The UFC has confirmed the blockbuster main event between Randy Couture (16-9) and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (31-5-1) for UFC 102 from The Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon on Saturday, August 29. It will be the organization’s first trip to Portland, Oregon.
“We’re extremely excited to be heading to Portland,” UFC President Dana White said. “When you get two mixed martial arts legends that are all heart and have wanted to fight each other for years, plus the fact that Randy has roots in Oregon, that tells me that not only will the crowd be electric but it’s also a night where the fighters will be looking to cement their legacies.”
The dream match-up between “The Natural” and “Minotauro” was a fight many fans wanted to see after Randy Couture took the heavyweight belt from Tim Sylvia back at UFC 68. But Couture engaged in a legal battle with the UFC and sat on the sidelines for over a year.
During that time Nogueira fought the aforementioned Sylvia at UFC 81 for the interim belt. Nogueira went on to capture the belt by submitting Sylvia in the third round.
The dream match-up between “The Natural” and “Minotauro” looked to be back on as fans expected both to win the UFC mini tournament that played out in the second half of last year. Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir played spoiler roles though in the opening round of the mini heavyweight tournament, knocking off Couture and Nogueira respectively. Now the Lesnar-Mir winner will unify the belt at UFC 100 while the Couture-Nogueira winner will likely be the number one contender to the belt.
“Nogueira is the type of fighter that is dangerous everywhere,” Couture said. “He’s difficult to knock out and he’s a world class jiu-jitsu player. I will have to train very diligently and very specifically for him. Also, the fact that I’m fighting in Oregon makes me want to put on a great show and win for these fans.”
“I’m honored to face such a great fighter as Randy Couture,” Nogueira said. “I wanted to fight him for some time now and I know to become a legend you have to beat a legend.”
Also slated for the main card is will light heavyweight divisional gatekeeper Keith Jardine who has been tapped to replace Forrest Griffin in a 205-pound slugfest against hard-hitting Brazilian import Thiago Silva, as well as a potential middleweight title contender eliminator match between Demian Maia and Nate Marquardt.
The current lineup for UFC 102 is as follows:
Main event:
265 lbs.: Randy Couture (16-9) vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (31-5-1)
Main card:
205 lbs.: Keith Jardine (14-5-1) vs. Thiago Silva (13-1)*
185 lbs.: Nate Marquardt (28-8-2) vs. Demian Maia (10-0)*
185 lbs.: Chris Leben (18-6) vs. Jake Rosholt (5-1)*
265 lbs.: Junior dos Santos (8-1) vs. Justin McCully (9-4-2)*
185 lbs.: Chael Sonnen (21-10-1) vs. Wilson Gouveia (12-6)*
Under card:
TBA
*Fight not yet official by UFC.com.
