Payton Talbott is one of the hottest prospects in the UFC today and has so far delivered inside the octagon with a trio of finishes. Raoni Barcelos, a bantamweight veteran of 11 UFC bouts, vows to derail that hype train Saturday at UFC 311.
Barcelos and Talbott meet on the preliminary portion of the pay-per-view, and the Brazilian is shocked that he’s such a massive underdog against the much younger fighter in Los Angeles.
“No disrespect to those who have fought [Talbott], but he hasn’t been tested yet,” Barcelos told MMA Fighting. “He’s going to be tested now, against me. I believe my game and what we’re preparing to do, so I think everybody’s going to be surprised.”
Barcelos is as high as a +800 underdog in some sports books. He hasn’t been at his best as of late, losing four of his past six after a great 5-0 start in the organization, but those defeats came against Umar Nurmagomedov, Timur Valiev, Kyler Phillips and Victor Henry.
“That has motivated me to be here and show a good work,” Barcelos said. “That was my biggest motivation. To be overlooked and underestimated after everything I’ve done in MMA. I have a history here. This kid has three fights in the UFC so it’s kind of surreal, you know? This is my motivation to be there and give my best to come out with the win for Brazil. This is my biggest motivation.”
Talbott being the biggest favorite of the night doesn’t necessarily mean he’s also buying the hype. Barcelos thinks he might be, though.
“I once was a promising athlete as well, like he is now, but I had three or four UFC fights already and was asking for ranked opponents,” Barcelos said. “A million things happened, I got to the ranking after beating Said [Nurmagomedov] and left quickly. All respect to my opponent, but he hasn’t fought someone like me, with a game that can change the fight entirely. We’ll see.”
“He said he’s relaxed, he’s not worried about me. I think he has to be worried about me because I’m not a kid,” he continued. “I’ve been through a lot in my career. I’ve been knocked out, submitted, lost decisions and was robbed. I’m the one that can be relaxed because I have no pressure over me. He does. It’s his hometown, he’s undefeated. I’m going there to have fun and do a good job.”
With his opponent entering UFC 311 on two knockouts and one submission since joining the promotion through Dana White’s Contender Series, Barcelos looks at his own grappling background as key to shock the MMA world.
“It’s definitely a submission,” Barcelos said of how he wins Saturday. “I think that’s the best path, wrestling and jiu-jitsu. There’s no other way. It makes no sense to trade with a striker that is knocking everybody out. I think this is the easiest path, that’s where I’ll see the opening and attack. As for the odds and what everybody thinks, I’ll just shut everybody up. I’m motivated to go there and do a good job.”
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