The UFC is back in Brazil this Saturday for the first time in almost three years. It’s a big card too as UFC 283 hits Rio de Janeiro with two title fights. There are five Brazilians on the card that will be making their UFC debut. One of those is Luan Lacerda who is brought in to fight Cody Stamann, a staple in the bantamweight division.
Luan Lacerda
Standing at Five-foot-seven
Fighting at 135 lbs (bantamweight)
30-years-old
Fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Training out of Nova Uniao
A pro record of 12-1
10 Submissions
How will Lacerda fare in the UFC:
I am surprised to see Lacerda brought in to fight Stamann but not surprised to see him signed. Usually, when the UFC signs Brazilians outside the Contender Series it’s out of left-field signings. This one is a home run with Lacerda. Lacerda trains out of Nova Uniao and has been training a lot with Jose Aldo. Lacerda fought his last two fights for LFA which has brought him exposure on a bigger platform. Before that he was the Shooto Brasil champion which is a huge title to win in Brazil.
Lacerda is a BJJ black belt and has an 83.33% submission rate. His striking has been expanding over time and it’s quite good. He used his time in a high-level gym to grow his abilities. Lacerda throws good straight punches, goes to the body, and throws a lot of kicks. He’s done a great job sticking to what he’s good at and that’s Jiu-Jitsu. Lacerda can strike to mix it up but always goes to his grappling.
Lacerda has good wrestling but a lot of time you will see him grab a leg and flop to his back. He’s so confident in his Jiu-Jitsu he’s fine with going to his back. From there he will attack submissions, create scrambles, and execute sweeps. I’m usually fully against that but when your grappling is that good you can fight like that. Lacerda can quickly go from on his back to on his opponent’s back in seconds. You can’t ask for better Jiu-Jitsu.
I really like this signing and even in a crowded division, he stands out. He may not be top 15 ever but he’s right outside that. With a litter more growth on the feet, he would be a huge problem.
How he matches up with Stamann:
When the fight was announced I thought right away Stamann was too much too soon for Lacerda. After going over the tape Stamann has his work cut out for him.
Stamann is primarily a wrestler but does need to steer away from that in this fight. On the feet, Stamann does fair work. He knocked out Eddie Wineland but that’s an older guy with a weaker chin. A sharp technical striker with a lot of movement would give Lacerda issues and that’s not Stamann. I see Lacerda landing the more significant strikes on the feet and frustrating Stamann with a lot of kicks.
Stamann probably is able to take this fight down and there is a chance he can just hold him down. I’ll bank on the fact Lacerda will sweep or scramble every time his back hits the mat and wins positions. Stamann has lost to other grapplers before and I think he does again here. I like the underdog here as I think this is a bad match-up for Stamann.
