Heavyweight knockout artist Robelis
Despaigne is eyeing a title shot within a year of his
Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.
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Despaigne (5-0) needed just 18 seconds to knock out Josh
Parisian in his promotional debut at UFC
299 in March. The undefeated prospect is now set to make his
sophomore walk to the Octagon against Waldo
Cortes-Acosta (11-1) at
UFC on ESPN 56 on May 11. Despaigne believes a win over Costa,
followed by a few others will secure a title shot for him next
year.
“Look, if all goes according to plan, I think that by the beginning
of next year I’ll be fighting for the UFC heavyweight title, or at
least the interim.”
Despaigne told MMA Junkie’s Danny Segura.
Despaigne has finished all of his fights in the first round, with a
total fight time of 37 seconds for his last four outings combined.
Given that the landscape has witnessed Alex
Pereira’s meteoric rise to double champ status in less than two
years of his UFC debut, Despaigne fighting for the title next year
might not be entirely out of the question.
Meanwhile, Cortes-Acosta will enter the Octagon on the heels of
back-to-back wins that saw him bounce back from his lone career
loss against Marcos
Rogerio de Lima via unanimous decision.
The UFC heavyweight title picture is currently in question with
Jon
Jones sidelined with an injury and no timeline in sight for a
return fight against Stipe
Miocic. Meanwhile, unsure if the winner of that bout will take
him on, interim king Tom
Aspinall has called out light heavyweight champ Pereira.
Despaigne believes Jones will beat Miocic but could get dethroned
by Aspinall.
“That is a close fight, but if it’s a matter of momentum, I think
that Aspinall can pull it off and win the crown,” Despaigne said.
“But we know the quality that Jon Jones has, so he can always
surprise.”