Deiveson
Figueiredo is weighing his options after a successful
bantamweight debut at UFC on
ESPN 52 this past Saturday night.
Advertisement
Figuereido, who defeated Rob Font via
unanimous decision at UFC Austin, discussed his desire to face some
of the bantamweight division’s biggest names in an exclusive
interview with Sherdog.com.
“Font had great fights with former champions and some top of the
division,” he said. “Many people thought I was too small for him,
and I showed what I’m capable of when I’m happy and healthy.
“As a former champion, if UFC wanted to set me up to challenge for
the title I would surprise many fans again. [Sean] O’Malley is an
excellent striker, but I believe a lot in my team’s strategy. When
I enter the Octagon I love to exchange, but against O’Malley I
believe my jiu-jitsu would make the difference. If I get a hold of
him, I would submit him.”
Figueiredo realizes that the UFC is more likely to want him to face
another Top 10 opponent next, and he has targeted three potential
options.
“The division is very strong. My focus now is to keep training
everyday, evolving my technique and always being healthy and ready
to accept any UFC call,” he said. “If I’m not going to face the
current champion now, I think we have a couple of interesting
possibilities for former champions like Aljamain
Sterling, Dominick
Cruz or Petr Yan. Any
of them would make sense for me. It’s up to UFC.”