Felipe Lima is thankful to his corner for helping him regain momentum in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut on Saturday.
Lima will face Muhammajon Naimov, replacing Mersik Baghdasaryan, at UFC on ABC 6 on Saturday in Saudi Arabia. The Brazilian, who normally fights at bantamweight, will move up to 145 pounds for his UFC debut against Naimov. Lima wasn’t particularly concerned about his opponent’s six-fight winning streak, but admitted to being a bit nervous about fighting under the bright lights of the UFC.
“Yeah, I was nervous,” Lima told ESPN. “And it’s not because of the guy or anything like that. I was nervous. [about] “What a performance I would have at UFC. Big crowd, big cage, a dream come true. And it all happened within a week, within five days. It was tough, but I managed it.”
Lima was evenly matched with Naimov for two rounds in a fast-paced bout that left no one in the clear, but “Jungle Boy” seemed re-energized in the third round, coming out strong to score a rear-naked choke submission. Lima revealed that encouragement from his coach, Andreas Michael, in his corner motivated him to secure the bonus victory finish.
“So, in the second round, I fell asleep a little bit and my opponent was a little bit [of] “It gave me confidence,” Lima says. “So when I came back, [to my corner] The third round, I sat down and he said, “Do it for your mom. Remember why you’re here, why you’re fighting. People are counting on you, so you’ve got to wake up. So, get it done.”
Lima is due to visit her mother in Brazil on August 6.
“I’ve already bought my ticket and I’m really looking forward to seeing my mom. I can’t wait to go to Brazil,” he said.
Lima’s lone professional loss came by submission in his professional debut in 2015. The Brazilian star has since won 13 straight bouts, with seven finishes. Though his UFC debut only came on Saturday, Lima has been preparing for this opportunity for nearly three years, including moving to Sweden and training with Michael at the AllStars Training Center in Stockholm.
“[For] “I’ve been waiting for UFC since I moved to Stockholm in 2021, since I moved to Allstars. It’s been three years already since I’ve been waiting for this opportunity and I’m ready when the call comes.”
