Deiveson Figueiredo Calls Out Joshua Van

UFC bantamweight fighter Deiveson Figueiredo has called out UFC flyweight champion Joshua Van for a fight in the near future.

Figueiredo is the former two-time UFC flyweight champion, but he moved up to bantamweight in 2023 after the flyweight limit of 125 lbs became too difficult for his aging body.

However, the 38-year-old Brazilian believes that he can still make the weight, and he has hopes of dropping back down to flyweight to fight Van in a striker’s delight.

Deiveson Figueiredo Wants Joshua Van

Speaking to reporters ahead of UFC 332, where he battles Payton Talbott in the bantamweight co-main event, Figueiredo made it clear that he wants to fight Van next.

“Well, I’ve been asking UFC and telling them I will make that weight very easily. I’ve been asking them to just make the fight. I want that opportunity. Let’s see if his boxing is as good as mine,” Figueiredo said (via MMAjunkie.com).

“It needs to happen. UFC gives me an opportunity, I go out there and knock him out.”

‘Figgy’ a Huge Underdog at UFC 332

While Figueiredo wants to fight Van, the only way he would ever get that fight is if he can go out there and upset Talbott at UFC 332, which would elevate his stock if he took out one of the bantamweight division’s top prospects.

Unfortunately for the veteran Brazilian, he is a massive betting underdog in this fight, as he is a +500 underdog at the sportsbooks, compared to Talbott, who is a -700 favorite.

Given that Figueiredo has lost two straight fights and four of his last five overall, it seems really difficult to imagine him getting this title fight against Van back down at flyweight.

That being said, in the event he does pull off a massive upset over Talbott, it would surely give him a lot more leverage with the UFC to get his dream fight with Van.

But first things first, Figueiredo needs to go out there and defeat Talbott at UFC 332; otherwise, he might not even have a spot on the UFC roster after this, never mind fighting for the UFC flyweight belt again.

This article was originally published on HEAVY

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