Lyoto Machida celebrates Saturday night after the main event of UFC 104 at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Machida won a controversial unanimous decision for the UFC light heavyweight title.
Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009 | 3:17 p.m.
A rematch between UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida and Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua has been confirmed.
The rematch will take place in Montreal on May 1.
Fans started calling for a rematch immediately following a dead-even contest that ended in a controversial decision win for Machida at UFC 104 in Los Angeles on Oct. 24.
UFC's Dana White didn’t take long to respond to fans, tweeting that same day: “I hear you all. They have both agreed to a rematch.”
Many believed Rua had done enough to win the fight, as he was widely regarded as the more aggressive fighter. Rua dictated the pace of the fight mostly with leg kicks and split Machida’s lip with a hook in the final round.
White himself admitted he believed Rua had won at the post-fight press conference.
“I thought Shogun won the fight,” White said. “When you go round by round, I had Shogun winning. It drives me crazy when these guys put so much time and work into these fights and then not get the right call.”
At the post-fight press conference, both fighters said they would agree to a rematch if it was what the UFC wanted.
Brett Okamoto can be reached at 948-7817 or [email protected].
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