For the first time in their UFC careers, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and twin brother Antonio Rogerio Nogueira will compete on the same card at UFC 119. Rodrigo will face Frank Mir for the second time, while Rogerio takes on the unbeaten Ryan “Darth” Bader. MMAFighting.com and MMAWeekly.com were first to report on the fights, respectively.
Rodrigo, the former PRIDE and UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion, was stopped for the first time in his storied career when he faced Mir at UFC 92. Rogerio most recently edged Jason “The Hitman” Brilz at UFC 114.
Rodrigo (32-6-1, 1 NC) became a legend in Pride Fighting Championships and holds wins over a who’s who of the sport. Though he failed to defeat “The Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko in three attempts, Nogueira cemented his place as one of the very best heavyweights to ever compete in mixed martial arts. However, years of wars have taken their toll and he is just 3-2 in five appearances inside the Octagon. More telling, the once granite chin of Nogueira has begun to falter and he has been knocked out – by Mir and by top contender Cain Velasquez – in recent outings.
Mir (13-5-0) was once passed off as an afterthought in the heavyweight division after he was forced to relinquish the UFC Heavyweight Championship following a serious motorcycle accident. However, after a crushing loss to Brandon “The Truth” Vera, Mir revived his career and picked up back-to-back wins over Nogueira in their first meeting and current champ Brock Lesnar. Mir has struggled since then and has won just once in three fights. He was soundly beaten by Shane Carwin at UFC 111, but could get back in the title hunt with a second victory over Nogueira at UFC 119.
Rogerio (19-3-0) has not yet attained the same success as his brother, but also made a name for himself in PRIDE and picked up a number of impressive victories. Most notably, he holds wins over Japanese legend Kazushi Sakuraba, former PRIDE two-division champ Dan Henderson and current Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair “Demolition Man” Overeem (twice). While still unbeaten in the UFC, Nogueira did not put on his best performance in the bout with Brilz at UFC 114 and was very fortunate to escape with a controversial Split Decision victory.
Bader (11-0-0), the winner of Season 8 of The Ultimate Fighter reality show, has yet to taste defeat in his career and is coming off of his biggest victory to date. That win occurred at UFC 110 when Bader knocked out Keith Jardine in the third round. The win showed that Bader could compete among the best in the division, but he will face another tough test at UFC 119. Known for his looping overhand rights, Bader’s best chance to end the fight will likely come via knockout, as testing Rogerio’s ground game could spell disaster for the Arizona native.
UFC 119 is targeted for September 25th at the Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
UFC 119 Fight Card (to date; subject to change):
– Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira vs Frank Mir 2
– Antonio Rogerio “Minotoro” Nogueira vs Ryan “Darth” Bader
– Evan Dunham vs Sean “The Muscle Shark” Sherk
– Melvin “The Young Assassin” Guillard vs Jeremy “Lil’ Heathen” Stephens
– C.B. “The Doberman” Dollaway vs Joe “El Dirte” Doerksen
– Joey “The Mexicutioner” Beltran vs Matt Mitrione
– T.J. Grant vs Julio Paulino
**No fights on the card have been officially announced.
(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)