Serra still after Hughes rematch

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight titleholder Matt Serra wants a rematch with Matt Hughes and fights against opponents with names cemented in the industry.

"I had a talk with Joe Silva (UFC matchmaker) and we talked about some interesting things," Serra told MMAWeekly.com recently. "I was definitely first pushing for a rematch. That would be ideal for me. I'd love to fight Matt Hughes again. I told him, 'look man, you've already got the name for it, "Unfinished Business." There you go.'

"Throw on (Wanderlei) Silva and (Rich) Franklin; that was a close fight. What else was a close fight? I don't know, put something on there that the fights were entertaining. Me and Hughes, we got the fight of the night.

"I'm not going to sit here and bad mouth the guy because we did fight. I'm not going to attack him personally, but at the same time I do feel I won that fight, or at least I should have got the nod. If not, it's a draw and let's do it again."

The Serra and Hughes rivalry has been well documented, reaching a head when they were opposing coaches on "The Ultimate Fighter" Season 6. Serra lost to Hughes by decision when they finally met in the Octagon at UFC 98 on May 23 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Reflecting on that hard-fought battle, Serra said, "I thought it came down to that last round. And he might have been on top of me longer, but definitely the 30 seconds I was on top of him, or 40 seconds, what ever it is, I definitely landed more than he did probably the whole fight. I landed more power shots at least. I landed two or three shots that definitely connected with him when I was on top of him at the end, not to mention the big throw. I thought I won the first and third rounds. I'm not alone in that.

"I think we should do it again," he added. "Why not? I think it would be fun for everybody."

Serra expects to compete again this year and is eager for his next fight, but the Renzo Gracie black belt wants a full training camp to prepare. "I told Joe Silva, 'look man, let's talk about it, it's just that I need a two and a half month to three month period to be were I want. That's what I like to train. That's how I like to do it. I felt so good in my last fight that that's the recipe for the rest of my fights. That's what I'm doing. As soon as you've got a date and you know what's up, just give me that window of two and a half month - three month training camp.' So that's it. The ball is in their court, and we're going to talk about it. I'm not done, that's for sure."

Asked if the UFC has ruled out the possibility of a rematch with Hughes, the 35-year-old fighter commented, "No. And you know what's funny is I was talking a little bit with Joe the other day and he wasn't, but then he brought up another name."

Serra wouldn't reveal the other name, but MMAWeekly.com sources have been floating Matt Brown as a possible next opponent for Serra. It doesn't sound like Brown is the type of opponent that the former UFC welterweight champion is looking for.

"I've made my whole career fighting whoever they put in front of me, and that hasn't really changed, but it has to be kind of exciting now. You know what I mean? I've got to see my name up there with someone else where I'm like, 'Whew. I'd want to see that as a fight fan myself. I like that match up, and I like that name. He's a legend.' I want that type of thing around it. That's what I want," continued the New York resident.

"A new guy is just as tough as some of these other guys, so it's like why not at this stage of my career fight guys that, your name is up there, like when they had me versus Hughes. That was exciting. That's what I'm looking for. I know Frank Trigg is back in the mix. That would be interesting.

"I want a fight that on paper is exciting as hell and a name that's like a cemented name where it's like ah, that's a fight I've been wanting to see."

But most of all, Serra wants that rematch with Hughes.