Antonio Rogerio Nogueira says Shogun Rua trilogy will be his ‘farewell fight’

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira expects to end his legendary career at UFC 250 when he has his trilogy fight against Shogun Rua.

Nogueira hasn’t fought since he was knocked out by Ryan Spann back at UFC 237. The 43-year-old Brazilian legend is just 4-6 in his last 10, so he says this fight against Rua will be his farewell fight.

“This fight will probably be the last fight of my career, my farewell fight,” Antonio Rogerio Nogueira said to 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.”

Why he wanted this fight so badly was simple. The two have a history as they first fought 15 years ago in PRIDE where it was Rua who won by decision. They then had a rematch at UFC 190 where Antonio Rogerio Nogueira lost a close decision again.

Since that fight, he has been asking Dana White for the trilogy and now gets his wish at UFC 250. So, he says it is a good fight to end his 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.”

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This article first appeared on BJPENN.com on 2/27/2020.