Las Vegas — Debuting light heavyweight Bruno Lopes, a former LFA standout, earned a three-round decision in something of a grinding fight at UFC Vegas 101.
His opponent, Magomed Gadzhiyasulov, had entered the fight undefeated, so perhaps the grueling, grinding pace can be forgiven. And despite it being his first fight since winning his way into the UFC on the Contender Series, it seems that Brazil’s Lopes is already thinking about getting his contract renewed.
“I think one of the most difficult things for an athlete in the UFC is to have a contract renewed. And my plan is to ride out those four fights and always have victory in my mind,” he said, addressing media outlets including Cageside Press. “It might have not have been pretty, but the most important thing there was, have my arm raised in the end.”
As for the game plan, “the plan was to nullify and to basically neutralize his strengths,” which included Gadzhiyasulov’s striking and takedown ability. “I knew I needed to pressure him, and if I was able to take him down or get close to him, to inflict some damage.” Lopes believes Gadzhiyasulov’s confidence was sagging near the end, “and I think that at the end, you saw what happened.”
With a victory in his promotional debut, Lopes now hopes to stay busy, and to see action at home in Brazil.
“2025 starts on the right foot, coming off a victory. The idea is to actually have many fights throughout the year. There’s a UFC coming up in Brazil, and I would love to fight in Brazil regardless of it’s a Pay-Per-View or perhaps a Fight Night. It would be great to actually have a crowd, the home crowd yelling my name.”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 101 post-fight press conference with Bruno Lopes above.