[sigallery id=”NmdCb6jBEz9uW7ppLpG5g3″ title=”Mauricio Rua” type=”sigallery”]

As his lauded and often-bloody career nears the 15-year benchmark, Mauricio Rua is no stranger to calls for his retirement.

But, currently set to take on his 35th professional MMA scrap, the former UFC light-heavyweight champion has a few of questions for those who ask him why he won’t call it quits.

“The subject bothers me a little,” Rua told MMAjunkie. “Because I’m experienced – I’ve been fighting for many years – but I’m also a young guy. I’m 35. People stop at 40, 38, 39. Depends. I think every athlete has the liberty to stop whenever they want.

“People speculate that a lot about me because I’ve had a few losses, but everyone has losses. So if a doctor doesn’t perform a perfect surgery, they need to retire? If a dentist doesn’t perfectly extract a tooth, they need to retire? A businesswoman goes into a meeting and it’s not successful, she needs to retire? If I’m happy to be fighting, and the UFC is happy to have me fighting for them, I don’t know why people are so bothered by it.”

An honorable mention in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA light-heavyweight rankings, Rua (24-10 MMA, 8-8 UFC) takes on Gian Villante (16-7 MMA, 5-4 UFC) on March 11 at the FS1-televised UFC Fight Night 106 event in Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil. It’s Rua’s fifth straight home-country fight.

The Brazilian comes in on the heels of back-to-back decisions wins, over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (“Fight of the Night”) and Corey Anderson (narrow split call).

Although the two victories mark Rua’s first streak since 2009, they also had a an almost-yearlong gap between them. And now, set to return after yet another injury-motivated layoff, Rua hopes he can increase his fight frequency moving forward.

“In the past years I fought once every year because ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ (Rua coached the fourth Brazilian season opposite Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, who filled in for Anderson Silva) got in the way a bit; we taped it, and the finale took a while (to happen),” Rua said. “And then right after, I fought, and I had a small injury.

“Now I’m fully recovered. My focus for 2017 is for sure to do two or three fights. I think, two at least – that’s my focus for every year. I try to always look after myself. Now I’m 100 percent, thankfully. I had tendinitis on my knee, and that got in the way of training. That’s healed up, and hopefully I won’t have any more injuries this year.”

Looking to keep his body healthy, Rua decided to keep this particular fight camp in Sao Paulo, where he can stay near his physical therapist. This means no training with longtime muay Thai coach and Kings MMA leader Rafael Cordeiro in California for the Villante fight.

Fresh off a “Fight of the Night” TKO win at UFC Fight Night 102, Villante also brings in an up-and-down octagon run– boosted by two other “Fight of the Night” bonuses. Villante’s characteristics certainly appeal to Rua, who welcomes his opponent’s forward-moving style.

“I liked (the matchup),” Rua said. “Gian Villante is a tough guy. He likes muay Thai. He likes striking. I liked it because I prefer fighting guys who go for it rather than those who stall. I’d rather fight guys like him. He’s very good. He’s good at wrestling, good at muay Thai. And for sure it’s going to be a tough fight.”

Rua, who hasn’t finished an opponent since the 2013 first-round demolition of James Te Huna, clarifies it’s part of who he is as a fighter to always look for the knockout. But, at the end of the day, he’s happy to walk away victorious.

If the win does happen, however, the next steps aren’t planned. While the ex-champ would gladly welcome the opportunity to fight for the belt that Jon Jones took from him in 2011, “Shogun” has learned the hard way to take one step after the other.

“Everyone who’s in the UFC wants the belt, for sure,” Rua said. “But for me, I have to take it one fight at a time. I can’t think about the belt having a tough guy like Villante ahead of me. That, actually, isn’t good for me.

“I’ve had that experience in which I had the belt in mind before my immediate fight, and it wasn’t good. So my focus now is 100 percent on him, and I know that if I win, I will be closer to the belt.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 106, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.