Manuwa (photo via Twitter / @POSTERBOYJM)

By FCF Staff

As Jimi Manuwa gets set to fight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC Fight Night 56 on November 8th, the British light-heavyweight has been enlisting the help of former foe, Alexander Gustafssson.

When Manuwa fights Rua early next month, he will be competing for the first time since March, when he was stopped by Gustafsson in the second round. In a recent interview with MMA Junkie.com, Manuwa relayed that he’s been training with the man who handed him his first professional loss.

“I’m at Allstars gym now, and it made a lot of sense to me,” said Manuwa, while discussing Gustafsson and the renowned Stockholm facility. “I was going to train with Alex before our fight came up. Then our fight came up, so we couldn’t train together. We had to wait until after our fight to start training together.”

“I like to challenge myself, and I knew I wouldn’t be fighting in the U.K. my entire career,” Manuwa furthered. “I knew I would have to leave my comfort zone eventually, and I’m ready for it…”

Prior to facing Gustafsson, Manuwa (14-1) scored TKO victories in his first three UFC bouts, and is currently ranked #11 at 205.

Rua (22-9) is coming off a stoppage loss to Dan Henderson in March, after he KO’d James Te Huna last December. The decorated vet is positioned at #9 in the UFC’s rankings.

UFC FN 56 will be hosted by Uberlandia, Brazil.