on Fox 19. However, Rua was pulled from the fight on 9 March in favor of a matchup with Corey Anderson a couple of weeks later at UFC 198. Rua was awarded a split decision victory. Rua next faced Gian Villante on 11 March 2017 at UFC Fight Night 106. He won the fight via technical knock-out in the third round. A rematch with Ovince Saint Preux was expected to take place on 22 September 2017 at UFC Fight Night 117. However, Rua pulled out of the fight as the event was approaching on 16 September and was replaced by returning veteran Yushin Okami. Rua was expected to face Volkan Oezdemir on 12 May 2018 at UFC Fight Night 129. However it was reported on 13 April 2018 that Oezdemir was pulled from the event due to alleged visa issues restricting his travel to Chile. The pairing was left intact and rescheduled for 22 July 2018 at UFC Fight Night 134, However the bout was cancelled once again after promotion officials elected to pull Oezdemir from that fight in favor of a matchup against Alexander Gustafsson the following month at UFC 227. He was replaced by Anthony Smith. Rua lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Rua faced Tyson Pedro on 2 December 2018 at UFC Fight Night 142. He won the fight via technical knockout in round three, finishing Pedro with a flurry of strikes after Pedro suffered a leg injury and was unable to defend himself. This win earned him the Performance of the Night award. Rua was expected to face Sam Alvey on 16 November 2019 at UFC on ESPN+ 22. However, Alvey was removed from the fight on 25 October due to a broken hand and was replaced by Paul Craig. After three rounds, the back-and-forth fight was declared a split draw. A third bout with Antônio Rogério Nogueira was scheduled to take place on 9 May 2020 at UFC 250. However, the bout was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The bout eventually took place on 26 July 2020 at UFC on ESPN 14. He won the fight via split decision. A rematch with Paul Craig took place on 21 November 2020 at UFC 255. He lost the fight via technical knockout in round two when he submitted to punches. Rua had a rematch against Ovince Saint Preux on 7 May 2022 at