UFC 134 Fight Card: What Does a Convincing Victory Mean for Minotauro Nogueira?

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is zero-questions-asked a legend, an icon and a figure that may be considered among the immortals in mixed martial arts, not only because of his boxing and jiu-jitsu, but because of his heart and his legendary threshold of punishment.

However, even the hardest-core mixed martial arts faithful cannot deny that Nogueira is climbing up a jagged mountaintop when it comes to his UFC 134 bout with Brendan "The Hybrid" Schaub tomorrow night.

Many people are quick to write off Nogueira and there can be an expectation of fickleness if Schaub does lose convincingly to Nogueira, but the UFC 110 loss to the current UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and the UFC 92 loss to the former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir—both of which were knockout losses—were the only losses Nogueira suffered in the UFC.

Considering that they were non-consecutive losses, is a UFC 134 win over Schaub really so hard to live with?

We've gone since 2006 with Anderson Silva as UFC middleweight champion, we've gone since 2008 with Georges St-Pierre as UFC welterweight champion, and zero riots broke out when Velasquez dethroned Brock Lesnar at UFC 121 in Anaheim, so why would a win for Nogueira be treated as though the sport will end?

If anything, a convincing win for the former PRIDE heavyweight champion should be something to look forward to.

Yes, it's true he hasn't fought in well over a year, there will be a big question as to whether Nogueira should stick to training the next generation rather than trying to keep up with this one, and to top it off, recent history has proven that not even a good physique can turn the tide away from the favorite of the prospect Schaub, who many feel cannot lose an honest decision, even if the UFC 134 card is on Nogueira's turf.

However, it can happen, despite what anyone else chooses to want themselves to wish.

Schaub is a rising prospect, and he is by no means anywhere close to a washout, but while a good physique may not be enough to turn the tide away from Schaub's favor, the accuracy and precision of Nogueira's striking might.

Like him or not, but what if Nogueira's punishing boxing mastery couples up with his legendary jiu-jitsu wizardry in ways most fans are choosing to not consider?

What if the magic Nogueira creates from that resulting combination of his stand-up and his grappling somehow makes Schaub think twice about thinking he'll earn a Brock Lesnar or anyone else with a win against him in Rio?

Yes, Schaub is a man to watch, and he has the potential to go from a good fighter to a great fighter in a heartbeat, but he's in Minotauro's yard, and whether it's in Rio or in the States, Nogueira getting a "W" over Schaub means more than just another win, and it's more than proving he hasn't lost a step.

It may seem unlikely, but Nogueira has as much chance of earning a convincing victory as Schaub does, and while a win for Schaub might mean title dreams come true, a "W" that comes convincingly for Nogueira means that in dropping Schaub down a rung, Nogueira reasserts himself as one of the top of the heap at 265 pounds.

If that happens, things may get a little bit more intriguing in the heavyweight division.