Report: Rashad Evans still looking to meet fellow former UFC champ 'Shogun' Rua

Rashad Evans

Rashad Evans was supposed to fight Mauricio Rua for the UFC light heavyweight title nearly five years ago. “Shogun” may no longer hold the belt, but Evans said he still wants that opportunity.

Evans (19-4-1 MMA, 14-4-1 UFC) had a scheduled fight against then-champion Rua (23-10 MMA, 7-8 UFC) at UFC 128 in March 2011. He suffered an injury, though, and was forced out of the contest. That allowed Jon Jones to step in as a replacement, and “Bones” dominated his way to the title to begin the greatest 205-pound reign in UFC history.

Both Evans and Rua have experienced many ups and downs since their original matchup fell apart, but according to Ariel Helwani on FOX Sports 1’s “UFC Tonight,” “Suga” still wants to see the bout come to fruition once Rua recovers from a recent shoulder surgery.

According to the report, Ali Abdel-Aziz, one of Evans’ managers, asked the UFC for the fight around March. Evans’ camp believes the fight could be a five-round main event, Helwani reported.

Rua underwent the surgery following a unanimous decision victory over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 190 in August. The contest marked a rematch of the 2005 “Fight of the Year,” which Rua also won by decision.

Although the second fight with Nogueira didn’t equal the first, Rua left the cage with a much-needed victory after he experienced a two-fight losing skid in 2014 with knockout losses to Ovince Saint Preux and Dan Henderson.

Evans would also be in need of a big win after his return fight at UFC 192 in October did not produce the expected result. The former UFC champ suffered a unanimous decision loss to Ryan Bader in his first fight in nearly two years.

After stringing together back-to-back wins over Chael Sonnen and Henderson in 2013, various injuries kept Evans out of action for an extended time period. The 36-year-old was confident he’d return to his former self against Bader, but delivered a lackluster performance in defeat.

Although Evans would like the fight with Rua to take place around March, Rua’s management team reportedly said he is still waiting to be medically cleared for competition and is not yet prepared to sign a bout agreement.

For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.