Shogun Rua and the UFC are back on the same page
Posted on June 14, 2012, 02:54 PM by Mike Drahota
Recently, Dana White stated that Mauricio Shogun Rua was taking the strong stance of rather being cut by the UFC than fight Glover Texeira. Texeira was considered as the next opponent for Rua after his original opponent Thiago Silva was injured before their UFC on Fox 4 bout. This seemed to have caused some controversy between White and Rua's team, who ultimately settled on a fight with Brandon Vera as the event's headliner. When asked about White's insinuation, Rua's manager Julio Heller stepped up to clarify the situation and dispel any notions of a rift between his prized fighter and the UFC, via MMAFighting.com:
"We want to look to the future, not the past. We have respect for Dana White and his opinion.”
These short, simple comments would suggest that Rua is not taking such a hard-headed stance on the subject, and would like to stay in the good graces of the world's largest MMA organization. While White may have been angered by his apparent refusal to face Texeira, who returned to submit Kyle Kingsbury at UFC 146 in under two minutes, it now appears the two sides are on level ground.
Many thought that a fight with Texeira was a type of lose-lose situation for Rua where a win would do little for his case but a loss could be potentially devastating. It can be wholly argued that facing Brandon Vera is exactly the same thing. The acceptance of the Vera fight shows that Rua's team wants to stay in the UFC and will work with them to book fights when injuries arise. Heller responded with a simple question when asked if Shogun would rather be cut than fight Texeira:
“What do you think?”
So the controversy surrounding Shogun has dissipated for now, and we will have to tune in on August 4th to see how one of the world's best Light Heavyweights will perform.
Comments
MMA is a business for top level fighters and the teams which surround them... Shogun is a business, he has other people to take care of other than himself... He's getting to the end of his career and needs to make sure he's not taking too much damage...
At a certain point in any pro's career, ego has to be put to one side for the greater good...
On a personal note, I know how it feels to be my coaches, and my coaches brothers sparring partner... I would choose to avoid them if possible, but it's not, if Shogan can avoid a guy who he thinks will take him out, fair enough... I know the feeling:)
That being said I have completely lost the fear of being knocked out and do well against much heavier guts because I can relax and focus on my own game rather than avoiding theirs.
Anyone with the &%ยค# to train hard enough to step inside the ring/ octagon has got my respect... anyone smart enough to know when to duck a fight has probably got a few fights left in them - unlike Wanderlei Silva, I'm worried for that dude.
Well said. Shogun has been through some wars, and really doesn't have much left to prove.
Still, your job is to fight. You are a fighter. You fight whoever is placed in front of you. It is not about proving your worth or your credibility. YOU FIGHT.
I disagree.
Your job is to fight if you are a fighter--but you only fight whoever is placed in front of you if you are bottom to middle of the divisional pack--because you HAVE tio or else you lose your job.
Champs have to always fight whoever they are matched against--but they do have some say if they are long-time champs and the field of contenders is not well-defined.
That leaves a bunch of veteran fighters--who have some fame--and often are former title holders or title contenders. These guys do have a choice and should have a choice. If they are not fighting for ranking in their division--then what is in it for them besides a paycheck?
Promoters are sometimes setup matchips which are advantageous to the promotion, but not advantageous to the fighter.
While these veterans can't be too choosy--they have spilled enough blood for fan's entertainment to have input into their matches--especially if the matchup is a last-minute substitution.
Right.
He's gearing up for one more run, and the last thing he needs is to lose to an unknown fighter (no matter what we hardcores think of Glover, he is an unknown commodity to casuals).
Vera is a much better fight for him right now. More known, and less dangerous lately (although if Vera ever turns it on again he is more than a handful).
Shogun was in a complete 5 round war against Hendo and definetly deserves to consider fights now that help boost his run at another title shot. shogun has proven time and time again how tough he is.
If Shogun makes a successful title run, he will eventually have to fight Glover anyway. You can't win a title and choose your opponent, the UFC decides the number 2 guy you have to face.
FIghters in boxing continually reject fights, make unreasonable conditions to avoid opponents Look at Mayweather trying to avoid Manny by demanding extra blood tests and an unfair purse split.
I don;t see this with Shogun. His camp is taking an educated decision, preserving his career.
What happened to taking a fight against anyone at anytime. I have way more respect for the guys who just say they will fight anyone the UFC wants them to fight. Yea it's smarter for Shogun to fight Vera but he's a fighter. Aren't you supposed to a little more macho when it comes to fighting instead of business like? Idk. Just my opinion.
I see where you're coming from, but ...ummm.... no (IMO obviously). This might be fighting at its base, but its a business almost the same. There are very few guys in the world that straight fight anybody the UFC puts in front of them (no matter if they actaully say it or not) . Most of those aren't and haven't ever been top tier. And every single guy that has had that attitude has conveniently toned it down once they got to the top level.
I've read on several sites that Rua was affraid to fight Glover, and may I say that is some serious bullshit, one of the worst things I've read on the net, f... The keyboard wariors.
Just like Billy from Predator, Shogun "ain't afraid of no man".
Me thinks there is more to this than it appears. To say that Shogun would rather be cut than to fight, seems extreme. There has to be other reasons other than "fear" on Shoguns side.
I think when Shogun did not agree with the last-minute subsitution of Texeira, Dana tried to pressure Shogun to accept the UFC's choice.
Shogun said sorry, not him, and Dana said--if you don't accept this we might have to cut you. So Shogun's says "I would rather be cut than fight him".
Eat that Dana.
That seems to me to be what happened--a battle of wills. Shogun has a good amount of loot--so he told Dana to go fish. Dana was so pissed, he goes public and 'tells all' as he sees it just to slap Shogun and his rep out of pure vindictiveness disguised as being 'honest'.
it was definetly spiteful of Dana, for a guy who just delivered a massive event for UFC fighting hendo. Dana's love is short lived.
I don't believe this is as big a deal as ''people'' are making out. This type of thing happens all the time, the UFC have had over 40 injury pull outs this year. So do you think all those fights got resolved without opponents being rejected ? Dana just decided to be an a-hole an expose this issue which he's faced a million times because he's a big baby who likes to throw his toys out the pram every now again.
Seriously, why do some people blame Shogun because he wants a better fighter than Teixeira?
You have to understand that MMA has changed and you can't fight whoever they want you to fight because if you do so your career will look like shit. Vera may not be extremely better than Glover but a win over a veteran is better for a fighter's career than a win over a guy who's 1-0 in the UFC. That's my opinion.
Seriously, why do some people blame Shogun because he wants a better fighter than Teixeira?
You have to understand that MMA has changed and you can't fight whoever they want you to fight because if you do so your career will look like shit. Vera may not be extremely better than Glover but a win over a veteran is better for a fighter's career than a win over a guy who's 1-0 in the UFC. That's my opinion.
Whoa, deja vu
Shogun is a legend in the sport and is coming off what was arguably the most exciting fight in UFC history. Why Dana would say something that could potentially tarnish Shoguns reputation, I have no idea.
Come on man, Legend status doesn't get revoked just like that. Rampage looked pathetic against Bader are you gonna say he isn't a Legend anymore ?
This BS. Total disrespect from Sh!tgun. No fighter is above any other fighter. A true fighter will fight anyone, anytime. Shogun is afraid to get KTFO by Texeira, which is probably exactly what would happen if they fought. Vera would get the same treatment from Texeira, and is no better a fight for the Great Shogun Rua. Go out like a man Shogun, not a P@SSY.
Last time i checked it was a sport not Mortal Kombat.