Sokoudjou Explains Why He Called Out ‘Shogun’ Rua
(”The African Assassin” in a quiet moment of shirtless reflection.)
In case you missed it, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou had a brief, but memorable message for Mauricio “Shogun” Rua following his victory over Kazuhiro Nakamura at UFC 84. All right, it wasn’t much of a message. He basically just said “Shogun”, and left it at that, but something tells me he wasn’t referencing the James Clavell novel. These remarks only confirm my suspicion:
“I would love to fight that guy. I’ve tried to fight him ever since I fought in Pride and he’s been ducking me. Shogun has been ducking me since the Pride days. Shogun’s camp told me that to fight him, I had to fight [Evangelista] Cyborg [Santos] first. I told them I want to fight Shogun, not Cyborg, and then Pride went away and now he’s in the UFC and he hasn’t fought for a minute. I know he got injured for his last fight, but I think by the time I’m ready to fight again hopefully he should be ready and will take the fight.”
Well, now he’s gone and done it. It was one thing to subtly call out “Shogun” on the UFC broadcast, but if the storied history of Chute Boxe in Pride has taught us anything it’s that accusing a Brazilian of ducking you is the quickest way to send him into a murderous rage. Who knows, it might just the motivation that the oft-injured Rua needs to get back in the Octagon. No way can he let this slide.
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May 29th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
Rua will bet this guy easy. He couldnt even last 3 rounds with Loyoto and he thinks he’s going to bet Shogun?? Dude……
May 29th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
Rua will bet this guy easy. He couldnt even last 3 rounds with Loyoto and he thinks he’s going to beat Shogun?? Dude……
May 29th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
Mayhem I’m not sure you’re correct about that…..if Shogun continues to blow out his knee and end up spending most of the year in the hospital as with this year, I think Sokoudjou or anyone else will end up beating him.
May 29th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
to see some redemption from houston alexander and sokoudjou.. they should have a fight card with them both on it and host in detriot or something haha
May 29th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
I Seriously needs to explain that detroit line….There black people everywere
Anyway
F*CK yeah Blood Feud
May 29th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
shogun would and will win this fight, if it ever happens with sokoudjou. shogun has fought and beat some of the top fighters in the world, sokoudjou has beat noone of the sort. i agree that sokoudjou should have to beat a few good men to earn a fight with shogun. who does sokoudjou think he is?? some sort of gift to fighting???
May 29th, 2008 at 9:02 pm
wow the light heavyweight division is seriously stacked right now. this guy looks good shoguns obviously nasty, machida is still undefeated, rampage and griffin fighting for the title, lidell still trying to come back, wanderlei knocks out jardine, pluse rashad evans is still undefeated. alexander houston lost two in a row but he is still a beast, and james irvin just knocked him out in one punch! and thiago silva has knocked out irvin, and houston, and is still undefeated. there are gonna be a lot of great light heavyweight fights coming up. rampage is gonna have his hands full.
May 30th, 2008 at 6:49 am
ever since shogun got injured everyone and there mother thinks they can beat shogun…hell forest barely did it while he was injured
May 30th, 2008 at 8:02 am
I was depressed a few days after that bout… but Forest didn’t barely beat Shogun. Choked him and made him tap.
May 30th, 2008 at 8:20 am
sokoudjou was under too much pressure when fighting loyoto
May 30th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
My god, the way people are writing off Shogun it is comical. Use some critical thinking. Up until the point he got choked by Forrest that fight was a draw. I honestly had no idea who would win. Now add this. Shogun had just got married, had a honeymoon, and had moved to the us, finding a house all of this stuff. Now add this. He had a torn acl during that fight. Basketball players and football players, soccer players, they are out the whole year with that injury. This guy was in a cage fighting, with all the pressure of the world on him, with a torn acl, and he still almost won. If anything it shows how a great a fighter he is. Of course he gassed, when your knee is injured you cant train properly. He should not have fought that fight. How he did was remarkable. I think Sokoudjou is a top ten lightheavyweight, easily. But Shogun would kick his ass. This guy was on a tear, where he was fighting the best out there, and had not lost in 3 or more years. In MMA that is amazing. And he is just now entering his prime. Think about it.
June 1st, 2008 at 4:43 am
shogun will ko him like sokous firts mma fight. What has shogun proven..? a lot, what did sokou prove, nothing yet
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:02 am
2 sec’s left = barely won the fight