"The doctor said my knee should be alright within a month. I'll be training 100 percent. God bless me, I'll be fighting in June. (I wish for a fight against Rich Franklin) because we had a bout scheduled against him, I was supposed to fight him in the past and I already know what game plan to use against him. He's a guy who likes to stand-up. It'll be good. One left-handed fighting another left-handed is something good to see. It would be an excellent fight. I need a good fight."
-- Antonio Rogerio Nogueira tells Tatame.com the knee injury that knocked him out of the UFC on Fuel TV 2 main event against Alexander Gustafsson on April 14 in Sweden is almost completely healed. In fact, if all goes according to plan, he could fight as early as June. Considering that's just three short months away, that means the search for an opponent is on. "Lil' Nog" already has someone in mind, too: Rich Franklin. If the two are ultimately matched up, it wouldn't be the first time. UFC Matchmaker Joe Silva first paired these two off at the UFC 133 event in August of last year only to see the bout go up in flames when both men suffered injuries. Thanks to that, "Minotoro" believes the UFC should simply dust the contracts off and try again. Anyone hoping that's exactly what they do?