Shogun: Rampage and I won’t retire until we fight again
Mauricio Shogun Rua and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson each lost their last fight, to Dan Henderson, and Ryan Bader respectively. The two…
Mauricio Shogun Rua and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson each lost their last fight, to Dan Henderson, and Ryan Bader respectively. The two fought six years ago, with Shogun winning in the first. Now in an exclusive interveiw with Tatame, Shogun reveals he thinks a rematch is inevitable.
Guilherme Cruz: What’s next? They’ve talked about Phil Davis and Rampage Jackson.
Shogun Rua: I guess it could be one of these guys. I don’t discard Ryan Bader nor Rampage, Dan Henderson, Rich Franklin… I guess there are many guys I could fight. Actually, soon I’ll know more about it and I’ll keep you posted. I’m sure I’ll train focused on my opponent and he’s going to be a hard one.
GC: Rampage was defeated last Saturday (25th) at UFC Japan. Did you want to fight there?
SR: Absolutely. It was in Japan where I appeared to the world. I missed it there. I like the Japanese people, I really like Japan.
GC:So, talking about the old days … Would you like to rematch Rampage?
SR: Absolutely. The fight against Rampage will happen eventually. It’s inevitable and UFC knows it. He won’t retire before fighting me and neither am I (laughs).
GC: Were you surprised by his performance against Ryan Bader?
SR: It’s hard to tell because we don’t know what happens to each and every fighter. I don’t know if he got injured, if he was not feeling ok … It’s hard to know, but Rampage is very professional and deserves to be respected.
GC: Do you want to fight on the next edition of UFC in Brazil, in June?
SR: Of couse I want to fight at UFC Sao Paulo.
GC: Who is your new manager?
SR: Actually I rather not comment because I want UFC to know him first and then I’ll release it to the press.