Borrachinha denies having signed a contract to face Whittaker and provokes Chimaev: “He didn’t convince anyone”

Paulo borrachinha He is a Brazilian standout in the UFC. Photo/Reproduction/Twitter/UFCBrasil

Paulo borrachinha, who is about to face the former champion Robert whittaker No. UFC 298, revealed in an interview that he has not yet signed the contract for the fight and tried to reschedule the duel with Khamzat Shimaev, his former adversary.

In an interview with the program The MMA Hour, the Minas Gerais native said he was not impressed with Chimaev's victory over Kamaru Usman, which gave him a comfortable position in the middleweight title (up to 83,9kg.). He doesn't think the fighter deserves to be the challenger in the division and he asked the UFC to reschedule the fight, but received the answer that the Chechen would not fight until June or July.

See too

Chael Sonnen accuses Charles do Bronx of not wanting to fight Makhachev and causes controversy in the UFC

Israel Adesanya receives sentence after drunk driving arrest

With a fight scheduled in the UFC, the Cuban giant has three knockouts in 19 seconds; get to know

"I tried. I tried. I couldn't fight, he (Khamzat Shimaev) faced Kamaru Usman and he won, but he didn't convince anyone. I don't think he's the fighter who deserves to be challenged. I spoke to the UFC to reschedule the fight, but they told me he won't fight until June or July. I do not know the reason. So, they offered me Rob and I accepted”, said Borrachinha.

The Minas Gerais native, who is sixth in the middleweight rankings, also revealed that he has not yet signed a contract to face Whittaker. Borrachinha said that he is waiting for the email from the UFC and that he is ready to fight in Anaheim, California, where the fight will be held. UFC 298, on February 17.

“I haven't signed yet. They haven't sent me the email yet. I'm waiting for the email. I don't know what happened, but I'm ok to fight in Anaheim. I like the people of California. Let's see what happens. If I win the fight, I hope I can be the next challenger. Rob is coming off a defeat, but I think I can be accredited with that,” he concluded.

The Brazilian has not fought since August 2022, when he beat the former champion Luke Rockhold by technical knockout. Before that, he had lost to Israel adesanya e Marvin vettori. Now, he is looking to recover and get back on track for the title.

O UFC 298 The main fight will be the defense of the featherweight belt (65,7 kg.) between the champion Alexander Volkanovsky and the challenger Ilia Topuria.