UFC targets ‘Shogun’ Rua vs. ‘Minotouro’ Nogueira 3 for Fight Island card in July

Mauricio Rua and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira fought each other under the PRIDE and UFC banners. | Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

The trilogy bout between Mauricio Rua and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira is once again in UFC’s plans, company president Dana White announced in an interview with Steve-O.

The targeted date for the fight is July 25 at UFC’s Fight Island. Sources close to both camps told MMA Fighting the match is verbally agreed but contracts have yet to be signed.

Rua vs. Nogueira 3 was originally scheduled for May 9 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, but the promotion was forced to cancel the pay-per-view show in Brazil due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“Shogun” is a former UFC and PRIDE titleholder with a 26-11-1 record in MMA, which includes two close decision victories over Nogueira. The Brazilian veteran only lost one of his last six bouts dating back to 2015, a run that includes knockouts over Gian Villante and Tyson Pedro and a recent draw with Paul Craig.

Nogueira (23-9) has previously announced that he will make the Rua trilogy the last fight of his 19-year-long MMA career. The PRIDE veteran competes in the octagon since 2009, scoring key victories over former champions Tito Ortiz and Rashad Evans as well as knockouts over Patrick Cummins and Sam Alvey.

The July 25 UFC event will be headlined by a middleweight showdown between former 185-pound champion Robert Whittaker and former welterweight contender Darren Till. The promotion has yet to announce the location of the island.