Athletes
Jailton Almeida: ‘This Is My Chance’
UFC Heavyweight Jailton Almeida Eyes His Chance To Prove He’s The Top Grappler In The Division And Put His Name Into The Title Picture At UFC 299: O’Malley vs Vera 2
Not even Jailton Almeida expected to be so close to the top of the heavyweight division so fast.
The 32-year-old has quickly established himself as a dominant contender since joining the UFC roster off a win on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021. He’s 6-0 in the UFC with five finishes and on a win streak of 15 straight, overall. His dream of being in the UFC has evolved in such a short time to a dream of becoming the champion, and as the No. 7 contender in the world, he’s confident that he’s not far from making that dream a reality.
Order UFC 299: O'Malley vs Vera 2
“To be honest, I did not expect this to happen this quick, but because I work and train so hard, it actually happened,” Almeida told UFC.com. “I worked with my team, and I got the right wins and I think the audience wants to see guys from the new generation fighting for the belt.
“My dream is to fight for the belt. My dream was to join the UFC, but now, my dream is to fight for the belt.”
This weekend, Almeida will fight longtime contender Curtis Blaydes on the UFC 299: O’Malley vs Vera 2 card in Miami. It’s a crucial fight for the trajectory of both men’s careers, and it’s a fight that was supposed to happen last year before an injury to Blaydes pushed the fight back.
“Thank God that everything is working out in this journey. This fight was supposed to happen in São Paulo, but, unfortunately, Curtis Blaydes injured himself, so it got postponed,” Almeida said. “Now I’m coming to his home country to fight him, and my career is on the right track. With faith in God, I’ll get the win and I’ll be fighting for the belt against (Tom) Aspinall this year.”
Jailton Almeida | Best Finishes
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Jailton Almeida | Best Finishes
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Reaching the upper echelon in the UFC heavyweight division is a daunting task. With knockout potential in every punch, the margin of error is so slim that anything can happen in any fight. Yet Almeida’s style has minimized the danger that comes with fighting in the biggest and baddest division in the sport.
Through six UFC fights, Almeida has only absorbed a total of 22 significant strikes while dishing out 152 significant strikes. Essentially, he’s utilizing his grappling game to control the fight and to prevent his opponents from landing their home run punches. It’s been a picture-perfect strategy thus far, and it’s helped him set up his submissions.
Almeida controls the fight on the floor then jumps on the first mistake he sees to get the finish. That’s the formula we’ve seen from him in just about all his fights minus his decision win over Derrick Lewis. Even in that fight, Almeida executed his trademark gameplan to a tee, but was just unable to find the finish against “The Black Beast.”
That’s why this weekend’s bout with Blaydes is so intriguing. For the first time, Almeida will be facing a grappler, one that many consider to be the best in the division, and it’s exactly the type of fight to provide all the important questions that Almeida wants answered.
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“Let’s see who’s the best grappler in the division. He calls himself the best grappler, but my time has come,” Almeida said. “I’m humble, my feet are on the ground and I’m putting in the work showing what I can do, so, on Saturday, we will see what will happen in the arena and who truly is the best grappler in the division.”
UFC 299 COUNTDOWN: Full Episode | O'Malley vs Vera | Poirier vs Saint Denis | Holland vs Page
It’s also the perfect fight for Almeida to separate himself from the pack and change the tune of how people look at him in the heavyweight landscape.
All the fighters that have beaten Blaydes have either won the UFC heavyweight title or fought for the belt. That means defeating Blaydes would put Almeida in elite company and cement him as one of the next fighters to compete for the belt.
Jailton Almeida Fight Week Interview | UFC 299
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Jailton Almeida Fight Week Interview | UFC 299
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“It’s a coincidence,” Almeida laughed when considering the history of Blaydes’ past opponents. “But thank God I got the chance to get a win over Blaydes, so I think I’m the next contender.”
The truth is that the belt situation at heavyweight is complicated, and it has been complicated for years. There was the saga between Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier, the injury to Francis Ngannou, and then Jon Jones winning the title. Now Jones is hurt, and Tom Aspinall has won an interim title. There’s a lot going on.
But Almeida isn’t worried about it. He knows none of that matters unless he beats Blaydes, and if he does that, he’s done the right work to be on a short list of names to be fighting for a title.
UFC 299: O'Malley vs Vera 2 took place live from Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida on March 9, 2024. See the final Prelims & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
