Former PRIDE striker Antonio Rogerio Nogueira is teetering on the edge of relevancy -- and maybe even employment -- after consecutive losses to division up-and-comers Ryan Bader and Phil Davis, respectively.
His downfall in both fights was his wrestling, or more specifically, his lack of takedown defense.
That won't be an issue at UFC 133 on August 6 in Philadelphia, as the stellar boxing skills of "Little Nog" will finally get the chance to be on display against the accurate and always dangerous hands of light heavyweight opponent Rich Franklin.
The Brazilian tells Sherdog.com the fear of losing three straight will force him to be "aggressive" and put on a "good fight" against the former "Ace" of the middleweight division:
"It's the most important fight of my career. I have to walk through him and always move forward. I can't accept his game. Franklin is a guy who likes to rush in, and I have to be careful with that. After these two losses, I've got to beat him in a good fight. I've got to knock him out and look for it from the first round. I expect to have a good fight, so people can expect a more aggressive Rogerio, fighting hard and looking for the knockout from the start. I will always look for it against Franklin."Like Nogueira, Franklin has struggled as of late, having last competed against a much larger Forrest Griffin back at UFC 126 on Feb. 5 in Las Vegas.
The original "Ultimate Fighter" bullied the former math teacher, sending him to a three round unanimous decision loss and dropping him to 2-3 over his last five fights.
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