Deiveson Figueiredo believes his win over Cody Garbrandt at UFC 300 warrants his next shot at the title.
After winning a close first round, Figueiredo overwhelmed Garbrandt on the ground en route to a rear-naked choke submission in the second round. Claiming his next title win, the 36-year-old said: He suffered the first submission loss of his professional career to a former bantamweight champion.
“Cody, he’s a former champion and a great guy. You know, he’s a really big name here,” Figueiredo said during the postgame media scrum (via YouTube translation). “And I’ve never seen anyone submit Cody Garbrandt. And today I came and dominated the fight with him and submitted him. And I really wanted this opportunity to fight for the belt. “I’m here”
While Figueiredo will next demand a title fight, No. 1 contender Merab Dvalishvili is expected to achieve his long-awaited title fight against Sean O’Malley later this year. The Brazilian doesn’t seem to prioritize one of the two.
“I’m 100% ready to fight again, whether it’s Sean O’Malley or Merab.”
[Dvalishvili]whoever it is, whatever Dana decides, I’m going to be a part of it,” Figueiredo said.
“Deus da Guera” also defeated a potential opponent, former champion Petr Yan. Yang recently returned to the win column with a decision win over Yadong Song after losing three straight against elite opponents. Figueiredo also doubled down on his claims that he was robbed in his controversial Dr. Stop loss to Brandon Moreno in a four-part fight at UFC 283 in January 2023.
“No, I’m a former champion in another division,” he said. “I’ve been working my way up in this division and I want to fight for a championship. The fight with Moreno was a mistake in my view, so I think I deserve to fight for a championship next time. .”
