‘Shogun’ Rua to Face Gian Villante at UFC Fight Night 107 in Brazil on March 11

Former light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua will attempt to win his third straight fight when he meets Gian Villante at UFC 107 in Fortaleza, Brazil.

Promotion officials announced the 205-pound pairing on Friday. UFC Fight Night 107 takes place at Centro de Formação Olímpica de Fortaleza on March 11 and is headlined by a middleweight duel between Vitor Belfort and Kelvin Gastelum. The evening’s main card will be televised on Fox Sports 1.

In his only appearance of 2016, “Shogun” earned a split decision over Corey Anderson at UFC 198 on May 14. Prior to that, the Pride Fighting Championships veteran outpointed Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 190 in his only 2015 outing. The 35-year-old Brazilian is 8-8 during his tenure with the Las Vegas-based promotion.

Villante, meanwhile, is coming off a second-round technical knockout victory against Saparbek Safarov at UFC Fight Night 102 on Dec. 9. The 31-year-old New York native is 5-4 in the Octagon, with four of his triumphs coming by knockout or technical knockout.