Deiveson Figueiredo finds himself at a crossroads at age 38, but refuses to believe his time is gone.
The former UFC flyweight champion flew to Macau, China, to headline Saturday’s Fight Night event against local Song Yadong. The Brazilian veteran came close to earning a shot at the bantamweight belt after winning his first three in the new division, but has now gone 1-3 in his past four. The competition is elite, from Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen do Umar Nurmagomedov, but the results must come if
he wants to dream with a shot at the UFC gold.
Speaking with MMA Fighting days before leaving Brazil for China, Figueiredo said he’s “immune” to pressure after being “many years in this career.” His job may not be on the line at UFC Macau, but titles hopes could.
“Absolutely. Without a doubt,” Figueiredo said when asked if this is a must-win fight. “I have to show that I’m still alive. There were some complications [for past fights] but I’m feeling really good for this fight and I want to show that I’m still alive in the title picture.”
One of Figueiredo’s recent defeats was in the same Galaxy Arena in Macau, when Yan snapped his winning streak with a decision back in 2024. Almost two years later and having fought from Rio de Janeiro to Iowa to Las Vegas, “Deus da Guerra” feels better prepared for another trip to China.
“We’re not going to have the same difficulties we had the first time,” Figueiredo said. “We already know what to do and how to do it. Even with the weight cut too. Last fight I missed weight, but now we’re already at a good weight. I’m in a good place mentally after the last fight, when I missed weight. But now it’s about keeping my head up and moving forward.”
Figueiredo missed weight for his most recent bout, a unanimous decision loss to Nurmagomedov this past January in Las Vegas, and said it was caused by multiple factors, including a rainstorm affecting his flight and causing a massive delay in his arrival in the United States;
“I had some personal problems,” Figueiredo said. “I was in a really bad place mentally. And leaving Brazil there were issues with the flight. It was a complication that really screwed me over. My weight went up and I ended up missing weight. My head was messed up, I missed weight, and then I had to fight a tough guy too. Umar, a guy who pins you down on the ground. Not being 100 percent made it a very complicated fight.”
Figueiredo finished his training camp in Natal, working alongside Patricio Pitbull and Patricky Pitbull, after working with The Fighting Nerds in Sao Paulo for a couple of weeks. In fact, Figueiredo said his game plan was come up designed by Nerds’ head coach Pablo Sucupira.
“We expect it could go to a decision,” Figueiredo said, “but I don’t like leaving things in the hands of the judges. Song is a guy who comes to fight, so I think it’s going to be a very action-packed fight, especially on the feet.”
