The road to the UFC wasn’t smooth for Lucas Almeida to navigate, but now that he has arrived, the Brazilian lightweight is ready to put on a show.
At UFC Fight Night 207, Almeida (13-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will make his UFC debut against The Ultimate Fighter 27 champion Mike Trizano at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. While it will be the first time he fights under the banner of the big three letters of the promotion, it won’t be the first time Almeida has competed in the arena.
In September 2021, Almeida fought for his shot to enter the promotion at Dana White’s Contender Series 41, but unfortunately, he ended up on the wrong end of a unanimous decision. Despite the setback and not receiving a contract, the goal of reaching the UFC has been achieved just eight months later.
“It was a dream, and that dream became a goal,” Almeida said through an interpreter at Wednesday’s media day. “Here I am at the biggest event in the world and I came to put on a show because I know that’s what people want and that’s what I came here for.”
After the decision loss to Daniel Zellhuber, Almeida said UFC president Dana White told him to go get another win and he would be brought back. Almeida accepted the challenge and apparently, White’s word held true.
In November, he returned to Jungle Fight to defend the lightweight title he won before his DWCS opportunity, and choked out his opponent in just over two minutes. That performance was impressive enough to earn that call that was promised, and now he’s placed on a UFC main card against a TUF champion in Trizano (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC).
Now, Almeida gets the opportunity to impress in his promotional debut while also erasing the memory of his first career loss against a striker in a matchup he believes is favorable.
“The win is very important but the show is too because every fight I try to win and convince, like we say in Brazil,” Almeida said. “It’s so much that I try to win and convince, even in my loss, the big boss liked me. So, that means I’m doing something right.”
Lucas Almeida aims to ‘win and convince’ in UFC debut against TUF 27 champion Mike Trizano