Machida seeks victory over Belfort to return to title contention

L. Machida wants to fight four times in 2018. (Photo: Reproduction Twitter ufc_brasil)

Having been in Mixed Martial Arts for 15 years, Lyoto 'Dragão' Machida, aged 39, has been through many situations in the sport. Between 2015 and 2017 he had three consecutive defeats against: Luke Rockhold, Yoel romero e Derek Brunson, in addition to an 18-month punishment by USADA. Even with the setbacks, Machida states that the goal is to climb the rankings and compete for the middleweight belt.

Lyoto is coming off a victory in 2018 against the North American, Erik Anders at UFC Belém in February. On Saturday (12) the Brazilian will step into the octagon again against his compatriot Vitor belfort at UFC Rio.

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In an interview with the website MMAjunkie, Machida stated that the focus is on one more victory in his record to climb the middleweight rankings and compete for the title again. “I want to have four fights this year. Considering the breaks I plan to take and how much time I will have, I think it would be a good number of fights. My goal is to win my way to another title”, said Dragão.

Machida believes he has no advantage by fighting in Rio de Janeiro, as Belfort will also have great support from the fans. “I know the fans will be divided, as there will be two Brazilians in the octagon, but I have the support of those who have always supported me. I want to see everyone's energy on fight day. It will be a unique moment for the sport in Brazil, so I am very focused and excited for this fight”, said Lyoto.

Lyoto 'Dragão' Machida is a former light heavyweight champion and has a record of 31 fights with 23 wins and 8 losses.

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