Raoni Barcelos is finally getting another chance at facing a top-ranked opponent in the octagon, battling Montel Jackson on the main card portion of UFC Vegas 116 on April 25, and he has no time to waste. The Brazilian bantamweight will turn 39 days after the match and has a couple of names to call out and fast track his rise to the top of the division.
On a four-fight winning streak against Payton Talbott, Cody Garbrandt, Ricky Simon and Cristian Quinonez, Barcelos told MMA Fighting he will call
for fights with Marlon Vera or Deiveson Figueiredo if he gets his hands raised in the octagon Saturday night.
Barcelos isn’t sure if Vera would accept it since he’s on a three-fight skid at the moment, so maybe Figueiredo is the better name of the two. Barcelos isn’t the type of athlete that gets on the mic with loud challenges and provocative words leading up to MMA fights, and he won’t change that now. In fact, calling out a fellow Brazilian is bold enough for his standards.
“He’s Brazilian, I’ve followed his career for a long time and there’s nothing else to say about him, but I don’t have much time left,” Barcelos said. “I think Deiveson Figueiredo would be a great fight. I respect him and his team a lot — he’s with Pitbull Brothers. Huge respect. But there comes a point in your career, and in what I’m going through, where you have to ask for these kinds of fights because it’s the best way for me to go further.”
“I don’t have time to keep chasing things,” he continued. “I’ve already had an eight-year career in the UFC so I think it’s my moment now. That’s why Deiveson would be a great fight for me. He’s currently top 7, so I’d go from 13 to 7 if I beat him, which would put me in a very good position.”
Figueiredo’s last UFC win was a decision against Montel Jackson in October, losing his next one to Umar Nurmagomedov. The former UFC flyweight champion is 4-3 since moving up to bantamweight, including victories over Vera, Garbrandt and Rob Font.
“Deiveson is an outstanding athlete too, very heavy hands, very complete, both in striking and in jiu-jitsu and wrestling,” Barcelos said. “I also consider myself a complete fighter. I think it would be a great fight. Intense, fast-paced, very active. I think the fans would really enjoy it.”
Barcelos was at the Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro when Figueiredo beat Jackson via split decision, and decided right there and then that he would call out Jackson following the Simon bout because “it would be the ideal kind of fight to help me break into the rankings.”
The UFC granted his wish, and he’s confident on getting the job done at the Meta APEX on April 25.
“I want to stick to my grappling and wrestling game,” Barcelos said. “My jiu-jitsu is very strong and sharp right now and I plan to use it in the fight. That’s the style that causes the most problems for opponents in my division. I think Merab Dvalishvili showed everyone that once you take someone down, it’s hard for them to keep their conditioning when they get back up. I think I’ll follow that path. It’s probably the easiest way for me to win. I’m going to use that strategy, try to close the distance and take him down. Of course, I’m ready for anything. He’s a southpaw, it’s a different kind of game, so if my hand connects, it’s heavy. I can knock him out too.”
