Caio Borralho is brimming with confidence following his performance against Jared Cannonier.
‘The Natural’ skyrocketed himself in the middleweight top five with a unanimous decision victory over Cannonier at a UFC Fight Night event on August 24. The victory moved Borralho to a perfect 7-0 inside the Octagon and established him as a legitimate contender in one of the promotion’s most talent-rich divisions.
With his sights already set on a clash with reigning 185-pound champion Dricus Du Plessis, Borralho thinks one more big win will put him in pole position and he already has the perfect opponent in mind.
During a recent interview with Submission Radio, Borralho shared his take on the UFC 305 headliner between Du Plessis and the returning Israel Adesanya. Despite gaining some ground in the fourth round, ‘The Last Stylebender’ came up short after absorbing a wayward right-hand moments before being submitted via a rear-naked choke.
Borralho is convinced that Adesanya ultimately gave up after he began to tire out in the championship rounds.
“There was a moment that he gave up of the fight, and actually it was like a minute before he actually got finished,” Borralho said. “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” (h/t MMA Junkie).
Caio Borralho convinced he can finish Israel Adesanya
Borralho believes he can find similar success against Adesanya by applying pressure and keeping the ‘Stylebender’ on his back foot.
“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.”
Adesanya has now lost three of his last four, including losses to Alex Pereira, Sean Strickland, and Dricus Du Plessis. With no plans to lay down his gloves, the two-time titleholder is staring down the barrel of his first non-title fight in more than five years.
