After finishing 2020 with a five-round war against Brandon
Moreno that turned out to be one of the year’s best bouts,
flyweight champ Deiveson
Figueiredo is completely focused on his brother Francisco
Figueiredo’s debut at
UFC on ESPN 20 next week.
“My brother is entering in the biggest promotion in the world to
make history,” Deiveson said. “He is really tough. He is the one
who pushes me to train more every day [even after a bad session at
the gym]. I´m sure he will neutralize Jerome
Rivera wherever this fight goes, on the feet or on the
ground.”
Deiveson eventually envisions a scenario in which his brother’s
success at flyweight will force him to move to the bantamweight
division.
“After two or three fights I have no doubt he will be on the top,”
Deiveson said. “So I don’t have to fight my brother, I’ll go up to
the bantamweight division as I planned.”
Figueiredo is so confident that he will beat Moreno in their
rematch, which is tentatively planned for May, that he is already
engaged in a trash talk on social
media against former double champion Henry
Cejudo.
“I’m a wrestling killer. You can see what I did with all the
wrestlers that crossed my way in the UFC,” Deiveson said. “My game
is a nightmare for the ‘Pumpkin Head,’ and I´ll prove that by
taking his head with me when I return to Belem.”
If that desired matchup comes to fruition, Deiveson won’t ask
Cejudo to return to the flyweight division.
“I feel very strong in the 135-pound division, so I want to test
myself against him so he doesn’t have any excuses,” he said.