Nov-17-2009

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira – Here Comes The Brother

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By Thomas Gerbasi

The names are almost identical, as are the faces – like you would expect from identical twins – but when it comes to their fighting careers, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is, as his brother Antonio Rogerio Nogueira states, “a master”, winner of heavyweight titles in PRIDE and the UFC and certainly on his way to the history books as one of the greatest big men ever to put on the gloves in mixed martial arts.

But this is not one of those stories where one brother so far surpasses the other as to make any comparisons laughable. In the case of the Nogueira brothers, Rogerio - or “Minotouro” – is a world-class fighter in his own right, and beginning this Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, he gets his first chance to show UFC fans just what he can do.

“For more than three years, UFC was my goal and now I’m just very happy to be here in the best event,” Rogerio told UFC.com through translator Derek Kronig Lee. “The UFC has the best talent in the world, and I feel like now I’m going to be challenged like I’ve never been challenged before in my career.”

That’s saying something, considering that the eight year pro has competed against some of the best in the world for that long, including ten fights in PRIDE where he only lost twice. Rogerio isn’t the “other” brother; he’s a threat to the UFC’s light heavyweights all on his own, and he’s intent on making an immediate statement when he takes on countryman Luiz “Banha” Cane this Saturday night. It’s no gimme for the 33-year old newcomer.

“He is a tough guy with a very heavy left hand,” said Nogueira of Cane. “It will be a great fight.”

Given his past history, that’s probably a safe bet, and despite his black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Rogerio brings more standup to the Octagon than his brother, having competed successfully in amateur boxing back in Brazil for many years and even taking a Bronze medal in the 2007 Pan American Games. But Nogueira has no desire to follow in the footsteps of countryman Acelino ‘Popo’ Freitas as a Brazilian world boxing champion. He’s going to stick with the family business.

“It’s hard to say how I’d do in boxing,” he admits. “I definitely thought about fighting in professional boxing, but it’s a grueling and long career, and I’m already 33 years old, so I’d rather stick to what’s best, which is MMA. I want to stick to my goal, which is to be in the mix in the UFC and be one of the best guys in this category.”

Already established as one of the best 205-pounders worldwide, Nogueira (17-3) holds wins over Dan Henderson, Tsuyoshi Kosaka, Guy Mezger, Kazuhiro Nakamura (twice), Alistair Overeem (twice), and Edwin Dewees, with his only losses coming to Vladimir Matyushenko (a defeat avenged in January of 2009), Rameau Sokoudjou, and a man who has made quite a bit of noise in the UFC recently after coming over from PRIDE, Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua. And it’s no exaggeration to say that the Rua-Nogueira bout in 2005 (won by Shogun via decision) was one of the best PRIDE fights in history. Nogueira has no qualms about doing it again either.

“That was a great fight and I think that all the fans are going to be asking for that fight to happen again and I would like for it to happen,” said Nogueira, who hopes to avoid the problems other PRIDE vets have had in adjusting to life in the Octagon. Luckily, he has his brother to advise him.

“Rodrigo’s taught me a lot of things,” said Rogerio, who was with his brother in San Diego up until a reoccurring staph infection sidelined the heavyweight contender and forced him out of a January bout with Cain Velasquez. “We’ve been training in the cage and he gives me a lot of hints about fighting in the cage also. I’m very fortunate to have my brother by my side and in my corner.”

And the relationship goes deeper than just what happens in the gym and in competition. The two are inseparable, and while they are twins, Rogerio looks up to Rodrigo as a sort of big brother.

“Rodrigo started out ahead of me in the fight game and he was always my biggest motivation to start fighting, because I wanted to follow in his footsteps,” said Rogerio. “I feel like I’m really lucky to have someone like my brother with me all the time, and he’s a big inspiration. I feel like my brother’s more like a master when we’re training, and it’s a strong connection that we have.”

Now it’s like Rodrigo is sending Rogerio off to his first day in a new school, with the light heavyweight Nogueira walking into a shark’s tank of 205-pound contenders. But this isn’t the first time around for the Brazilian standout, even if it is his first time in front of UFC viewers. Whatever the case, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira is looking forward to introducing himself to a new set of fans while continuing to fight for his already sizeable base of followers.

“I think that all the new fans who are going to be watching for the first time are going to be watching a great fight,” he said. “The fans can expect to see a very well-trained and well-prepared athlete who’s very focused and determined to win. I know that I carry a lot of weight on my back due to my brother and all the expectations, but I’m very thankful to my fans from throughout the years who are willing to tune in to watch me fight every time and who can’t wait to see me fight again.”