Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua Wants To Be World Champion Again

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has no intention of leaving the UFC after his loss to Chael Sonnen at UFC Fight Night 26 Saturday night.

“I have 11 years in MMA and Vale Tudo, I won everything I always wanted. I achieved everything I dreamed, but I want to do that again,” Rua said in a press release. “I still want many victories; I still want to become the world champion again. Who decides when I will stop (fighting) or not is myself, no one else. Thank God I’m financially stable, and I keep fighting because I love it.”

Sonnen submitted Rua by guillotine choke at 4:47 in the first round. The loss gave 31-year-old Rua his first losing streak in his nearly 11-year professional MMA career. Rua previously lost to Alexander Gustafsson by unanimous decision at UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz in December 2012.

“Mauricio invested a lot in this camp, trained with the best, went to the United States to learn new techniques, so we decided to maintain the same team,” Rua’s manager, Leonardo Salomao, said.

“He trained with Freddie Roach in the US, took Jacob Harman to Curitiba, had the support of Glaube Feitosa, Roberto Gordo and Renato Babalu on his corner,” Salomao added. “He was really well prepared, but Sonnen was better. Mauricio is a winner and I’m sure he will be back.”

After the fight, Rua’s brother and former cornerman, Murilo Rua, blamed “shady people” for the loss. He said his brother needs a head coach he can listen to, and that people around him are “trying to take advantage” of Shogun.

“People from his camp said I wasn’t good for Mauricio because I made him nervous when I was on his corner, and he listened to that, so I decided to leave,” he said. “If something is wrong I would point it out, I wouldn’t just lie to please him.”

Mauricio Rua, for his part, isn’t worried about what the loss means for his career, and thanked his fans for their support.

“I’m a big fan of Ayrton Senna, but I didn’t think he was bad when he lost. I was a true fan, I admired him for what he did, winning or losing,” he said. “His name is in history now and I believe mine will be in the history of MMA. I thank the fans for their words on social media, you are very important for me.”