Antonio Rogerio Nogueira says that his UFC 250 trilogy bout against Shogun Rua is most likely going to be his farewell fight.
Rogerio Nogueira hasn’t competed in the Octagon since he lost to Ryan Spann back at UFC 237. The 43-year-old Brazilian MMA legend has a record of 4-6 in his last 10, so he is expecting his trilogy fight against Rua to be his farewell fight.
“This fight will probably be the last fight of my career, my farewell fight,” Antonio Rogerio Nogueira told MMA Fighting. “So being able to have this rematch with Shogun is both challenging and motivating. I thank Shogun for giving me this opportunity. I’m sure we’ll put on a great fight again.”
The two legends of the sport share a history together. They first met 15 years ago in PRIDE, where it was Rua who won via decision. Both men had a rematch at UFC 190, where Antonio Rogerio Nogueira was once again on the receiving end of a close decision loss.
Since then, Rogerio Nogueira has been asking Dana White for the trilogy and now gets his wish at UFC 250. He believes that it is a good fight to finish his legendary career on.
“I was looking for a fight that made sense for me and this fight with Shogun makes lot of sense for me because we started it in 2005 with one of the most memorable fights in MMA history. One of the best in PRIDE history,” Nogueira said. “That fight in 2005 was very, very close. I believe I had the advantage, but they gave it to him. But the fight we did in 2015, I’m fully aware that I won the first two rounds. He took me down in the third round, but that fight was mine.
“I contested that decision a lot and Dana White even promised me a rematch,” he said. “Five years later, I have the opportunity to fight him again. It’s the fight that makes sense for me to come back.”
This article first appeared on CLOSEDGUARDMEDIA.com on 28th February, 2020.
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