Nogueira Wins At Jungle Fight: Ceará

by Robert Sargent

Competing in his native Brazil for the first time in his career, Antonio Rogerio "Minotoro" Nogueira, twin brother of current UFC heavyweight star Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, picked up an impressive submission victory over Dion Staring.

The bout, which took place at a Jungle Fight event in Ceará, Brazil, saw Nogueira dominate the first round with strikes before finishing with a triangle choke in round two.

Nogueira (17-3-0), who made his name in the former Pride Fighting Championships promotion in Japan alongside his twin brother, had never competed in his native Brazil before. In Staring (15-6-0), who trains with the famed Golden Glory camp in Holland, Nogueira faced a very talented striker. However, Nogueira's boxing experience and knees in the clinch reduced Staring to a beaten and bloody mess in round one.

Aggressive right from the opening bell, Nogueira punished Staring with punches and knees, which dropped Staring multiple times and cut him badly. To his credit, Staring pressed on and refused to be knocked out, but Nogueira floored him two more times with strikes in round two. Nogueira looked to finish the fight with strikes, but then chose to pull guard and locked on a tight triangle choke. Staring had no choice but to submit. The official time was 3:59 of round two.

The victory was Nogueira's fifth in a row since his shocking 23-second knockout loss to Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou at PRIDE 33. That fight remains as one of the biggest upsets in recent mixed martial arts history.

Working diligently on his striking, Nogueira's ground game remains among the best in the light heavyweight division, and he poses serious threats for anyone at 205 pounds. Though he has been content to compete outside of the UFC, where his twin brother now fights, it would not be out of the question to see Nogueira debut with the promotion in the near future.


While the UFC's light heavyweight division is convoluted and top-heavy, Nogueira could potentially challenge the best of the best, if given the chance. His ultra-competitive 2005 fight with current top contender Mauricio "Shogun" Rua was one of the best fights in PRIDE's history.