Antonio Rogerio Nogueira is calling a knockout by his fellow Brazilian countryman, Mauricio Rua, against American rival Chael Sonnen at Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 26.
After that, Little Nog has no interest in a grudge match with Sonnen, preferrin…
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira is calling a knockout by his fellow Brazilian countryman, Mauricio Rua, against American rival ChaelSonnen at Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 26.
After that, Little Nog has no interest in a grudge match with Sonnen, preferring a rematch with Shogun since he believes he’s a higher-caliber fighter, as MMA Fighting’s Guilherme Cruz reported.
Sonnen may take him down twice, but he won’t be able to do that for five rounds. He will need to stand at some point of the fight and Shogun will tag him. I believe Shogun will knock him out … I want to fight again this year, absolutely. (Shogun) is good fight, a good option for me … That fight (with Sonnen) doesn’t interest me because I want to fight the best, and there are a lot of fighters that are better than him, including Shogun, Dan Henderson and Rashad Evans. Chael talks trash, he’s pure marketing. If we keep talking about him, that’s what he wants. He fought three times for the world title and got beat up. He tried to make his name when Anderson was fighting him injured, and we all saw what happened in the second fight.
Nogueira lost an entertaining back-and-forth brawl with Rua back in June 2005 under the Pride banner and was set to try and avenge the loss at UFC 161.
However, Nogueira sustained a back injury just two weeks before the June pay-per-view which forced him off the card, via Tim Burke of Bloody Elbow.
From a rankings standpoint, Nogueira vs. Rua II makes sense, as the UFC’s official light heavyweight top 10 list has Nog at No. 6 and Rua at No. 8.
Of course, if Sonnen beats Rua this weekend, those rankings will change significantly.
Additionally, The American Gangster is a three-time UFC title challenger, though he has come up short in each attempt, with two of those losses coming at the hands of then-champion Anderson Silva.
Sonnen took the fight to The Spider at UFC 117 back in August 2010, losing due to a late Hail Mary submission in Round 5 but lost by a more convincing Round 2 TKO in the rematch at UFC 148 last July.
As Nogueira pointed out, naysayers believe Sonnen only had success against Silva the first time around since Silva entered the bout with a rib injury, via Anton Tabuena of Bloody Elbow.
Is Nogueira’s criticism of Sonnen right on the money or is his personal vendetta against the American fighter clouding his judgment?
JohnHeinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.
The UFC will roll into Boston’s TD Garden on August 17 for its first fight card on the new Fox Sports 1 network. The event, UFC Fight Night 26, will feature six fights on the main card. Below are the odds and predictions for the fights on the featured …
The UFC will roll into Boston’s TD Garden on August 17 for its first fight card on the new Fox Sports 1 network. The event, UFC Fight Night 26, will feature six fights on the main card. Below are the odds and predictions for the fights on the featured portion of the event.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. ChaelSonnen
The main event on August 17 will feature a light heavyweight bout between two fighters who have both gone 2-3 in their past five fights. Normally those records would not land the fighters a headlining bout, especially not the main event on a card as important as Fight Night 26.
However, we are talking about a former UFC light heavyweight champion in Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, and one of the UFC’s biggest draws, ChaelSonnen. Records are of little importance when it comes to these two fighters.
Rua (21-7) is one of the most aggressive and powerful strikers in the UFC. His last victory that didn’t end by way of knockout came in 2006. Since then, he has stopped Alistair Overeem, Mark Coleman, Chuck Liddell, LyotoMachida, Forrest Griffin and Brandon Vera.
Sonnen (27-13-1) is an in-your-face wrestler who closes distance well, always looking to take the fight to the ground where he uses a smothering style. Sonnen is excellent at keeping his opponents on their backs and using a nonstop barrage of short strikes to keep them from mounting any type of offense.
If Rua can catch Sonnen coming in for the takedown early, in any round, he has a chance of winning this fight by knockout. I think that’s the only way Rua wins. If Sonnen can put Rua on his back at the start of each round, he will deliver a nonstop barrage of punches, forcing Rua to expend energy defending those strikes.
I don’t expect an exciting fight, but I do expect an active fight with Sonnen getting takedowns early and grinding out a unanimous decision win.
Odds: Sonnen favorite (-140) over Rua (+120)
Alistair Overeem vs. Travis Browne
I would suspect that most people are going to be picking the bout between Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne as the fight that will most likely end with one fighter being attended to by the cageside medical team.
Overeem (36-12-0-1) has 15 knockouts on his record and 19 submissions. Browne (14-1-1) has 10 knockouts and two submission victories. In total, the two fighters have gone the distance seven times in their 65 combined bouts.
Overeem joined the UFC with much fanfare, and he looked destined for a title shot after dispatching former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar in his debut fight with the promotion. However, a failed drug test delayed Overeem’s title-shot hopes.
When Overeem stepped back into the Octagon, he did so overflowing with confidence. He was absolutely sure that he would run over Antonio Silva and sign a contract for a title fight. Things didn’t work out that way, and Overeem was knocked out in the third round.
I suspect Overeem will be more focused and less cocky when he faces Browne in Boston. I’m not taking anything away from Browne, I just think the focus and power of Overeem is going to carry him to victory in this one.
Browne will hang in through the first round, but Overeem ends this one by TKO in the second stanza.
Odds: Overeem favorite (-190) over Browne (+165)
Urijah Faber vs. Yuri Alcantara
The knee-jerk reaction on the fight between Urijah Faber and Yuri Alcantara is going to be Faber easily takes the win. After all, Faber (28-6) is the No. 2-ranked bantamweight in the UFC and a former WEC champion, and Alcantara (28-4-0-1) is an unranked, under-the-radar fighter.
I don’t disagree that Faber will win; I do disagree that he will just breeze through Alcantara. Alcantara is probably best known for getting the shaft when Pedro Nobre put on an award-winning acting performance at UFC on FX 7 that resulted in the fight being declared a no-contest.
Alcantara is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu with a solid background in Muay Thai, but he is weak in the wrestling game, and that is going to lead to his downfall against Faber, who will look to get the takedown and work toward a submission.
I don’t think Faber gains the submission, but I do think he takes the decision.
Odds: Faber favorite (-280) over Alcantara (+240)
Matt Brown vs. Mike Pyle
An injury in early July knocked ThiagoAlves from the UFC Fight Night 26 fight card. Alves’ departure opened the door for Mike Pyle to step in and face Matt Brown.
Brown (17-11) is on a five-fight winning streak heading into this fight, while Pyle (25-8-1) has won his past four bouts. Brown has ended four of those five by knockout, while Pyle has run up three knockouts in his four wins.
The winner of this bout will most likely earn a top-10 opponent in his next bout.
Brown is one of the more aggressive fighters in the welterweight division, and one tough customer. His described style of “technical brawler” is a pretty accurate description. Brown’s advantage is clearly in the striking game.
Pyle has the advantage in submissions. With that in mind, I fully expect Brown to keep this fight standing and put as much pressure as possible on Pyle from the start of the fight. Look for Brown to keep moving forward with aggressive striking, eventually breaking Pyle down for a second-round TKO win.
Odds: Brown favorite (-165) over Pyle (+125)
Uriah Hall vs. John Howard
Uriah Hall was originally booked to face Nick Ring in Boston, but Ring was pulled from the card and replaced by Josh Samman. In mid-July, Samman was removed from the card and in stepped John Howard, a fighter who was cut from the UFC in 2011 after three straight defeats.
Hall (7-3) will be under a great deal of scrutiny heading into this fight. He was the favorite to walk away the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 17, but a lackluster fight against Kelvin Gastelum in the final left him as the runner-up. After earning three memorable knockout victories on his way to the final, many viewed Hall’s loss as a disappointment.
Howard (20-8) rejoins the UFC after going 6-1 outside the promotion. Howard’s past two wins have come via first-round knockout.
Hall has a pronounced height and reach advantage in this bout, while Howard has experience on his side.
The losses that sent Howard packing from the UFC during his first run with the promotion were against strikers. Hall fits that bill, and I don’t see Howard getting passed Hall in this one either.
If Hall is on point, and can overcome whatever mental hurdles prevented him from delivering during the TUFfinal, he may get the knockout. I’m not sure he has done that, so I will play it a little safe here and pick Hall by decision.
Odds: Hall favorite (-530) over Howard (+350)
Joe Lauzon vs. Michael Johnson
The first fight on the main card in Boston will see Joe Lauzon take on Michael Johnson. Lauzon is coming off a bloody Fight of the Night loss to Jim Miller at UFC 155, while Johnson is in the midst of a two-fight losing streak.
Lauzon (22-8) has never gone the distance in victory, racking up four knockouts and 18 submissions. Of his eight losses, only two have gone the distance. So, aggression and looking for the finish is not something Lauzon shies away from when he fights. That fact can also be evidenced in his 12 Fight Night bonus awards.
This is a big step up in competition for Johnson, who lost to Myles Jury and RezaMadadi in his past two fights. Johnson has shown that his striking has progressed over the course of his UFC tenure, but I just don’t see him having what it takes to get passed a veteran like Lauzon.
Two things in this fight will inspire Lauzon. First, he will be fighting in front of a hometown crowd, and he will be looking to become the all-time leader in UFC Fight Night bonuses if he can win just one post-fight award on August 17.
Look for Lauzon to put his name in the running for Submission of the Night when he forces Johnson to tap out in the second round of this bout.
Homecomings can be a powerful motivator, and John Howard is not lacking in inspiration these days.
“Doomsday” will return to the Octagon for the first time since being released from the UFC back in 2011 when he faces Uriah Hall next weekend…
Homecomings can be a powerful motivator, and John Howard is not lacking in inspiration these days.
“Doomsday” will return to the Octagon for the first time since being released from the UFC back in 2011 when he faces Uriah Hall next weekend at UFC Fight Night 26: Shogun vs. Sonnen. The 30-year-old built up solid steam on the regional circuit, winning six out of seven bouts, and his success earned the veteran a call back to the premier promotion in mixed martial arts.
If another run in the UFC fold wasn’t sweet enough, the bout with Hall will take place in Howard’s hometown of Boston, where he will receive support from the city’s fighting faithful.
“Coming back to the UFC in my hometown, it doesn’t get any better than that,” Howard told Bleacher Report. “I’m so happy and proud, and appreciate the opportunity to fight in front of my hometown. The Boston Garden—people call it the TD Garden—but it’s the Boston Garden to me, and I’m excited to fight there.
“I’m excited, man. I’m pumped up to be fighting in front of my hometown, friends and family. It’s a dream come true and I can’t wait.
“It’s been hard work,” he added. “I’ve been grinding, fighting, and just getting stuff done right. There hasn’t been anything easy about it, but it has all been worthwhile. It just shows that hard work pays off and I’m so happy the UFC gave me a second chance to show what I can do. I know I belong in the UFC and it feels good to be coming back. I’ve been working so hard, and now that I am coming back to the UFC, I’m so happy. It’s a dream come true and I’m ready.”
While Howard couldn’t ask for a more ideal setting for his return, he will face a stiff challenge in Hall. The Ultimate Fighter 17 finalist possesses a unique striking attack based on power and technique and has proven knockout ability in his hands and feet. Nevertheless, Howard is no slouch in the stand-up game and is excited to mix it up with the highly touted prospect.
“It’s going to be a great fight. He’s a good striker and I’m also a good striker. I want to see what he throws at me and what he comes with because I’m coming at him hard and fast. I don’t get in there to play games. I can’t wait for this fight. I know he brings it and I’m going to bring it. It’s going to be a great fight.
“Experience is a big factor on my side because it’s something you can’t duplicate. I’m going to use my experience to my advantage and take it to him. I’m going to see what he does in there. I know he trains with some of the best guys in the world, but training with the best guys and fighting the best guys are two different things. I’m going to see what he brings, but if I have to make adjustments I will, and I’ll keep moving forward.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
The UFC is headed to Boston on August 17. The fight card, headlined by a light heavyweight bout between former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Chael Sonnen will mark the promotion’s first event on the Fox Sports 1 network. …
The UFC is headed to Boston on August 17. The fight card, headlined by a light heavyweight bout between former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Chael Sonnen will mark the promotion’s first event on the Fox Sports 1 network.
The UFC has a stacked card in store for those who will tune in to the new sports network. So, why not invite some friends over to watch the night’s bouts?
But first, read the following primer and impress your friends with your knowledge of some of the main card contestants.
If Mauricio “Shogun” Rua walked away from fighting tomorrow, he would be regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time and one of the few fighters who translated his success from Pride Fighting Championships in Japan to the UFC Octagon.
During i…
If Mauricio “Shogun” Rua walked away from fighting tomorrow, he would be regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time and one of the few fighters who translated his success from Pride Fighting Championships in Japan to the UFC Octagon.
During its heyday, Pride was routinely seen as the superior MMA promotion, even more so than the UFC, and Shogun was right in the thick of it. He won the 2005 Pride middleweight Grand Prix tournament in one of the most incredible runs in fight history.
Even though his move to the UFC started out rocky with a loss to Forrest Griffin in 2007, Shogun bounced back and managed to knock out UFC legend Chuck Liddell before finally capturing the light heavyweight gold in 2010 with a knockout over Lyoto Machida.
Rua has been a part of two of the greatest fights ever with his 2005 matchup against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and then his bout against Dan Henderson in the UFC in 2011.
It’s hard to imagine with that kind of resume that Rua is only 31 years old, but he’s built a legacy of brutality as one of the most fearsome fighters of the last decade.
There’s not much else Shogun could accomplish than what he’s already done over the last 10 years, so why does he still do it?
“I feel like nowadays I fight to leave my name in history,” Rua told Bleacher Report on Thursday. “It’s a big motivation for me to really mark my name in the history of MMA. So it makes me very happy that people address me like this, like a legend.”
Call it stubbornness, call it the will of a champion, but Rua is also still competing in MMA because he believes one day he can once again wrap the gold around his waist. He’s never been outside of the top 10 of the light heavyweight division for the better part of the last eight years, and while his record has bounced back and forth between wins and losses for eight straight bouts, he never feels he’s more than just a few wins away from getting back in line for a title shot.
“My goal, my focus was always fighting to be the champion. It still is,” Rua stated. “For me to reach that goal I need to fight the best, and that’s what I do—I fight the best.”
For his upcoming fight at UFC Fight Night 26 airing on Fox Sports 1, Rua drew UFC bad boy Chael Sonnen in the main event bout. Sonnen is not only a tough matchup for virtually anybody in the UFC, but he’s also got a wicked tongue that lashes out at almost every opponent who signs to face him in the Octagon.
There have been a few rare occasions where Sonnen has nothing much to say about a fighter he’s facing, and this happens to be one of them. While “The American Gangster” from West Linn, Oregon, has had plenty to say about some of Shogun’s former teammates, and even his home country of Brazil, the former Pride champion seems above reproach when it comes to typical trash talk.
Sonnen has used words like “respect” and “honor” to describe his bout with Rua, but the feelings are not reciprocated by the man he’ll face in the Octagon on August 17.
Shogun’s heard plenty of Sonnen’s chatter over the years, and even if the verbal venom wasn’t spewed directly at him, he’s caught some shrapnel, because when you mess with one of Rua’s friends, it’s as good as messing with him.
“I never really appreciated the way Chael treats people in Brazil, and the way he treated Anderson (Silva) and Wanderlei (Silva). Sonnen can say good things about me, but that’s not going to be the thing that makes me change my mind about him,” Rua said. “Chael is a great fighter, but I don’t approve of what he’s done with a couple of opponents, I don’t agree with that.
“I feel personally attacked when Chael talks about Wanderlei. That’s what really gets to me.”
For most of his career, Shogun called Wanderlei Silva his teammate and mentor, and that’s not a bond that’s easily broken even if they don’t train together any longer. Shogun isn’t a paid assassin sent to avenge his friend, but for a fighter who is known for never holding much of a grudge against an opponent, Sonnen has managed to land on his bad side.
Shogun seems motivated by a personal vendetta this time around, and that may make him an even scarier fighter than the one who’s already knocked out 18 past opponents.
If Shogun has his way, Sonnen might just be No. 19.
Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and all quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
If you were to imagine the ultimate laboratory specimen engineered for combat sports domination, you’d likely dream up a physically daunting, hyper-trained fighter intent on destruction. He’d need to have the kind of physique that can give opponents fi…
If you were to imagine the ultimate laboratory specimen engineered for combat sports domination, you’d likely dream up a physically daunting, hyper-trained fighter intent on destruction. He’d need to have the kind of physique that can give opponents fits and the wealth of skills to maximize what that frame offers him.
Just look at the photo above. Before we begin to digress with rants over the effects of artificial enhancement, let’s remind ourselves that his body—that surreal layer of muscle packed onto even more muscle—is routinely used to inflict harm to opponents.
He’s a terror with the training to back up the appearance—a fact that makes it strange to question whether he can ever prove himself in the UFC.
Perhaps that’s the consequence of his obliteration at the hands of Antonio Silva, a defeat so jaw dropping that the UFC deemed it as the biggest upset of the first half of 2013. Referee Herb Dean struggled to restrain an enraged Silva yelling atop the collapsed body of Overeem.
Meanwhile, his detractors rejoiced in assuming that the loss proved his monstrous transformation was unworthy of respect, but MMA analysts knew the situation was far more disheartening.
On its surface, it seemed so clear: Silva burst the “Ubereem” bubble by demonstrating that, after returning from a brief suspension for elevated testosterone, the Dutch superstar wasn’t ever UFC caliber.
Yet as is often the case in MMA, there were more wrinkles to the story.
Overeem lost for a reason even more disappointing—he was outstruck by a fighter with nowhere near his striking pedigree or skill set. He was beaten at his own game because of pure arrogance.
Rather than initiating the clinch work and knees that had brought him a wealth of success, he instead chose to press toward Silva with his hands at his waist and his chin in the air.
His demise at UFC 156 was no fault other than his own—he had accomplished the unthinkable by buying into his own hype.
Nevertheless, make no mistake about it: Overeem is one of the most accomplished combat sports athletes in history, if not the most accomplished. The first and only fighter to hold titles in both MMA and the venerable K-1 kickboxing grand prix, he has crafted a lethal offense based on tactical punches, relentless knees and laser-guided kicks.
Why didn’t he employ any of these assets against Silva?
Overeem could have brutalized Bigfoot in the clinch or bludgeoned him with kicks and heavy punches. Instead, he chose to dance around, slip punches with no guard up to protect himself and generally try to prove through unnecessary means the end which we all already knew—that he was a better fighter than Bigfoot. This brings me to the sad conclusion about Alistair Overeem. He should be able to beat just about everyone who is put in front of him, but he probably won’t. If he did match up against Dos Santos—as we have all wanted for so long—I would put money on him being able to hang decently on the feet with Dos Santos. I would also expect Overeem to completely avoid moving to the clinch, working his trips or doing work in any of the areas in which he has an advantage.
When analyzing Overeem’s chances at continued success, it’s important to be mindful of his experience—and that applies in both the positive and negative sense. Casual fans may forget that he underwent a brutal year-and-a-half in his professional history—starting with a May 2006 submission loss to Fabricio Werdum and ending with a September 2007 KO loss to Sergei Kharitonov—that resulted in five brutal defeats in a short time frame.
That kind of mental baggage can stay with a fighter long after its expiration date.
Of course, he eventually added on the characteristic bulk that transformed him into the wrecking machine he is today. Better yet, striking coach Roberto Flamingo molded that raw clay into the nearly unstoppable juggernaut who went on to win the Dream, K-1 and Strikeforce championship belts.
But without a UFC belt to his name, many fans are unconcerned with his former accomplishments.
Regardless of the circumstances or justifications, the reality remains the same: Overeem was so brutally stopped by Silva that his next fight against Travis Browne at the launch of Fox Sports 1 on August 17 will be viewed as less of a comeback and more of a revival.
Over his storied 36-12-1 record, Overeem has battled opponents inside every known battleground of combat sports and endured a deluge of criticism the entire time.
Despite the recent setbacks, his head seems to be in the right place. In an interview with Bleacher Report’s Damon Martin, Overeem revealed that his sights are locked on the UFC Heavyweight Championship.
“I believe that both Browne and myself are top ranked fighters and the winner of this fight will be one step closer in getting a title shot, so in that sense I know this fight can put me right on track as I still have one goal in life and that’s becoming the UFC heavyweight champion.”
Though it’s positive to hear that he’s still determined to sit atop the division, Overeem can’t underestimate the challenge in his return fight. Browne’s 14-1 record includes 10 knockouts.
To put himself back on the radar, Overeem will have to act as if the challenge was never even a concern. To get back into title contention, he’ll need to plow through Browne like attentive fans expect him to.
Overeem is the consummate elite fighter. He has the physique, accolades and athleticism necessary to achieve absolute victory. But after a chaotic career punctuated by a widely publicized knockout loss in the world’s most prominent fight promotion, he won’t be able to ease his way into further success.
Sitting comfortably at No. 6 in the official UFC heavyweight rankings, he is in a prime position to make people forget about what happened between delivering a brutal liver kick against Brock Lesnar and the present. He can continue to enter the Octagon with the type of striking skills that no other man can hope to rival.
If he expects to challenge for the UFC heavyweight strap, he will need to remind the world why he earned the nickname “Demolition Man.”
The UFC will roll into Boston’s TD Garden on August 17 for its first fight card on the new Fox Sports 1 network. The event, 
