(photo taken from ufc.com)
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has inked a deal to fight Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida according to some sources courtesy of the superlutas.com.br website. Machida will look to defend the light heavyweight title for the very first time in his UFC career.
The Karate fighter currently holds an undefeated MMA record of 15-0 and is 7-0 in the UFC. Machida acquired the 205-pound belt after defeating Rashad “Sugar” Evans via TKO (strikes) in the second round. The elusive Brazilian will look to use his Machida Karate once again to defeat the former champion of the PrideFC 2005 middleweight grand prix.
Shogun is currently riding a 2-fight win streak with TKO wins over former UFC heavyweight champion Mark “The Hammer” Coleman at UFC 93 and then over former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell at UFC 97.
UFC President Dana White told media that Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Rashad Evans would be coaches of the next Ultimate Fighter 10 season. The breaking news would then reveal Shogun as the #1 title contender for the 205-pound division. The former Brazilian Chute Boxe fighter is expected to headline the UFC 104 fight card on October 24th at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Calfornia. Although it appears that Shogun inked a deal to fight for the title, we’ll have to wait for Machida to come back from his short vacation to sign his part of the contract as well.
Stay tuned…
