Coach says 'Little' Nog happy to fight Franklin, 'Big' Nog will fight at UFC Rio if h

By Guilherme Cruz

Photo Debora Serrano



Boxing coach of the brothers Rogerio and Rodrigo Nogueira, Luis Carlos Dorea believes on a good return of his students to UFC’s cage. On a chat with TATAME, the instructor analyzed the dispute between Rogerio and the former champion Rich Franklin, a duel that will happen in UFC 133, and revealed that Rodrigo will only be on the card of UFC Rio if he’s 100% healed from his surgeries. Check below the exclusive interview with Dorea, who also comment on Edilberto Crocota’s issue, an athlete who was arrested in Bahia after taking a piece of his girlfriend’s cheek with a bite.



What do you expect from Rogerio Nogueira vs. Rich Franklin?



I think it’s a great fight. Rich Franklin moves forwards on the fights he does, he enjoys striking, he don’t get struck in one position… He plays to put on a good show, and he’s left-handed. Rogerio know how to deal with left-hands, he really knows how. Both are respected athletes and it’s something that will be a big step for Rogerio. Rich Franklin has a respected name, he’s a former champion, he’s experienced, and our team couldn’t be happier. Rogerio is excited about it. Rogerio likes to be challenged. It’s been motivating him a lot. Rogerio is one of the bests, so our dream, our goal is to have a chance at the belt. Rich Franklin is leading us to the right direction.



After fighting three wrestlers in a row, do you think this is a good match for Minotouro?



It’s a great match-up because the guy likes fighting, right? He fights, he puts on a good show, he doesn’t try to get stuck in one position. He strikes, he’s aggressive when on the ground, and standing up too. Their game matches just fine.



Anderson, who’s a friend and teammate of Rogerio, has defeated Rich Franklin twice. Have you already talked to him about how does Rogerio as to prepare himself for fighting him?



Absolutely. Anderson is coming to Brazil to fight again and he’s coming to train with us, he’s a member of our team and Anderson, for the experience he has and for the weapons he has, he’s one of the main supporters of Rogerio on his technical and tactical trainings… Anderson will help us a lot, I’m sure of that. It’s a common thing, they train together all the time. For this bout, we need to be on our best shape, we’ll help each other and I’m sure that Anderson will give Rogerio some tips about how he must behave up there… He’ll help a lot.



Everybody’s looking forward to see Rodrigo fighting in UFC Rio. Is he getting ready to go and fight on this event?



As for Rodrigo, he’s doing super fine. Rodrigo is going through much physiotherapy, he’s seeing how things are, but we first have to check his conditions, his health. If he’s good to go, I don’t see any problems. The thing isn’t about the fight, but the trainings. The trainings are hard, and Rodrigo trains like twice, three times a day, so he has to be good, 100% healed so that he can train hard and don’t feel a thing. Rodrigo’s doing just fine, we’ll all support him.



Which opponent would you pick up for him to fight in Rio?



I’d like to see him fighting (Mirko) Cro Cop. If it doesn’t happen in August, it can be in September, October… But it’s a fight I’d like to see. I’ve seen Cro Cop saying things about it, saying he’d like to fight Rodrigo. They’re two legends, two big names… It really would be an interesting fight to watch in MMA. As for the when, to me, it’ll only happen in August if he’s 100% healed. Rodrigo has a big heart, he really loves doing it and he’s fought while not 100% for his fans, because of his commitment, because he respects UFC, so he has fought while injured.



It happened a lot of times, but we, that see him everyday, know that Rodrigo sick now, he’s injured, he’s having fevers… But, as he always overcomes his own obstacles… Rodrigo is an example to be followed inside and outside the octagon for the things he does. Minotauro shows a lot confidence for us, but now, for him to get into a fight, he has to be 100% healed. He’ll only fight in August if he’s 100%”. He has a full team of physiotherapists helping him, and he’s doing great on his healing process… But it’s a fight we’d like to see: Cro Cop vs. Rodrigo.



Seeing his evolution on his healing process, do you believe he’ll be 100% for UFC Rio? What are the doctors saying about his conditions?



Everybody’s impressed with his healing process, his weight loss... He’s swimming a lot, doing physiotherapy, but he also goes to the gym, but, the way I see it, he has to be 100% for this fight. Let’s see how he’ll be when it’s closer to the fight. If he’s 100%, he’ll fight. It’s like that: we start the specific work, the hardest part of the training. So the athlete really needs to be at his best to go through a specific training.



Last week there was that issue about Edilbero “Crocota”, on which he was arrested. How is he doing right now?



The lawyers are trying all resources they have to they can get him released, because he’s still behind bars. He’s really upset with this episode which shouldn’t have happened, it really shouldn’t have gotten to this point. We know he made a mistake, independently the reason why it happened, but he couldn’t get into something like that. But he knows better. He’s a good person, and knows he made a mistake. We hope that he’ll be released, God help us, until the end of the week.



He’s a humble guy, he has a good heart. That was an incident, but we know he’s a good guy, he comes from a good family. With God’s help, he’ll be released by the end of the week. The lawyers are handling it. We know how much his family is suffering with it. Now we have to wait, it’s up to the lawyers, and they’re working hard and they’re confident he’ll be released soon.



And about the girl, what happened to her? Do you know anything about it?



Only what I’ve seen on TV, on the news… I don’t know. I know her face is injured, but that’s all. I’ve really only read it on the news.