After bringing a quick end to the rise of Luiz Cane in his long-awaited UFC debut last year, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira booked his attempt at going 2-0 against Forrest Griffin. Griffin was forced to pull out, and Jason Brilz ultimately stepped up for the bout with the legendary Nogueira brother.
The fight took place at UFC 114: Rampage vs. Evans. Brilz was the underdog, but would he prove he could hang with one of the Light Heavyweight division’s most experienced? Or, would Antonio Rogerio Nogueira score a second UFC victory.
The result follows:
In a controversial decision that angered the crowd, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira squeaked by with a split victory over Jason Brilz.
After a fairly close first round that nonetheless should have fallen in favor of the more aggressive and controlling Brilz, round two was definitively consumed by Brilz’s superior wrestling and quick reflexes. Brilz’s control provided some fantastic opportunities for dominance on the ground (and, later, on the feet)–in addition to owning the wrestling, Brilz scored multiple impressive guillotine attempts and worked Nogueira to a clear point of fatigue. By the end of the second round, Nogueira was visibly gassed on his feet, and even Brilz’s most wild strikes managed to land cleanly on the head of the veteran.
Although he never put Brilz in grave danger, Nogueira returned with fire in round three. His pace was definitely back and he started to use his world-class grappling to find holes on the ground, but he could never assume lengthy control–even a formidable “crucifix” hold on Brilz only lasted a few seconds before the substitute fighter was able to work his way out. Nonetheless, he definitely received a second life for this round, and he beat Brilz in every key area–speed, strength and technicality.
Round three belonged to Nogueira, but the other two clearly seemed to belong to Brilz. The crowd was very adamant in calling the decision, which almost definitely hinged on two of the judges giving round one to Nogueira, “bullsh*t.”
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira b. Jason Brilz via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)