Las Vegas — Flyweight Rafael Estevam earned a unanimous decision victory over Jesus Aguilar at UFC Vegas 102 on Saturday to improve to 2-0 inside the UFC octagon.
The fight, for Estevam anyway, was a long time coming. His first win in the company, over Charles Johnson, came back in November of 2023. Beating a ranked flyweight, you might have expected Estevam (13-0) to make a quick turnaround and build on that momentum. The discovery of an abdominal tumor, however— thankfully benign, but requiring surgery— kept the Brazilian on the shelf.
His return fight against Aguilar looked dominant, and Estevam knew he was up in the fight heading into the final five minutes. “I knew that I was going into the third round two-nothing. I got to the third round, we started running away with it a little bit,” he noted, speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press following the bout. Heading into the fight, “I knew I needed to pull a rabbit out of a hat, and I was able to do it. It was about waiting for him to make a mistake, and when he did, he kind of over-reached out there, I was able to take him over. And then from then on, I knew that I had it in me there, and it was just a matter of controlling— and I was happy about the win.”
Surprisingly, Aguilar seemed content to keep the fight on the ground and engage with Estevam, a strong grappler.
“That was the plan, to keep things on the ground, and keep it all the way down low. But the thing is, I didn’t know if that was his plan. I figured he would have watched tape on me and did not want to go to the ground with me,” said Estevam. “I thought he was going to keep the distance, I thought he was going to avoid takedowns. I figured that he would exchange more with me.” Instead, Aguilar “decided to grapple, and he was going against a natural grappler. Somebody that’s very comfortable out there. And I knew I had all the tools to do it.”
It all worked out for Estevam, though clearly not for Aguilar, and the Brazilian known as “Macapa” is now hoping to get two more fights this year. “And I’m going to get those two more fights. The plan is to be active, continue to train, always be training, always be ready for fights. Get that conditioning, and get those two fights. Get those two fights, get those two wins, have a great Christmas with the family and finish the year on a positive note.”
There are no names on Estevam’s lips at the moment, no callouts he wants to make. What he is looking for is a shot at the flyweight division’s top 15.
“No names out there, but let’s talk about this. I beat Charles Johnson who was number 12 in the rankings. So I think I deserve this. I deserve a 12 or 13, whatever position in the rankings. I beat the dude, so just give me that chance, because I deserve it.”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 102 post-fight appearance by Rafael Estevam above.
