‘Shogun’ Rua: Retirement doesn’t make sense
Mauricio Rua: “Not at all, it never really crossed my mind…Much to the contrary, I was always planning on continuing to fight.
At thirty two years of age and haven fought professionally for twelve years, Mauricio Rua has no plans for retirement, despite what some media, fans, and his family may think:
“Not at all, it never really crossed my mind,” Rua said about retirement. “Much to the contrary, I was always planning on continuing to fight. If I’m the guy going in there fighting and I’m happy doing it and the UFC is the promotion that hires and promotes my fights and they are happy with having me on the show, then why would I stop fighting?
“It doesn’t make much sense. It never really crossed my mind.”
Rua did reveal recently that his family wanted him to retire, but that’s something he’s been dealing with for years apparently. Rua says his wife, mother and other members of his family aren’t huge MMA fans, so seeing him come home bruised up or with a broken bone immediately sends them into a panic — whereas he’s just looking to heal up and get back to action again.
“It doesn’t really bother me or hinder me in any way. My mom and my wife, they don’t really understand much about fighting, and they’re naturally worried with my well-being, with my health and everything. I think every fighter probably goes through that at some point,” Rua explained.
“I understand they worry and I understand they care about me. I also understand they don’t understand much about fighting, so I don’t really get bothered by it; it doesn’t hinder me at all. It’s natural. I know what I’m doing. It’s part of the game, and my family is being my family.”
