Knockout Artist Volkan Oezdemir has a Message for Former Champ ‘Shogun’ Rua

Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight contenders Volkan Oezdemir and Mauricio Rua are set to do battle in main event of UFC Fight Night 134 on July 22, which takes place inside the Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany.

The event marks the first time Oezdemir will be part of the headlining act and has previously talked about his excitement to get to fight one of his idols in Rua. “No Time” went into his last fight with current champion Daniel Cormier riding a five-fight winning streak, including consecutive knockouts in under a minute. Cormier dominated Oezdemir, eventually winning by TKO in the second round.

Oezdemir (15-2) however posted a warning shot to Rua on Instagram, claiming he would be knocking him out in a respectful way.

@shogunoficial I’m going to knock you out on July 22nd! Not because I want to but because I have to! #NoTime #withallmyrespect #UFCHamburg

A post shared by Volkan Oezdemir (@volkan_oezdemir) on May 7, 2018 at 12:12pm PDT

Rua (25-10) has been fairly inactive recently, only fighting once a year since 2014. “Shogun” is however riding a three-fight winning streak with victories over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Corey Anderson and Gian Villante. Those wins catapulted him back into contention in the lightweight division, earning himself a shot at another contender in Oezdemir.

UFC Hamburg will also feature a heavyweight clash between Marcin Tybura and Stefan Struve, with both men looking to avoid a third-straight loss. Another light heavyweight bout on the card will feature a scrap between Glover Teixeira and Ilir Latifi.