Visa issues won’t prevent Chael Sonnen from meeting Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (pictured) in Boston. On Tuesday night, the UFC announced the 205-pounders will headline UFC on Fox Sports 1 1.
The August 17 event takes place inside TD Garden in Massachusetts.
Shogun was initially slated to rematch Antonio Rogerio Nogueira this month at UFC 161, but Little Nog was forced to withdraw Sunday with a herniated disc. Sonnen immediately offered up his services, but reportedly had complications obtaining a visa to enter Canada in time for the June 15 fight date.
Shogun has alternated between wins and losses over his past eight scraps. The former light heavyweight champion was last seen in December getting trounced by Alexander Gustafsson at UFC on FOX 5.
Speaking of getting steamrolled, Sonnen was just TKO’d by reigning 205-pound king Jon Jones at UFC 159. Prior to that, the chatty wrestler was put down by middleweight champ Anderson Silva in the most anticipated rematch in MMA history.
Here is the show’s updated lineup:
Cody Donovan vs. Ovince St. Preux
Mike Brown vs. Akira Corassani
Uriah Hall vs. Nick Ring
Joe Lauzon vs. Michael Johnson
Conor McGregor vs. Andy Ogle
Matt Brown vs. Thiago Alves
Urijah Faber vs. Yuri Alcantara
Michael McDonald vs. Brad Pickett
Alistair Overeem vs. Travis Browne
Chael Sonnen vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
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