Caio Borralho – Syndication Server

Caio Borralho claims ‘fcking pssy’ Nassourdine Imavov turned down UFC fight: ‘Dagestan is ashamed of you’

According to Caio Borralho, Nassourdine Imavov rejected to fight him.

According to [autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag], [autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] rejected to fight him.

Both Borralho (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) and Imavov (16-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) sit atop of the middleweight division as they vie for a title shot. Borralho previously called out Imavov, and revealed that the UFC tried to match them up, but Imavov was not interested.

Borralho went off on Imavov, downplaying his recent finishes over Jared Cannonier, and former champion Israel Adesanya in the UFC Fight Night 250 headliner. Borralho’s most recent win came in a five-round main event over Cannonier this past August.

“I just heard the news that they offered us a fight. I said yes right away, and he came and said no,” Imavov told Full Send MMA. “Then the UFC came to him and said, ‘If you say no, you’re not the next in line. Caio’s going to be ahead of you.’ Then he said, ‘OK, I agree with that.’ So I don’t know what this guy is thinking.

“People are saying, ‘Oh, he finished Cannonier.’ It was an early (stoppage). He was losing the fight. After that, ‘Oh, he finished Adesanya.’ OK, it was a great job, but he was getting beaten up by a guy who was on three straight losses. Even if it’s Adesanya, it’s three straight losses. He’s not in the best moment of his career, so nothing to be proud of.”

Borralho stepped it up a notch by going after Imavov’s origins.

“I heard this guy is kind of a Dagestani. I think the Dagestani people are ashamed of him,” Borralho said. “I heard that the Dagestani guys like to fight. They fight in the street. They live a rough life. But this guy is a f*cking p*ssy. He’s not Dagestani. Dagestan is ashamed of you, have shame on you. That’s what they have.”

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Caio Borralho eyes UFC Fight Night 250 winner Nassourdine Imavov next

Caio Borralho sees Nassourdine Imavov as a logical next opponent.

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] sees [autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] as a logical next opponent.

Imavov (16-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) emerged as a potential title contender when he knocked out former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya (24-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 250 headliner at ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Imavov called for a title shot next, but with streaking contender Borralho also vying for his shot, he likes the idea of them fighting next.

“I think Imavov can be a great fight, but I think (Robert) Whittaker can be a great fight, too,” Borralho told Submission Radio. “So whoever the UFC decides me to go, I’m ready.”

Borralho (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC), who’s coming off a five-round main event win over Jared Cannonier in August, thinks he can outlast Imavov.

“If it’s a five-round fight. I think he might get tired with my pace and my rhythm on him,” Borralho said. “I for sure need to get a little bit aware of his right hand because he comes very fast, and in this sport the speed and the timing beats everything. So I think we can have two great, close rounds, maybe three, but in the fourth or fifth, I think I can push him a little bit more and maybe get the finish – but for sure get the victory.”

Borralho admits he thought Adesanya would beat Imavov. He broke down the fight-ending sequence.

“I thought Israel was going to pick him apart for like three or four rounds and then maybe lose one round or something like that,” Borralho said. “I thought it would be more like on point to get hit and all that, but I think he was good on hitting somebody, but wasn’t that good when he gets hit. I think he might be a little bit off on the fight time – the sparring time and all that. He’s not in his prime, for sure, but it’s hard to say because the guy has been the GOAT for so long, been so good for so long.

“It’s hard to see the guy losing that way, but I think he did a wrong choice when he switched the stance too close to Imavov, because when you switch the stance, you need to be a little bit far away from the guy so you can adjust, and the guy can adjust just too. But I think he switched his stance so close to Imavov, and he didn’t have to adapt, and then he got clipped.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 250.

MMA Junkie’s 2024 Gym of the Year: The Fighting Nerds

The Fighting Nerds became the cool kids in 2024.

No MMA team turned heads more than the Nerds over the past 12 months as they exploded into the UFC rankings with impactful wins spread across their professional team.

Led by coaches Pablo Sucupira, Flavio Alvaro and Wagner Mota, contenders emerged as [autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag], [autotag]Carlos Prates[/autotag], [autotag]Jean Silva[/autotag] and [autotag]Mauricio Ruffy[/autotag] all went undefeated and each displaying exciting fight abilities.

In addition to their elite fighting skills, Sucupira and his class have put forth A-grade branding and self-expression. The signature nerd glasses have become a staple of their fight nights and have even been worn by the likes of Elon Musk and Joe Rogan.

“When you think about a nerd guy, you always see a guy who wants to be the best in the classroom,” Borralho told MMA Junkie in August. “The nerd, if he’s going into a test and he took a B+, he would be upset. Like, ‘I wanted my A+.’ … We have a big message to inspire people. We’ve seen a lot of bully things happening in the world. A lot of this sh*t happening, it’s bully payback time.”

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Unofficially formed in 2014 and built from scratch by the coaching-student bond of Sucupira and Borralho, the team’s first UFC fight was Borralho in 2021. As he climbed the ranks and earned the gym its first UFC headliner in 2024, Prates and Silva flew up their divisional ladders.

In 2024, Borralho defeated Paul Craig and Jared Cannonier. Carlos Prates debuted with a huge knockout of Trevin Giles – foreshadowing of the knockouts of Charles Radtke, Li Jingliang and Neil Magny (in a main event) that came later.

Ruffy knocked out Jamie Mullarkey, then defeated James Llontop by decision. [autotag]Bruna Brasil[/autotag] and [autotag]Thiago Moises[/autotag] also picked up UFC victories.

For those reasons, The Fighting Nerds is MMA Junkie’s 2024 Gym of the Year.

UFC’s Caio Borralho reveals why Israel Adesanya fight didn’t materialize

Caio Borralho didn’t get his wish of fighting former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] didn’t get his wish of fighting former UFC middleweight champion [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag].

Streaking contender Borralho (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) told MMA Junkie this past October that was in discussions to face Adesanya (24-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) next. However, Adesanya wound up getting booked against Nassourdine Imavov (15-4 MMA, 7-2 UFC) Feb. 1 in the UFC Fight Night 250 headliner at ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

A disappointed Borralho explained what he thinks happened.

“I think the UFC offered Izzy two fights: me or Imavov,” Borralho said on the “Overdogs Podcast.” “And then, he suddenly posted a clip studying Imavov’s tape, and I was like, ‘Come on, bro.’ I sent a message to Izzy, and was like, ‘Bro, why you choosing that?’

“He was like, ‘Bro, we’re going to fight next year. We’re going to dance next year for the belt.’ It’s OK, I respect you if you choose that. I think he chose right. I think Imavov is a better fight for him, and I think Izzy is the favorite in this fight.”

Borralho thinks Adesanya’s main advantage comes in his experience of fighting championship rounds on numerous occasions. Imavov has been booked in three five-round UFC main events – a unanimous decision loss to Sean Strickland, a majority decision win over Roman Dolidze, and a fourth-round TKO finish of Jared Cannonier.

“Imavov, I think he’s good and all that, but I don’t think he has the cardio for five rounds,” Borralho said. “I don’t think he has the best mentality for five rounds. He gets frustrated a lot into the fight, and he fought a three-round fight with Brendan Allen in Paris and it was like a boring fight.

“They were tired since the first round, and I think if he does the same thing with Izzy, Izzy is going to pick him apart. I think he’s good at fighting guys that are shorter than him. I don’t think he’s good when he’s fighting guys who are taller than him.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Saudi Arabia.

Caio Borralho says he’s ‘in talks’ to fight Israel Adesanya at UFC 312 in February

Caio Borralho could land a breakthrough opportunity against former UFC champion Israel Adesanya early next year.

ABU DHABI – Yes, [autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] is on Fight Island for UFC 308 fight week. But, no, he’s not there to weigh in as a backup for the co-headliner between Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev.

However, Borralho could soon be fighting another former UFC middleweight champion.

On Tuesday, Borralho revealed to MMA Junkie that discussions are ongoing for him to fight [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] this coming February at UFC 312 in Sydney.

“I want to fight Izzy. We are in talks with UFC, but nothing confirmed yet,” Borralho said. “But that’s the fight we want. I think that’s the fight that makes sense. Adesanya already fought all the guys from (the) top five. Just me and (Nassourdine) Imavov he didn’t fight, but Imavov didn’t (have) a good fight last time, so I think they’re thinking about me. Let’s see what the UFC wants.”

The pairing does seem to make sense. Borralho, who’s No. 6 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings at 185 pounds, seemingly is in line for a major opportunity after winning a five-round unanimous decision against former title challenger Jared Cannonier. The result, which earned the 2021 Dana White’s Contender Series alum a Fight of the Night bonus this past August, pushed Borralho’s overall winning streak to 16 fights, which includes a 7-0 start in the UFC.

The idea of fighting Adesanya (24-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) excites Borralho more than anything.

“A lot of respect for Izzy, you know. I want to fight the best in the world, and I think he’s a legend, one of the best in the world. I want to test myself against him,” Borralho said.

Adesanya, 35, who ruled the middleweight division for nearly three years, has hit a rough patch in his career, having lost three of his past four bouts. That includes a one-sided decision against Sean Strickland and most recently a submission loss to champion Dricus Du Plessis.

While some might view Adesanya on the decline, Borralho would not take the opportunity for granted.

“He was a great champion. He always has good points,” Borralho said. “I don’t know if he’s vulnerable or anything like that. I don’t have anything with it. If we fought, I’m going with a hundred percent power. I’m going with a hundred percent trying to finish him, and I will do it.”

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Caio Borralho expects Khamzat Chimaev to dominate Robert Whittaker on mat at UFC 308

Caio Borralho knows first hand how good Khamzat Chimaev is.

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] knows first hand how good [autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag] is.

Borralho (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC), who emerged as a top middleweight contender after defeating Jared Cannonier this past Saturday at UFC on ESPN 62, spent some time training with Chimaev a couple of years ago.

Chimaev (13-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) meets [autotag]Robert Whittaker[/autotag] (26-7 MMA, 17-5 UFC) in a potential No. 1 contender bout Oct. 26 in the UFC 308 co-main event in Abu Dhabi. Borralho thinks Chimaev’s grappling will be too much for the former champion.

“We spent some time in Sweden with him, training with him for his training camp against Nate Diaz, the fight that never happened,” Borralho told Submission Radio. “But I was there training with him everyday, was his main sparring partner for this camp. I think it’s a very tough fight for Whittaker because Khamzat is a very great, great wrestler. And there’s one thing about Khamzat that people don’t realize too much, like they don’t know what kind of level to expect from him. They know by seeing, but when you feel it, I think it’s a little bit different. This kind of level of wrestling, of grappling. The best wrestler in the division I think is Khamzat, and we saw how he dominated Kamaru Usman. That is a great, great wrestler that fought like Demian Maia and didn’t get dominated the way that he was by Khamzat.

“So, definitely a lot of courage of Whittaker, but I think if he did that, he has something in his mind to this fight. I think he thinks that Khamzat is going to get tired or something like that. But let’s see how good are the training partners of Whittaker that are going to mimic Khamzat’s style. I think it all depends on that, that Whittaker is used to this level of grappling when it comes about his training camp. So, he won’t feel that much difference when the real fight starts. So, I think this fight goes to Khamzat. I think Khamzat is going to like dominate him in the wrestling, in the ground. But Whittaker was a champion, though, so cannot doubt our champion. So, definitely is a fun fight. I’m willing to see this fight for sure.”

Borralho lauded Chimaev for his work ethic – something he thinks is to his detriment at times.

“I didn’t see any other guy in my life that trains as much as he trains, maybe that’s why sometimes he kills his body and doesn’t make it to the fights,” Borralho said. “But, definitely a guy that (out)-trains everyone in the room. There was one time that we did five-round sparring. After his sparring was done he did like a three or four round pads, and then after that he did like a 30-minute round. And I was like, what the f*ck is this guy doing?

“Like why he needs that sh*t? I think he needs that. He was used to it. That’s the only way that he knows how to train properly, to be confident or something like that. So, definitely a guy that trains a lot. He’s very intense on sparring and all the sessions and all this stuff. He was very hard to spar with, but definitely a moment in my career that I developed a lot. I learned a lot from him, from his team.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 308.

UFC’s Caio Borralho unsure if Israel Adesanya ‘still has it,’ guarantees finish

Caio Borralho accuses Israel Adesanya of quitting against Dricus Du Plessis before he even submitted.

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] didn’t just see someone who submitted in the UFC 305 main event. He saw a quitter.

[autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] was gaining momentum in Round 4 of his title fight vs. middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 305 before Du Plessis was able to hurt him and submit him to retain his belt. Borralho (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) says Adesanya (24-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) was starting to fade before the finish ultimately happened.

“There was a moment that he gave up of the fight, and actually it was like a minute before he actually got finished,” Borralho told Submission Radio. “I think he got tired, and I think he lost the focus, and he was starting to do things that he doesn’t usually do. He was starting to trade punches like crazy. He was putting a lot of power on the punches, trying to just knock out, just to get out of there. I thought that he was not comfortable there anymore, as the moment that he got tired in the fight, and DDP did an amazing job.

“So, I don’t know if Adesanya still has it – the same focus, the same thing because if you see all the fights of him when he gets tired, he even changed a little bit. His face, you know, his expression, just to tell himself that he’s still there, that he gets more focused, that even when he’s tired. But this time, he looked a little bit more scared in his expression, on his face, and he gave up on the fight like a minute before the fight ended. If you see, he gave us some signs that he didn’t want to be there anymore.”

Borralho inserted himself in the title picture when he defeated former title challenger Jared Cannonier at UFC on ESPN 62 this past Saturday. He thinks a fight vs. Adesanya makes perfect sense for him.

“I’m a guy that puts a lot of pressure when it comes about fighting,” Borralho said. “You guys see how I made Jared – I think Jared is the most powerful guy in the division. The heavy hitter of the division I think is Jared Cannonier in the top 10. None of these other guys hit as hard as him. So, if I made him move backwards, I would definitely make anyone move backwards, you know? And I’m going to pressure a lot Adesanya in this fight, make him move backwards.

“He likes to move backwards, actually, but I might be the only guy that uses feints, that we’re going to kick him the same way that he’s going to kick me, and I have the advantage on wrestling and grappling, too. So, I think he’ll be always in doubt if I’m going to put him down or if I’m going to just trade punches with him. I’m going to put pressure and maybe get a good knockout or a good takedown, and definitely going to finish him. With all the respect always, but that’s the way I see this fight going.”

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Aug. 27: Caio Borralho makes major move at middleweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC on ESPN 62, where Caio Borralho got a massive middleweight win.

Following UFC on ESPN 62 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas this past Saturday, the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings required updating.

That’s primarily because of the main event result, where middleweight [autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) raised his stock more so than anyone else on the card. The Brazilian further added to his undefeated octagon record with a unanimous decision win over former title challenger and perennial contender Jared Cannonier in the Fight of the Night.

Previously slotted at the No. 11 spoke, Borralho’s performance moves him all the way to the cusp of the top-five in the No. 6 spot at 185 pounds.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

Caio Borralho picks Sean Strickland to beat Dricus Du Plessis in rematch – ‘maybe’

Caio Borralho acknowledges that he’s been doubting UFC champ Dricus Du Plessis for too long.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] is done predicting UFC middleweight champion [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag]’ fights.

Borralho (17-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) wonders how Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) continues to prevail, previously saying “it’s crazy how bad he is.” Du Plessis recently submitted Israel Adesanya to retain his title at UFC 305.

[autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC) is touted to potentially be Du Plessis’ next title challenger, and if the pair run things back, Borralho is picking Strickland to win.

Or is he?

“I got Strickland winning this fight, maybe, because I think Strickland won the last one, but maybe he left a little bit inside the octagon that he could do a little bit more,” Borralho told reporters, including MMA Junkie, after UFC on ESPN 62. “But MMA is crazy. I always bet against Dricus, and he always wins, so I’m not betting on the next one. Let those guys kill themselves and I’m the next one.”

Borralho emerged as a top middleweight contender after outslugging former title challenger Jared Cannonier in Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 62 main event at the UFC Apex.

He thinks he’s earned a title shot but is willing to take on any top-ranked middleweight to cement himself as No. 1 contender.

“I want a title shot, that’s for sure, but I’m a company man,” Borralho said. “Whoever Hunter (Campbell) and Dana (White) send me to fight. If they’re people above me or something like that, like the fight that I deserve, the fight that’s going to put me even more close to the belt, I’m going to take it, because I’m the company man.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 62.

Video: Does Caio Borralho have a championship ceiling after UFC on ESPN 62 main event win?

Caio Borralho claims he’s ready for a UFC title shot after beating Jared Cannonier, but is he good enough to actually win the belt?

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag] achieved a breakthrough moment in his career Saturday when he put on a shining performance against Jared Cannonier in the UFC on ESPN 62 main event.

Borralho (17-1 MMA, -0 UFC) has now opened his octagon tenure with seven consecutive victories, but none have been bigger than his unanimous decision triumph over Cannonier (17-8 MMA, 10-8 UFC) at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas in what was deemed the Fight of the Night.

After the win, Borralho rightfully declared himself as a contender on the rise and thinks he could be fighting for the belt in short order, if not next against the winner of the expected 185-pound title bout between Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland.

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Does Brazil’s Borralho have what it takes to not only fight for the belt, but win it?

The was a topic of discussion on the latest episode of “Spinning Back Clique,” where panelists Matt Wells, Mike Bohn and Nolan King joined host “Gorgeous” George Garcia to debate Borralho’s place in the middleweight title picture after besting Cannonier over five rounds.

Check out the video segment above, or view the complete Aug. 26 episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below.

https://www.youtube.com/live/qNIbTNfY2Rk