Outside Source
SAO PAULO, Brazil — Brazil became one of the most feared places to fight after the UFC’s return to the country in 2011. Although the Brazilian dominance is not the same six years later, some local fighters even feel more pressure competing at home soil.
Elizeu Zaleski is one of them.
“Capoeira” joined the UFC in 2015 after racking up a 14-4 record in the local circuit, including winning and defending the Jungle Fight welterweight belt, but lost a decision to Nicolas Dalby in his Octagon debut in Goiania, Brazil.
He went on to win three in a row since, beating Omari Akhmedov, Keita Nakamura and Lyman Good in the United States, and returns to Brazil, at Saturday’s UFC Sao Paulo, with more pressure on his shoulders.
“Those were the only three fights I’ve done outside of Brazil, and it added an amazing experience to my career,” Zaleski told MMA Fighting. “It demanded a lot from me in the gym, in training, but fighting in Brazil is just as tough. Not that it’s more complicated, but the responsibility and pressure are bigger. You have to be better prepared when you’re fighting at home, compared to when you’re fighting outside.”
Zaleski’s wife, family and friends will be in attendance at the Ibirapuera gymnasium, and he wants to make them proud.
“I try to represent my countrymen the best way, the people form my state and my city, so it’s great to fight for them here in Brazil,” he said. “A lot of friends and family will be there watching this fight, so I’ll do my best to represent them Saturday.”
Coming off a win over former Bellator champion Lyman Good in July, Zaleski was hoping for a bigger name than Max Griffin, but won’t underestimate his skills.
“I don’t consider him any weaker than my previous opponents,” Zaleski said. “I always consider my next fight to be the most important. Every opponent is different. I have to impose my game and stop him from doing his. He’s a complicated opponent, he’s tough. He only lost in the UFC to the guy that’s fighting Demian Maia in the co-main event [Colby Covington], so I can’t underestimate him.”
“He’s a good fighter, has a good right hand, and I believe he will try to stand with me, but you never know,” he added. “He has an average ground game. He’s a typical MMA fighter, doing a bit of everything, but I expect him to try to stand with me.
With two “Fight of the Night” bonuses earned in his last three UFC bouts, “Capoeira” says winning is more important than collecting checks, but welcomes any extra money after helping his mother re-build her house, destroyed in a fire in 2015, and making plans to open his own gym in his hometown of Francisco Beltrao.
“I just want to win,” Zaleski said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a war, so we get the ‘Fight of the Night’ bonus, or if I finish him and win the ‘Performance of the Night’ bonus. It’s consequence of the fight. I have a Plan A, B and C, and I’ll fight the best way possible. I don’t think about the bonus, I just want to put on a good performance and move forward in the UFC.”
This article first appeared at MMA Fighting – All Posts
