Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs Cain Velasquez rescheduled for UFC 109 on Feb. 6
Former UFC interim heavyweight champion and mixed martial arts legend, Antonio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira, is expected take on undefeated rising star Cain Velasquez at UFC 108, which is slated for Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 6, 2010.
Nogueira and and Velasquez were supposed to hook 'em up in the UFC 108 main event on Jan. 2, 2010; however; "Big Nog" came down with a serious case of staph infection, which forced him to withdraw from the bout.
He clearly did not want to make the same mistake twice in a high profile and very important bout -- Nogueira revealed after his lopsided technical knockout loss to Frank Mir that he had been hospitalized several days prior to fight night with a severe staph infection.
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A highly anticipated heavyweight matchup between Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (32-5-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) and Cain Velasquez (7-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) may take place Down Under.
Despite reports circulating today that Nogueira and Velasquez will meet at UFC 109 in Las Vegas, MMAjunkie.com (
www.mmajunkie.com) has learned from sources close to the organization that the UFC is actually leaning toward booking the fight for UFC 110 in Australia.
Verbal agreements are in place for the contest, though bout agreements have not yet been finalized.
Nogueira and Velasquez were expected to meet in the main event of UFC 108 on Jan. 2, but a severe case of staph infection forced "Minotauro" out of the bout.
Nogueira has since undergone treatment for the infection and recently told MMAWeekly.com that he would be ready to fight in February – and that he would love to fight in Australia.
"In February, I think I’ll be in shape," Nogueira said. "I'd love to fight in Australia. If they put me on the card, I would love to fight there."
Prior to the cancellation of the Jan. 2 bout, UFC president Dana White announced that the winner of the contest would receive a heavyweight title shot.