Combate reports that Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, or Little Nog if you prefer, will face Sam Alvey at UFC Sao Paulo on September 22.
Combate is reporting that Antonio Rogerio Nogueira will return to action on September 22 when he meets Sam Alvey in a light-heavyweight collision. The fight is set to take place in Sao Paolo, Brazil. That marks the first fight back for Little Nog since some USADA issues that were recently cleared up.
‘Minotoro’ Nogueira has not fought since 2016 when he was stopped by Ryan Bader. Since then, he has struggled with injuries as he had pull out of bouts with both Ilir Latifi and Jared Cannonier in 2017. His most recent hiatus, however, is due to no fault of his own. He was flagged for a USADA violation last year, but was cleared of any violation at the same time and in the same fashion as former heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos. However, it has not stopped the speculation that Nogueira may consider retirement at 42 years old after already having gone 1-4 since 2014.
Sam Alvey’s production level has quietly gone under the radar meanwhile. ‘Smilin” Sam fought four times in 2017 and the bout with Nogueira is his third scheduled bout this year. On top of that, Alvey has also taken an active role in coaching amateur fighters at his gym and has even begun performing stand-up comedy. He has made the move up to light-heavyweight and notched two victories so far this year. On paper, Nogueira represents a step-up in skill level. But the Brazilian’s struggles of the past several years set up Alvey to add another legendary name to his resume.
UFC Sao Paulo (numerically UFC Fight Night 137) takes place at the Ginásio do Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo, Brazil on September 22, 2018.
