UFC 274: OSP On Possibly Being Shogun’s Last Fight: “I Guess It Sucks For Him”

Phoenix, AZ – Sometimes we get a fight that nobody expected or was even asking for, but once it’s here we’re glad it got put together. UFC light heavyweight Ovince Saint Preux will rematch Shogun Rua at UFC 274 on Saturday night.

“I thought about it because I know we haven’t fought it a while. I was like I’ll go ahead and take it. We were supposed to fight a couple years back anyway. I remember specifically that fight. Flying to Japan I got on the plane and didn’t have an opponent,” OSP told reporters on Wednesday.

With this being a rematch from their original 2014 fight you would think looking back at that bout would be something that could help in preparation for UFC 274.

“It’s pretty much pointless. People change, fighters change, your style changes over time. Me fighting eight years ago is completely different than me now,” OSP said.

Even though it’s a rematch from a bout that ended in a knockout OSP still relishes in fighting someone he looked up to before he even entered the sport.

“I told people before I was a Shogun fan before I started fighting. My first fights were watching Shogun back in Pride. Now to fight him one time, beat him, and to do it again, it’s going to be a staple,” said OSP.

OSP surprised some by taking a heavyweight bout against Tanner Boser in July 2021 where lost via KO in the third round. Heavyweight bouts, however, are no longer something OSP wants to do anymore.

“As much as I dip and dabble in the heavyweight division and what not. It’s not for me. With the heavyweight division…they hit hard. They hit hard, but also too some of the shots I give the heavyweights a lot of 205 pounders won’t be able to take it,” OSP said.

With many thinking that this may in fact be Shogun’s final bout as a professional fighter it could make this bout even more special for OSP. The light heavyweight however only had one thing to say about that.

“I guess it sucks for him.”

Ovince Saint Preux takes on Shogun Rua at UFC 274 on Saturday, May 7, 2022 at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Check out Saint Preux’s full media day scrum above. More coverage can be found below.