UFC 133 Fight Card Preview: 3 Reasons Rashad Evans Won't Be Rusty

After 14 months, Rashad Evans will return to the Octagon to face Tito Ortiz in the main event at UFC 133. However, ring rust will not prove to be a factor for Evans.

Following his victory over rival Quinton "Rampage" Jackson back at UFC 118 in May of 2010, Evans opted to wait for a title bout against then UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, who was recovering from a knee surgery.

Set to square off at UFC 128, Evans was then ironically sidelined with a knee injury of his own, leading to his former teammate Jon Jones replacing him and eventually becoming the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.

When Evans finally recovered, he was set to challenge "Bones" for the title. However, a lingering hand injury then forced Jones out of their announced matchup at UFC 133 and he was instead set to face undefeated prospect Phil Davis.

However, Davis was then injured and eventually replaced by former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Tito Ortiz in a rematch with Evans that saw the two fight to a draw back at UFC 73 in 2007.

Finally returning to action, Evans gets the chance to rewrite history in his bout with Ortiz and obtain the victory that eluded him on July 7, 2007.

So, despite being out of action for over a year, can we expect to see the "Suga" Rashad Evans of old—the man who knocked out Chuck Liddell in brutal fashion at UFC 88 and TKO'd Forrest Griffin for the title at UFC 92?

The answer is yes, and here are three reasons why.

Perfect Tune-Up Opponent

When Rashad Evans and Tito Ortiz squared off at UFC 73, Evans was an unbeaten prospect riding high on his wrestling. 

In that bout, Ortiz used his superior wrestling to take Evans down and resist many of Evans own take down attempts to frustrate "Sugar."

Winning on the scorecards, Ortiz was deducted a point for holding the fence and thus Evans was able to escape with the draw.

Now, four years in the making, the two have their rematch and it couldn't be at a better time.

Riding high on a tidal wave of momentum coming off his submission victory over Ryan Bader, "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" has apparently turned back the clock and apparently revamped what many thought to be a career long overdue for retirement.

This couldn't be better for Evans.

Away from the Octagon for over a year, Evans is in dire need of a victory to stay relevant in a division that has seen the title change hands on an almost yearly basis since 2007.

What better opponent than Ortiz, who has been reinvigorated by the hype over his UFC 132 victory and is eager to avenge his what should have been a victory over Evans?

If Evans wins, which he is heavily favored to do, he will derail Ortiz's hopes for a storybook comeback and seize the momentum he has in order to stage a massive comeback of his own—reestablishing himself as a dominant presence in the division.

That sort of attention couldn't be more necessary, especially against the super-hyped champion Jon Jones, provided he defeats "Rampage" and would thus set the stage for their eventual title fight.

In Evans' case at UFC 133, what better way to make your triumphant return, than to avenge a blemish on your record against an opponent who is hyped over his first victory in five years?

New Team

After his replacement Jon Jones captured the title from Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 128, the stage was set for Jones and Rashad Evans to duke it out for the UFC light heavyweight championship.

However, in the process, the Evans' relationship with Greg Jackson faltered and eventually deteriorated leading to Evans' split from the Albuquerque, New Mexico-based Jackson's MMA.

Now Evans has relocated Boca Raton, Florida where he has established himself at Imperial Athletics alongside many former members of American Top Team and others the likes of which include Strikeforce heavyweight Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva, Gesias Cavalcante Jorge Santiago and even Luiz Cane and Anthony Johnson.

While Evans' new gym may not boast the same roster of fighters as his old stable at Jackson's, being somewhere new can definitely have its advantages.

Most notably, Evans is able to receive the kind of one on one attention he couldn't get at Jackson's camp.

Full of world class talent, the gym housed world champions in Jones and Georges St-Pierre, as well as notables like Carlos Condit, Clay Guida, Brendan Schaub and Shane Carwin, just to name a few.

Spearheading the movement, Greg Jackson boasts one of the most capable mixed martial arts gyms in the world, however it has its downside too.

Stretched across an army of world class talent, it's understandable that Jackson and his team can only give a fighter so much attention, and in some cases, some fighters receive less work than needed.

That was the case for Evans: left with a trainer who was divided between his two pupils, a father torn between his two sons.

So for Evans, the choice became simple: leave the old gym where they wouldn't help me and join another.

Now with a new array of training partners, Evans is in a new environment and with world ranked kickboxing talent like Tyrone Sprong also helping Evans, we could see yet another rebirth of "Sugar."

Already a talented wrestler with quick and powerful hands, Jackson's MMA only reinforced his wrestling and athleticism, surrounding him with fighters much like him.

At Imperial Athletics, Evans is around a group of fighters who came out of the American Top Team camp and have a wealth of experience in BJJ and kickboxing.

While Evans is himself a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, he really has yet to showcase some of that skill, save for his fight against Thiago Silva.

Now surrounded by fighters of a different background, he could broaden his skill set even more.

Maybe change isn't such a bad thing after all.

"Bones" on His Mind

Given the recent trash talk that has surrounded Jon Jones and Rashad Evans, it's hard to see this fight with Tito Ortiz holding him back from that title fight.

Since Jones replaced Evans at UFC 128 against Mauricio Rua, Evans has made a complete 180, becoming the sole nemesis of Jones and, in a sense, Jackson's MMA, coming to resent his former teammate and trainer.

Feeling slighted and betrayed, it's funny that Evans made comparisons between Jones and Judas, because in a Biblical sense, Evans is the rebellious son, cast out in favor of the other son, sort of.

In any case, regardless of how long its been since hes been in actual competition or how much momentum Ortiz carries, it would seem that Jones is a driving force for Evans and he seems hellbent on confronting the man who seemingly kicked him out of his own home.