UFC 140 Predictions: How Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira Would Be Affected by a Loss

In any combat sport, the most important fighters and champions are the heavyweights. Mixed martial arts is no exception.

Unlike their counterparts in lighter weight classes, Heavyweight fighters are taking on opponents from a much broader range of fighters. Some heavyweights are huge, and some are not. But there is no doubting the heart of anyone willing to compete at the highest level of combat sports.

When I tell you that the second best Heavyweight in MMA history, Antônio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira, is in for one of the fights of his life tonight, that's really saying something!

The larger of the famous Nogueira twins will be squaring off against Frank Mir  for the second time tonight. The last time these two fought was at UFC 92. On that night, Frank Mir did something that nobody had ever done before. He knocked Nogueira out.

It must have come as a pretty big shock. After stepping in against such devastating strikers as Semmy Schilt, Fedor Emelianenko, Ricco Rodriguez, Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipović, Sergei Kharitonov and Tim Sylvia, I don't think he would have seen it coming in a million years.  

He had tallied 37 fights against fighters like that without ever being KO'd once.  Then Big Nog suffers his first knockout loss Frank Mir, a guy reputed to be a pure grappler with mediocre, if not awful striking skills.

"Minotauro" Nogueira's needs to avenge that loss in dominant fashion if he wants anyone to see him as a legitimate contender in today's UFC Heavyweight Division. Frank Mir is a huge obstacle blocking Nogueira's path to bigger and better things.  

If Big Nog can't get past Frank Mir, then the only use the UFC will have left for him will be as a gatekeeper to the top five. It'd be such a shame to see such a great fighter reduced to that.

If Nogueira loses, and barring any controversy, I think it's time for Big Nog to call it a career. He's already done more than enough to secure his status as a legend.

The good news is that Nogueira is already hard at work in his post-UFC career of choice. He is the premier trainer and coach at most successful MMA camp in the world, The Black House.

Three reigning UFC champions are affiliated with The Black House: Junior dos Santos, José Aldo and Anderson Silva.  That's a lot of UFC champions—more than any other MMA training academy on the planet.

So if Minotauro loses to Frank Mir tonight, I think he should hang up the gloves and focus full-time on training the next generation of Brazilian MMA legends. He's doing it part-time right now, and he's doing an amazing job!

Be sure to stay tuned to Bleacher Report for all things UFC 140. B/R is your home for complete coverage of the December 10 fight card, from pre-fight predictions to in-fight coverage, results and post-fight analysis.