Shogun Rua: Beating Brandon Vera will get me back on track towards the belt
Posted on June 26, 2012, 12:59 PM by Mike DrahotaMauricio "Shogun" Rua speaks about his next fight in a video interview courtesy of FuelTV.com. He says he has no disrespect for rumored opponent Glover Texeira, only that he would rather fight Brandon Vera because he has spent a greater amount of time in the UFC. Shogun's ultimate goal is obviously to get back the Light Heavyweight title that he lost to Jon Jones in early 2011. Shogun is looking for big names, and wanted to fight Rampage Jackson, but said that he is excited to fight Brandon Vera live from Los Angeles on August 4th at UFC on Fox 4.
Further Reading: Shogun Rua and the UFC are back on the same page
Comments
Why would a win not? I don't think he means that Vera will push him up the rank Just think he meant that winning will build him confidence to keep pushing up the ladder again.
Dana should of kept quite about him turning down Texiera that shit should be confidential, how can other fighters trust what they say to Dana now. That being said I cant look at Shogun having a meaningful fight with Vera knowing that he didnt want nothing to do with Texiera
it is a loose loose situation for Shogun, This is bussiness he makes his money fighting, Fighting a nobody and loosing obvious rly bad for bussiness. He wants to Win this fight and go up the ladder for a bigger pay day against say rampage or a bigger name, which equals more money more exposure to show he is back out there. From a Bussiness prespective it makes no sense to put in the work for a small pay off. Even if he destroys Glover still bad for bussiness. Non hard core fans dont care if he beats this guy no one knos him and no one cares.
Shogun is past the point of proving himself it is about money now
I'm kinda torn on that topic, too... whether or not these matters should be kept confidential. It's definitely abnormal in professional sports to have this level of transparency. On the other hand, it keeps everybody honest. Look at the Pacquiao/Mayweather fiasco... who knows what to believe or who's dodging whom. But who's to say that's any of our business anyhow...
Dana is a douch, dont we all know that already....
But that being said, if he actually stands with Vera, and still won, it would be very impressive. I've been looking forward to this because I hope he will stand with him. Very few men have stood with Vera for long, and Vera's striking has gotten so brilliant in some ways. It's kind of a treat just to actually see it sometime now, without someone diving in for a takedown or a clinch whenever they can.
I would like to know the truth..if thats what it is...
Dana defenitly messing with shogun, ducking happens a lot of time and we don't hear about specifix, dana putting the fire at shogun !
Off course i do think knowing he ducked teixera and taking on vera makes him look like a former contender!
Should vera get another fight now (if he losses) because he takes on shogun, i hope so !
he is a former contender...........
He is no where near No.1 or 2....
glover is a scary dude
He didn't look scary in his last fight. Good, yes. Scary, no.
Shogun would kill Glover. Let the dude get some meaningful wins before he faces someone on Shoguns level. A win over Kyle Kingsbury does not earn you a fight with Shogun.
imo it still was a better fight then with Vera
I agree Dray at least a little bit, although I don't think he'd kill Glover. Glover and Vera aren't too far away from each other in rankings. Both present different skill sets and challenges, but one is well known to casual fans (Vera), and the other is not.
In a perfect world I don't think either "earned" a fight with Shogun (who IMO is still a top 5 LHW and 2nd best LHW of all-time), but if one of them had to get it (With Dan turning the fight down, and I guess Bader, Davis, Gustaffson, Lil Nog no where to be found) I have no problem with it being Vera.
an ignorant post by dray12?!?!?! imagine that....
He didnt just turn it down though Shogun said he would rather retire than to have to fight Glover.
That's what a few media reports said (that were spread by Dana). Shogun completely denied those reports though and pretty much called Dana a liar.
http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2012/06/15/mauricio-rua-calls-dana-white-a-liar-regarding-glover-teixeira-allegation/
According to DW
Dana is full of sh*t as usual....also place your money bets on Rua if you like money
I think he means in a parallel universe. Vera really?
C mon on paper this is a top 5 vs top ??? 30 ? It does make shogun look weak, i know he isn't, but it smells, taste and lookes like miauuuw!
I think a lot of folks are putting the cart before the horse with this fight. Does Brandon Vera deserve this fight? No. Does Rua deserve to be the big favorite? Of course.
However, does Vera's kickboxing match up with Rua? Absolutely. Does either side hold a distinct advantage in wrestling? I would have to say no. Is Rua what he used to be? Personally, I don't think so.
I understand a lot of people don't like Brandon at all, but this fight is a lot closer than people think. It also is shot at coming back from the dead for Vera, which I think makes him even more dangerous.
Vera actually has really good Greco
Your right and wrong. Everything you said about Vera's skill set is accurate but he is liked by a lot of fans he comes across as a cool dude who'd you'd like to hang with. However he's a ''flake'' he just doesn't seem able to get the best out of himself. At the end of the day I don't believe fighting Vera or Texiera will effect who Dana or Shelby pick for him next if he wins. I've also seen some people moaning that Dana exposed him but they wouldn't be saying that if it were Bisping or another unpopular fighter.
I don't really understand what you are saying I'm wrong about. Vera is disliked by most of the hardcore fan base because of his failing in big moments, confidence bordering on arrogance at times, and his sense of entitlement (or all three). Sure there could be some that want to hang out with him because he seems cool, but they are definitely in the minority when it comes to non casuals.
....Pick a guy you know you can beat....good strategy....if you wanna look like a pussy!
Or post in a forum calling fighters pussies ad prove it??
No one knows who Teixeira is just yet, thats why turned that fight down. Everyone knows Vera. No one knows Teixeira fought 5 times last year, no one know's his last 3 wins were against Kyle Kingsbury, Ricco Rodriguez and Marvin Eastman, no one knows Teixeira beat the marcio cruz that beat Frank Mir, but everyone knows who brandon vera is. Let Teixeira beat a current UFC "NAME" then give shogun the fight again....
Wiki pro over hear.... Lol
Not a very good point your just copying. Anyone can look up his record. Vera also beat Mir, in fact knocked him out. And if you think Eastman or Rodriguez is anywhere close to the level of UFC fighters then you sir are sadly mistaken.
I understand Shogun. Even though Teixeira has a good record he still has to climb the ladder in the UFC IMO.
my point exactly, how many prospect come into the ufc with solid records to just drop fights right away, let teixeira beat vera and and say lil nog and i'd bet money shogun doesn't turn the fight down
Totally agree with Hmadrigal.
understandable...
to face glover would be a really stupid matchup for shogun...
Vera is not up there but he faced some BIG names including Jones...
Speaking of Jones, Rua did a lot better against him than Vera. It's MMAth but it counts for something.
Sorry, Shogun's logic doesn't add up. Vera might be better known, but lately, for being on the verge of being cut from the UFC.
Glover might not be as well known as Vera, but the perception is that his career is going in the other direction, ie up.
He might not be a big name yet, and is still unproven against top competition, but he has more positive indicators.
A loss is bad news for Shogun no matter what, but beating a young prospect would do a lot more than a win over a guy who hasn't beat anyone good in years.