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Hello, boys and girls. It is Monday once again, which means it’s time for another edition of the Brazil Beat. You know, the weekly roundup of all the news in the Brazilian fighting community (from the UFC and beyond), all conveniently put together in one place by yours truly.
This week, we’ve got Alexandre Pantoja asking president Dana White for a chance to fight in his home country of Brazil for his next title defense, as well as fellow UFC 296 winner Ariane Lipski talking about her career and former heavyweight champ Fabricio Werdum weighing in on an upcoming top contender match in the division.
So let’s jump right in.
Pantoja asks Dana White for his Christmas present
Following a successful title defense against Brandon Royval at UFC 296, flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja hopes he has enough credit as a champion to start making a few requests in the promotion.
Having been in the UFC for six years, with 14 matches under his belt since then, the Brazilian has fought all around the world, in countries such as Chile, Scotland, the United Arab Emirates and South Korea, but never in his home country of Brazil.
In an interview with Ag Fight (translated by Bloody Elbow), the ‘Cannibal’ made a simple, heartfelt request to the company and to Dana White. If possible, he would like to have his next title defense in Brazil. A Rio de Janeiro native, Pantoja would be even happier if he could have the match in his home town, which is no stranger to UFC cards.
“I have a Christmas request. I want to go to Brazil to defend this title. I want to go to Rio de Janeiro, my city. I want to give this experience to the Brazilian people. I want to step into the arena that’s packed just for me. I want to fight in my city, man. I never fought in Brazil for the UFC. I’m putting my life on the line out there again. I’m asking Dana White for this fight in Rio de Janeiro. If I can have some influence in that, a trick up my sleeve, I hope they can help me out.”
I counted and Pantoja has actually fought in seven different countries during his UFC career, which is quite the feat. Flyweight champions normally don’t get that much recognition but Brazilians do love supporting their champions, so it might actually be a good idea if Dana White wanted to build him up for a card in Brazil since he could be paired up with Alex Pereira, who is huge right now.
Having said that, all PPV cards up until April have already been booked, so that means Pantoja would have to wait for a long time for his next defense if he really wants it to be in Brazil. I don’t think he’s getting his wish granted right away.
Ariane Lipski hopes to break into top 15 with UFC 296 win
Speaking of fighters who have been in the company for a while, it seems Ariane Lipski has finally found herself at home in the UFC. Though the former KSW champion had a rough start, going 3-5 in her first eight outings, she finally managed to put it all together in 2023.
With the submission win over Casey O’Neill at UFC 296, Lipski closes 2023 with a perfect 3-0 record and feels ready to face ranked competition in 2024. In an interview with Ag Fight (translated by Bloody Elbow), the ‘Queen of Violence’ explained why it took her so long to find her rhythm in the Octagon.
“As you mentioned. I was very active when I was in KSW, but I was sidelined for almost a year before joining the UFC. I was coming off an injury. We don’t usually discuss these things, but my performance wasn’t the best, not the same as before. I’ve faced ranked athletes before because of the expectations they had of me. I’ve had my share of ups and downs. I managed to prevail and I believe I now I have my rhythm in the UFC. She ranked 12th, so I believe I can break into the top 15.”
I think it’s cool when the UFC gives people enough chances to mature and develop. Lipski is not even 30 yet, so she could be getting to her prime now and it might pay off to have waited for her to get there. She’s an exciting who tries to finish her opponents and really comes in handy when you are trying to promote the women’s divions.
Fabricio Werdum has unusual advice for Jailton Almeida
Rising heavyweight contender Jailton Almeida might be one win away from a title shot as he rides a six-fight win streak ahead of his match against Curtis Blaydes at UFC 299, so expectations from other Brazilian MMA fighters are high.
One such athlete is former champion Fabricio Werdum, who had the chance to watch Almeida’s last fight live, when he defeated Derrick Lewis, and was impressed with what he witnessed. Not that ‘Malhadinho’ is taking on Blaydes in March, ‘Vai Cavalo’ would like give him some advice for the fight.
In an interview with Portal do Vale Tudo (translated by Bloody Elbow), Werdum entertained the thought that it may be a good idea for Malhadinho to accept being on the bottom, in half guard, if he can’t take down Blaydes in the traditional way. Although the strategy is risky, the former champion believes Almeida could pull it off after seeing him fight on the ground.
“Having seen Almeida fighting in person, I can see how sharp he is. He’s physically and mentally strong. He’s been training hard. I really like his style, I really related to it. When it comes to the fight, Blaydes is no fool on the feet and he has good takedown defense. He can also take you down. If Almeida tries to take him down can’t do it, maybe pulling guard to half guard could even be a good idea, because he’s very good at reversals. Heavyweights aren’t used to the half guard.”
Knowing Fabricio Werdum, I can totally see why he would give Almeida this kind of advice. Personally, I would not suggest getting under Curtis Blaydes to anyone unless you want to see them getting elbowed to death, but that’s just me.
Charles Oliveira scores elite Muay Thai designation
It has been a while since former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira moved on from being just a jiu-jitsu guy to a well-rounded fighter. Now, though, ‘Do Bronx’ even has a certificate to back him up.
On his official Instagram account, Oliveira celebrated receiving the black level certificate in muay thai from his gym Chute Boxe and was ecstatic about the promotion.
“Today was a very special day. It was a national Chute Boxe meeting and after a lot of hard work, I was promoted to the black level in muay thai. I have nothing but grattitude to everyone who believed in my work.”
Well, Charles is officially more dangerous than ever. I still think he exposes himself on the feet too much and relies too much on his chin, but there’s no denying his development.
Jungle Fight 123 had some violent finishes
As usual, the latest Jungle Fight card brought us some highlight reel finishes.
Once again taking place in Sao Paulo, Jungle Fight 123 featured an interim lightweight title fight in its main event, which ended with a comeback win when Marcelo Medeiros knocked out Lucas Campos in the second round of their match.
“It was a war.” Medeiros said (transcribed by Combate, translated by Bloody Elbow) after the win. “My opponent is so aggressive, so I decided to tire him out against the fence for a while and take away some of his drive. When he felt like he was dictating the pace, he came forward and that’s when I landed a hard punch and he went down. Thank God.”
Though the 13-fight card featured 11 wins by stoppage, I could only find a couple of them online this time, but I really think this next one makes it count. In the flyweight divison, Luiz Paulo Barbosa landed a flush flying knee and some brutal elbows on Jean Felipe Souza that had his opponent taken out on a stretcher following the knockout.
In an interview after the event, Jungle Fight president Wallid Ismail sounded quite satisfied with the events the promotion was able to hold in 2023 and hopes for even better ones in 2024.
“This year has been sensational. Every event was packed and we had great fights. Sao Paulo has become the national capital of MMA. Next year promises to be even better. There are lots of good things coming.”
Just a wonderful year for Jungle Fight. I can’t think of a single card that didn’t deliver and this column is a testament to that. I’ve discussed so many of their cards here this year, and they were all bangers, full of finishes and exciting athletes. I really hope they can keep this up and it sounds like they can.
A Brazilian Beat
I feel like it has been a while since I promoted an instrumental band around here, so that’s what we’re going with this week.
To make things a little more personal, I actually chose a band I had the chance to see live back when I was in my teens and they went to my hometown around the time they released their biggest hit, in the late 2000’s.
This week’s band is Pata de Elefante, a group that hails from Porto Alegre, the capital of southern most state in the country, Rio Grande do Sul. The state is also home to former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum.
In fact, Rio Grande do Sul is responsible for a whole genre of music named Rock Gaucho (that being what a person born in the state is called, just like ‘Carioca’ is the same for someone born in Rio de Janeiro). The style mixes the traditional rock sound with multiple other subgenres, such as blues, indie rock, surf music, rockabilly and many others, it all depends on which band listen to.
Pata de Elefante’s most famous hit, ‘Hey!’ was released in 2007, on their album ‘Um Olho no Fósforo, Outro na Fagulha (One Eye on the Matchstick, The Other One on the Spark). It has that rocky feel I was talking about, but mixed with some blues and surf music. The guitars sound great and definitely take the place of the lead singer in a just fun, exciting introduction to a great band.
So check them out!
That’s it for this week, folks. Stay safe, see you next time!
Lucas out.
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