Raul Rosas Jr. recently beat Raoni Barcelos to score the biggest win of his career, but the aftermath was a somber one.
The UFC Vegas 121 main event ended in chilling fashion with Rosas earning a knockout victory when Barcelos abruptly collapsed during an exchange in the final round. During the ending sequence, Rosas did not appear to connect with a significant blow, so Barcelos’ sudden fall and the lengthy period of time it took for him to recover painted a grim picture. The 39-year-old veteran was
taken to the hospital and was fortunately able to return home just a few days later.
At the time, Rosas was just as confused as everyone else as to exactly what happened to Barcelos. He can now look back at the incident with gratitude that the worst possible scenario didn’t occur.
“How it ended? I didn’t really look too deep, but I just know that it was probably some brain swelling or something deep,” Rosas said in an interview with Jorge Masvidal. “I just hope that he’s good now, his health is good, and everything’s good with him and his family.
“I thought I killed him, to be honest, and I was scared because I was like, ‘F*ck,’ right? I didn’t know how I was going to feel after that because at the end of the day, yeah, we want to f*ck each other up and shit, but I want both of us to go back to our families. After everything I was a little bit worried, but now I’m glad that he’s back home, he’s with his family, and everything’s good.”
The 22-year-old Rosas is currently on a six-fight win streak and his pro record stands at 13-1 overall. Finishes in the loaded bantamweight division have been difficult to come by, with his win over Barcelos being his first victory inside the distance since 2024.
Rosas has thought about how whether a fight ends fast or turns into a prolonged battle, it’s rarely good for a combat sports athlete’s health.
“I was just scared because I know they also had to, like, bring him back to life,” Rosas said. “That was like, f*ck. It’s hard to see that in the sport, in MMA, because we have small gloves. Usually, one shot puts you out.
“In boxing, you’ve seen some people die because it’s big gloves, so you can take more punishment. It’s crazy how the sport is. We are really risking our lives every time we step in there.”
Though it came under less-than-ideal circumstances, Rosas’ finish was also much-needed as he was trailing Barcelos on the scorecards heading into Round 5. The win kept Rosas in the top 10 at 135 pounds and on track to achieve his goal of becoming the youngest champion in UFC history.
He credits opponents like Barcelos for pushing him to reach his potential.
“Raoni doesn’t get the respect that he deserves,” Rosas said. “How good he is. I knew his grappling’s high level, his wrestling, he’s got a whole lot of experience. But I knew in my head, taking this fight, this is exactly what I need to be able to compete at the top of the division. He’s going to show me a lot to where I’m going to be able to take away a lot from this fight to help me win the other bigger fights.”
TOP STORIES
Chaos. Merab Dvalishvili kicked off an eventful Wednesday by revealing he was ambushed by a group led by Usman and Umar Nurmagomedov ahead of his RAF Abu Dhabi matchup this weekend.
Angles. Video of the alleged assault quickly surfaced on social media, with Dvalishvili’s friend Ilia Topuria sharing some of the earliest footage.
Horror. Pros were quick to condemn the Nurmagomedovs for the cowardly sneak attack.
Family. Unsurprisingly, UFC champion Islam Makhachev spoke out in defense of his longtime friends.
Doubt. Josh Hokit questions whether Tom Aspinall will ever come back to fight for the heavyweight title.
Past. Kayla Harrison’s coach Mike Brown doesn’t think her training history with Amanda Nunes will matter at UFC 334.
Voice. Jon Anik extends contract to continue leading UFC commentary team.
VIDEO STEW
UFC 334 media day.
Fight camp with Aljo.
Michael Chandler at NXT.
UFC 334 Embedded.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
Veteran.
This is so surreal now.
Hangin’ with the boyz.
Takeover.
Brotherhood.
Accurate.
Non-issue.
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Antonio Cesar (15-2) vs. Viet Anh Do (7-0); ONE Fight Night 50, Dec. 18
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