 274 media day on Wednesday, Saint Preux drew laughter by dismissing any notion that potentially being Rua’s final opponent adds any emotion or feeling to the bout, on his side at least…

“I guess it sucks for him?”

If “OSP” gets the kind of victory he’s targeting on Saturday in Arizona, it will indeed “suck” for the UFC legend.

Saint Preux Envisions Another Emphatic Finish

Throughout “Shogun” Rua’s 40-fight professional MMA career, only one man has been able to record two victories over him, former middleweight and light heavyweight title challenger Dan Henderson.

But while the rematch ended in a TKO win for “Hendo,” their first bout went to the judges’ scorecards. With that in mind, Saint Preux is looking to become the first man to make two emphatic statements against Rua.

“I mean, I understand. You want to go out on top or whatnot. But at the end of the day, it’s just like, I’m trying to make another statement,” asserted Saint Preux. “And I don’t think anybody that ever fought Shogun made a statement back to back like that, and that’s what I’m trying to do. That’s what I’m gonna do.”

While it’s widely believed that a defeat could put an end to Rua’s Octagon career, the bout is also an important one for the status of Saint Preux. The 39-year-old is riding a two-fight losing skid, having suffered back-to-back KO defeats at the hands of Jamahal Hill and Tanner Boser.

Should Rua exact revenge on him tonight, the future of “OSP” will also be called into question. Either way, the stakes will be high in Phoenix in a matter of hours.

UFC Fight Night: Rua vs. Saint Preux
UBERLANDIA, BRAZIL – NOVEMBER 08: Ovince Saint Preux of the United States punches Mauricio Shogun Rua of Brazil in their light heavyweight bout during the UFC Fight Night at Sabiazinho Gymnasium on November 8, 2014 in Uberlandia, Brazil. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Who do you think will have their hand raised at UFC 274, Ovince Saint Preux or Maurício Rua?

Continue Reading Saint Preux Looks To Make Statement Against Rua That No One Else Has at MMA News.

Shogun Rua Believes His 2005 Was The Best Run In MMA History

Shogun Rua thinks his 2005 was the best run in MMA history. Rua was fighting in PRIDE back then and went 5-0 in the year including being a part of the PRIDE middleweight quarterfinal grand prix. He started the year out with a TKO win over Hiromitsu Kanehara, then TKO’d Rampage Jackson before beating Antonio…

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Shogun Rua thinks his 2005 was the best run in MMA history.

Rua was fighting in PRIDE back then and went 5-0 in the year including being a part of the PRIDE middleweight quarterfinal grand prix. He started the year out with a TKO win over Hiromitsu Kanehara, then TKO’d Rampage Jackson before beating Antonio Rogerio Nogueira by decision. The Brazilian then fought twice on the same night and beat Alistair Overeem by TKO and KO’d Ricardo Arona to cap off the 5-0 year.

Shogun Rua was able to beat future world champions during that run and looking back on it, he says that run proved to him he can be the best in the world.

“I look at every fight that I had and that I want pretty much is very important because, in the end, every fight means the sequence of your career.  And also, you gotta keep winning. And every time you win, it means something. The title fights won’t happen without all the wins,” Rua said at media day.

“So I treasure all the fights that I won. And talking about Pride, it’s the same, but I think the fight that comes to my mind if I have to pick one is the title fight against Ricardo Arona because it was when I became a reality, when people stopped seeing me as a prospect but started to take me for real and consider me a reality. So that’s the fight that I think about the most if I had to pick one from Pride.”

Shogun Rua
(via Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

After 2005, Rua dropped his next fight but then had more success and eventually became the UFC light heavyweight champion. Although he never touched gold during that run, the Brazilian still believes that is the best year in MMA history.

“I believe it is. Of course,” Rua said.

Shogun Rua is set to return to the Octagon at UFC 274 as he rematches Ovince Saint Preux.

Do you think Shogun Rua’s 2005 was the best run in MMA history?

Continue Reading Shogun Rua Believes His 2005 Was The Best Run In MMA History at MMA News.

Shogun Rua Wants To Fight Two More Times Before Retiring

Shogun Rua's ReturnMMA legend Shogun Rua has come out and said that he wants two more fights in the UFC and then retire from the sport. Shogun’s last fight was in November of 2020 at UFC 255 against Paul Craig. He lost that fight via submission to strikes in the second round. Following that loss, UFC President […]

Shogun Rua's Return

MMA legend Shogun Rua has come out and said that he wants two more fights in the UFC and then retire from the sport.

Shogun’s last fight was in November of 2020 at UFC 255 against Paul Craig. He lost that fight via submission to strikes in the second round. Following that loss, UFC President Dana White suggested that the former light heavyweight champ should retire from MMA. However, Shogun does not seem ready to hang up the gloves just yet.

Speaking with AG Fight, Shogun confirmed plans to come back and fight at least a couple more times in the UFC.

“I must do two more fights and stop. That’s my goal. Do one or two more (fights). And the moment I stop, I will be happy with myself and thankful to God. I’m an accomplished guy with my career. My only fear is to stop and then regret that I stopped a little early. But if I do two more (fights), I won’t have this problem,” Shogun said.

At 39 years old, Shogun has seen it all in his MMA career. He first burst on to the scene over in Japan fighting for PRIDE FC. He would go on to win the 2005 Pride Middleweight Grand Prix. After that, he signed with the UFC and started competing in their light heavyweight division. He would become UFC light heavyweight champion in 2010 after knocking out Lyoto Machida in the first round. Shogun would lose the belt in his next fight against Jon Jones and would go on to have a very up and down career since. In his last five fights in the UFC, Shogun has won two, lost two, and drew one.

Do you think Shogun Rua should retire now or after one or two more fights?

Dana White: Shogun Looked Like A Shell Of Himself, Should Retire

Dana White believes that UFC 255 should be the last time we see Mauricio “Shogun” Rua compete in MMA. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has certainly had a Hall of Fame career, dating back to his successful Pride run all the way through his 13 years in the UFC, wh…

Dana White believes that UFC 255 should be the last time we see Mauricio “Shogun” Rua compete in MMA. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has certainly had a Hall of Fame career, dating back to his successful Pride run all the way through his 13 years in the UFC, which includes one world championship. Rua’s name is […]

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