Rogério Minotouro confirms retirement after trilogy against Maurício Shogun, in May

Representative of the 'old guard' of MMA, Rogério Minotouro is close to having the last fight of his career. After the confirmation of the trilogy against Mauritius Shogun in the struggle that takes place in UFC 250, in São Paulo, on May 6, the Brazilian stated that the fight against his compatriot will represent his last commitment as a professional in mixed martial arts. The statement was made in a statement sent to the press.

“It will be the last fight of my career. It will be my farewell. So, it makes sense that it would be against (Maurício) Shogun. It will be challenging and, at the same time, motivating to have this rematch. I thank Shogun for giving me this opportunity. I'm sure we'll have a great fight again”, said the athlete.

The first time they faced each other, in 2005, playing for the now-defunct PRIDE, the Brazilians staged one of the most exciting fights in the history of the sport. On that occasion, Shogun won the unanimous decision of the judges in a very balanced confrontation.

10 years later, in 2015, now in Ultimate, the athletes met again. Far from the best moment in their careers, the combatants once again fought a balanced confrontation but, in a decision contested by Minotouro, Maurício once again emerged victorious in the judges' decision. After not agreeing with the defeat in the last meeting, Rogério stated that a new dispute was always in his thoughts and, now, this chance was provided.

“I really contested the result and Dana White had promised me a rematch. Now, five years later, I have the opportunity to fight him again”, he said.

With a long history of injuries, Minotouro realized that retirement was imminent. So, thinking about a farewell in style, the athlete stated that there is no one better than Maurício to share the experience.

“I was out of action for a while due to a back injury. I was preparing to fight at the end of last year, but I had to cancel the fight. Now that I've recovered, I was looking for a fight that made sense to me, and this fight with 'Shogun' makes a lot of sense to me. We faced each other for the first time in 2005, where we had one of the most talked about fights in history, one of the best fights in PRIDE history. In 2015 I had the opportunity to do a rematch with the UFC. This fight was also very even. I am fully aware that I won the first two rounds, but the judges gave him the victory”, he concluded.

At 43 years old, Minotouro, in May, will reach the mark of 33 appearances since turning professional in MMA. In total, the Brazilian has 23 wins and nine defeats on his record.