Antonio "Big Nog" Nogueira: UFC's Unsung Champion

Though he holds the interim heavyweight belt, for all intents and purposes, Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira may soon be known as the undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion.

With the outcome of the Randy Couture, HDNet and Zuffa litigation battle to be arbitrated by a Nevada court, and the possibility that Couture’s resignation from the UFC is finalized, it is reasonable to predict that the matchup between “Big Nog” and Frank Mir later this year will be for the official UFC Heavyweight Championship. That is if Couture is finally stripped of his title.

Nogueira has been proverbially flying under the radar since his debut in the UFC in July 2007, when he beat Heath Herring for the third time. He has fought only once since then, against Tim Sylvia last February for the interim title. However, compared to all the other UFC belt-holders, it seems that he has been receiving the least publicity.

It seems that most of the media’s attention has been focused on fighters like BJ Penn, Georges St. Pierre, Anderson Silva, and the stacked light-heavyweight division. One heavyweight who has gotten a lot of press time lately is Brock Lesnar. However, this is mostly because Nogueira is not as well-acquainted with casual American fight fans, having spent most of his career fighting in Japan.

This should change with the debut of the Ultimate Fighter 8 on September 17, when Nogueira and Mir will be the head coaches to be featured on national television. The weight classes for this season will be light-heavyweight and lightweight. It was confirmed that Nogueira brought in fellow Black House training fighters Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida to train his stable of fighters.

There exists a simple fact known by hardcore MMA fans around the world that is worth repeating here for those who aren’t as well informed. It goes like this: if it wasn’t for a certain Fedor Emelianenko, then Nogueira would be regarded as the greatest fighter in the world and of all time.

Of course, throughout history, if it wasn’t for a few select individuals, a lot of things would have worked out differently. Still, it must be very difficult to accept being second-best at anything, especially a full contact sport such as mixed martial arts.

Nogueira had to learn this lesson the hard way when he lost to Emelianenko twice in PRIDE FC: once where he lost his heavyweight title and a second time which was for the title and the heavyweight Grand Prix Championship.

Other than these two defeats, Nogueira has losses to Dan Henderson and Josh Barnett. But he has since avenged those losses, and the only remaining blemishes on his record are the fights with Emelianenko. If the Russian phenom wasn’t in the mix, Nogueira would be rated as the No. 1 fighter on the planet right now.

Nogueira became PRIDE’s first heavyweight champion in 2001, and for the next two years was the most feared fighter in all of MMA. He has arguably the most impressive resume of any heavyweight fighter, even more so than Emelianenko.

The Brazilian fighter has wins over Fabricio Werdum, Josh Barnett, Bob Sapp, Heath Herring (x3), Sergei Kharitonov, Dan Henderson, Mirko Filipovic, Ricco Rodriguez, Mark Coleman, Gary Goodridge, Pawel Nastula, and Jeremy Horn. Few other fighters, if any, can match the quality of competition that Nogueira has faced.

“Minotauro” is known for his legendary chin and inhuman durability, having never been knocked out or even finished in 37 fights. In fact, not even a truck could put him away, because as a child he was literally run over by a truck.

He spent four days in a coma and eleven months in the hospital before being released. The accident left a huge scar visible on Nogueira’s back, which is the easiest way to distinguish him from his twin brother Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. Rogerio is commonly referred to as "Little Nog," and competes in MMA's light-heavyweight division.

Nogueira has exceptional jiu-jitsu, with 19 of his 31 wins coming by way of submission. He may not have the best pure jiu-jitsu in the world, but he has adapted it to MMA like nobody else. “Big Nog” also has underrated technical striking and good wrestling ability, with a solid clinch.

The amount of punishment that Nogueira has absorbed throughout his career is simply inhuman, yet he keeps coming back and winning. He had a cataract in one of his eyes, and after having it removed, is reported as only having 20 percent vision in that eye.

Minotauro is known to take a beating early on in his fights, eventually wearing out his opponent and then submitting them or winning by decision. His epic battle with Bob “The Beast” Sapp is a perfect example of this tendency, where Sapp performed a pile driver on Nogueira that would have paralyzed most fighters. Nogueira eventually arm-barred the 6' 5", 375 lb. man after a brutal four minutes of being punched in the face.

It remains to be seen how much longer Nogueira’s body can hold out, he is 32 right now and has been fighting for nearly a decade. After the wars that he has been through, “Minotauro” has probably taken the equivalent amount of punishment that 30 years in the ring would entail.

Nogueira’s illustrious career was made in Japan but his tenure in America is just beginning. His appearance on the Ultimate Fighter 8 will be his coming-out party, so to speak. Sure, he gained popular acclaim stateside after beating Tim Sylvia, but his career in the UFC will really take off after this season airs and if he beats Frank Mir to regain his title.

Currently listed as the No. 2 heavyweight in the world by most rankings, it is a wonder why Noguiera is hardly included in any pound-for-pound debates. Among fighters who aren’t ranked No. 1 in their division, he is the best of the rest, and deserving of a place in the top 10 P4P ranking.

Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira may not be a household name, but just like how he finishes his opponents, it is only a matter of time before he gets the acclaim in North America that he deserves.