Once considered the future of the 205lb division, former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua heads into Friday nights UFC Fight Night 33 bout against James Te Huna on a two-fight losing streak, a first for him in his illustrious 22-fight career. wholesale jerseys . The question all fans want to know heading into this light heavyweight affair is will Rua display his true potential. Working with UFC welterweight fighter Demian Maias team in Sao Paulo Brazil and having training partners such as fellow UFC stand outs Fabio Maldonado and Daniel Sarafian, the 32-year old feels very well prepared for Friday nights encounter. "Im feeling very good coming into this fight." Rua told TSN.ca through a translator. While Te Huna doesnt hold the same name value as past opponents Lyoto Machida, Jon Jones or Alexander Gustafsson, the former Chute Boxe fighter believes his Australian foe is a worthy opponent. "I think hes a guy that has earned some good wins in the UFC. Hes a very aggressive fighter so it made all the sense in the world (to fight him) and its going to be a great fight." Te Hunas weakness is clearly in his ground game as all five of his losses have been by way of submission. Despite this, Rua doesnt have a specific game plan for the Athletic All-star pupil. "Well take the fight wherever it goes. The most important thing for me is to win the fight, regardless of how I do it or in which way." Many pundits have suggested win or lose that perhaps "Shogun" would have better success dropping down to the middleweight division. While he hasnt ruled out the idea, its not something that hes thinking about. "I dont get stressed about it. Its natural for fans to ask about their favourite fighter dropping down in weight. I try to educate them, but its not that simple." Fighting for the first time in Australia, Rua is using this opportunity as extra motivation for a victory on Friday. "Im excited to be here for the first time. This is a place where the fans are really friendly and supportive of the fighters." Meanwhile for the Aussie native Te Huna, fighting one of his idols on his home soil is a dream come true. "I was a really big fan of Shogun during his PRIDE days when I first started MMA," said Te Huna to TSN.ca Interestingly enough it was the 32-year-old Te Huna who asked for this fight when he heard the Brazilian was potentially available. "I asked for the fight earlier this year and I thought it was a bit of a longshot for me with his two straight losses. Shogun has a huge fan base (in Australia); the UFC liked it and put it together." Despite Te Huna being a slight favourite in the eyes of the odds makers, hes well aware of the skill Rua can present on any given night. "A lot of people are writing him off (in this fight) but people tend to forget when hes coming off injury it takes a fight or two for him to come back strong." "Its going to be a tough match. Hes fought the "A" level guys and most of the guys Ive fought are the "B" level." In addition, the Mark Hunt trained Te Huna is well aware of his weaknesses on the mat and expects an all-out war. "Im prepared for this fight if it goes to the ground. Im going to expect everything." "I dont think Shogun is going to take any risks, he needs to win this fight. Whatever he needs to do hes going to do it. If its submissions, then hell go for it." For Te Huna, this is an opportunity of a lifetime to not only win in front of the Australian fans, but also propel him up the 205lb division. "Shoguns in the Top Ten for sure and a win against him will put me straight up there." And while title aspirations are in his sights with a win on Friday, Te Huna is going to soak this moment in, as this is one of the biggest milestones in his career. "Its an honor to share the cage with him this weekend. Its going to be huge for me." Cheap Kansas City Royals Jerseys . Baffert wanted to check on his horses health before making a decision. Convinced the colt was ready to run, Baffert sent Govenor Charlie on a flight from Kentucky to Baltimore on Wednesday morning. Cheap Philadelphia Eagles Jerseys . While Richards continues to recover from concussion-like symptoms, the Stars try to win three straight for the first time in over a month as they visit the Phoenix Coyotes, who are hoping to avoid a season-worst fourth consecutive setback this evening at Jobing. http://www.cheapjerseysnflfromchina.net/ .A. Happ capped a challenging season with one of his best efforts of the year.MONTREAL -- A floater goal by Dennis Wideman and an unstoppable blast by Alexander Semin were all the talk after the Washington Capitals picked up yet another shutout win in Montreal on Saturday. Wideman hung his head after he got the opening goal in Washingtons 3-0 victory at 8:10 of the first period. After Brooks Laich won a draw, Wideman only got a piece of a bouncing puck that went over the defence and knuckled down past helpless goalie Peter Budaj. The veteran defenceman just leaned forward at the blue-line pondering his good fortune. "It was kind of embarrassing," Wideman said. "I dont know what to do when something like that happens. "It was up on end and I just swung at it hoping for the best and I guess the best happened. It went up and over everyone and no one picked it up. And it just dropped in. It was pretty high. It was a foot or two over (Max) Paciorettys head." At 11:57 of the third frame, Semin got the Capitals second penalty shot of the game and beat Budaj with a spectacular shot from close range. Caps star Alex Ovechkin called Widemans effort a "flukey shot, and especially his reaction after that was kind of funny. "But Sashas goal, I dont think any goalie can stop that. Hes maybe one and half metres from the net (takes) and a slapshot top shelf." Matt Hendricks scored in a more conventional manner for the Capitals (27-20-4), who got a 30-save shutout from Tomas Vokoun. Washington has picked up shutouts in its last three visits to Montreal, each time with a different goalie. Last March, it was Braden Holtby in a 2-0 victory, while Michal Neuvirth picked up a 3-0 win on Jan. 18. It was the first time a visiting team had two penalty shots in a game in Montreal. Troy Brouwer was awarded one at 9:14 of the middle period after Budaj threw his stick in a bid to knock the puck away. But the Canadiens backup goalie stuffed Brouwers attempt to score between the pads. Semin got his shot after he had his stick slashed from behind by Tomas Kaberle. Peter Budaj made 20 saves for Montreal (19-24-9), which is 0-3-0 since the all-star break and is in the NHL Eastern Conference cellar. It was Ovechkins first game after serving a three-game suspension for boarding Pittsburghs Zbynek Michalek but he had an uneventful afternoon with 19:57 of ice time, one shot and no points. Ovechkin took some heat last week for opting not to play in the all-star game in Ottawa. But he got a laugh from the crowd in the first period when, after battling Andrei Kostitsyn for a puck, saw a man open breaking for the Montreal net and fed him a perfect pass, except the open man was Canadiens ddefenceman Josh Gorges. Cheap AFC Fiorentina Jerseys. "It was a pretty funny moment," he said. "I was laughing on the bench because I can shoot the puck. I won the battle. I thought it was Semin. I went oh my god. It was funny. Maybe if I didnt miss three games I would have shot it." He was happy to shake off some rust, however. "Today my game was not that good," he said. "Three games is a lot. Ten days without a game. Its kind of a long time. But I got lots of (ice time). I feel the energy. Its good." It was gloomier among the Canadiens, whose chances of reaching the playoffs grow more remote with each loss. "You fight yourself mentally," Gorges said of their losing season. "Youre telling yourself to do so much and you accomplish nothing. "Your minds going 100 miles and hour and your feet arent moving. Youre overthinking everything. The problem is were very tense, very tight. Were not just playing hockey. Were trying to do too much. Its mentally exhausting when you play like that." There were plenty of kids at the rare matinee game at the Bell Centre but they were mostly quiet due to the lack of action. But the crowd had fun cheering each time the puck went to Montreals Scott Gomez, the Canadiens highest paid player at US$7.3 million per season who has not scored since Feb. 5, 2011, against the New York Rangers. They may have been mocking, but they also sounded like they really wanted Gomez to score. A group of fans is urging the crowd to celebrate Gomezs goal "anniversary" by wearing party costumes and singing "Happy Birthday" when the Canadiens play a second afternoon game Sunday against the Winnipeg Jets. Gomez was not made available to the media after the game, but Gorges saw the crowds actions in a positive light. "It almost sounds like encouragement," he said. "It doesnt sound like booing. "I hope its encouragement and that they want to see him get that goal and move forward. I hope theyre trying to push him to get the goal he wants and that we want him to get." The Capitals are 11-2-2 in their last 15 regular season meetings with Montreal and are 5-0-1 in the last six trips to the Bell Centre. Notes: The Canadiens inserted defenceman Chris Campoli into the lineup after sitting out three games. Yannick Weber was scratched. Mike Blunden, injured last game, didnt dress. ... Caps forward Dmitry Orlov shed blood after taking a puck in the face in the first period, but was quickly back in the game after being treated. ... Keith Aucoin, called up Thursday from Hershey, was in the Caps lineup. Jay Beagle and John Erskine didnt play. ' ' '