Put anyone in front of him, and Jailton Almeida is confident he’ll win.
He also understands the reality of the situation. He’s unlikely to get the next crack at UFC gold, unless Jon Jones actually does decide to hang up the gloves, and leaves Tom Aspinall without an obvious next foe.
“My feeling is that I am in my prime, ready to fight anyone in the world,” Almeida told MMA Junkie on Thursday through a Portuguese-language translator. “I really believe I can fight and beat anyone. After the fight, I hurt my foot a little bit, but nothing serious. I’m doing physical therapy, and I’m already back to training and sparring. I’m waiting for my next fight in this semester.”
Almeida (22-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) has won back-to-back fights inside the distance since his only UFC loss, which came against Curtis Blaydes. He sees the potential Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) matchup as unlikely but isn’t sure which target to redirect his matchmaking campaign toward. He wants Ciryl Gane. But does Gane (13-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) want it? Almeida isn’t so sure.
“I think the only possibility (me vs. Aspinall) happens, is in the case Jones don’t make a deal with the UFC, so, Aspinall will need to fight someone else,” Almeida said. “All guys he already fought, and Gane gave him chances two times and failed, and his last fight was terrible. He lost and gave to him, so Almeida is right here. But I really think Jones vs. Aspinall will happen. In that case, I said to everyone, I want to fight Ciryl Gane. I challenge him several times, and he never answers. I don’t want to think he is scared, because he is a tough fighter. But he is strange. I want to fight him, because I think a victory over him or maybe Volkov will put me on the title fight, and thats what I want.
“… As I said before, I’m the only other option for Aspinall. No one ever says my name, and the reason is because all of them know I’m a bad fight to everyone. I’m the only in the division that can put Aspinall in danger. I’m strong. I’m fast, I’m explosive, and I have excellent wrestling and jiu-jitsu, and I finish all my fights, submission and TKO.”
Gane has not competed since a December split decision win over Alexander Volkov and does not currently have a publicly-known fight on the books.
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Following a quick dismantlement of Serghei Spivac in January, Alemida nursed a foot injury. However, he’s since gotten over that and hopes to return sometime in the next few months.
Whether it’s a month or a year from now, Almeida likes his odds vs. Aspinall should the stars ever align for that matchup. The analytical side of his fight brain is already hard at work.
“I think I can use my wrestling and jiu-jitsu to beat him,” Almeida said. “I really believe I can take down and finish every man in the earth. Everyone said his father is a jiu-jitsu coach and he trains grappling since as a kid, so, my father is a boxing coach and I train boxing since as a kid too. Let’s see what happens.”
This interview was conducted using a Portuguese-language translator and was edited for grammar and clarity.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Jailton Almeida itches for Tom Aspinall fight, but happy to settle for ‘strange’ Ciryl Gane
