UFC 93 fight by fight; Mark Coleman Vs. Mauricio Rua

This is a grudge match. The first time they fought in Pride it was not pretty on so many levels. Rua broke his arm. Coleman showed some anger and hostility. Wanderlei Silva got himself involved in the aftermath. And also, in general, the fight was a huge bust due to that Rua injury.

Now there is a rivalry that has built between these two men. Finally they will go toe-to-toe in the octagon tomorrow.

A look at Mark Coleman
Coleman is 44 years old. However, he is probably one of the best physical specimens at 205.

It's so tough to say that Coleman is definitely over the hill or has definitely lost it. He is 3-4 in his last 4 fights. However, those 4 losses are to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mirko Filipovic and Fedor Emelianenko twice. That is some good competition. Still Coleman has not been in the ring (now octagon) since 2006.

A look at Mauricio Rua
Rua has only had 1 fight in the octagon, in the September 2007 he faced Forrest Griffin. He lost citing some personal and training issues as part of the cause. I wouldn't hold too much weight on that loss. I believe that there were greater issues that played a role in Rua's short coming. Make no mistake, Rua did not make excuses and said Forrest was just the better fighter that night.

Rua is 16-3 in his mma career. What some people tend to forget is that he is still only 27 years old.

If he wants it bad enough we are talking about a guy who is still shy of his prime. A guy that could potentially get a title shot at 205 within a year or two.

Fight Odds
Coleman is a big dog in this one. At press time the odds are:
Mark Coleman +300
Mauricio Rua -450