It's been a while since we last saw Rashad Evans, a crushing unanimous decision loss to his former teammate and training partner Jon Jones back in April at UFC 145. The loss was such that fans wondered what would be next for the former 205-pound champion. A drop to middleweight perhaps?

Nope.

Instead, "Suga" accepted a bout against the always game Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 156 on Feb. 2, 2013, in Las Vegas, Nevada. That seems like a risky fight against a guy with little name value but Evans told MMACanadaTV it made sense to him.

"Little Nog is trying to break into the top echelon of fighters and deservedly so. He's a tough competitor, he has a lot of experience, and he's been doing this for a long time. The UFC came to my manager and they wanted to put the fight together. I haven't fought in a long time and I'm coming off a loss, so this made sense to me.

"He's a really good boxer, a good counter boxer. But I'm faster. I'm quick. I think (speed will be my big advantage). Besides, I think I'm better looking too.

"He has good stand up. His boxing is pretty good, one of the best in the weight class. Also his ground, he has a really good ground game so I gotta be aware of the ground."

Thoughts on the match-up?

For all the latest news and notes on UFC 156 click here.