Douglas Lima compares Bellator’s roster to Strikeforce: ‘They’re going to look back’ and ‘realize we’re for real’

Douglas Lima knows he’s one of the most destructive forces on the planet at 170 pounds, he just hasn’t gotten much of a chance to prove it. Injuries and circumstance have waylaid the reigning Bellator welterweight champion for much of the past 21 months, allowing him just one fight over that span and plenty of time to daydream about the comeback that’s now at his front door.

“It’s gratifying (to be back), man,” Lima told MMAFighting.com ahead of Bellator 140, where puts his welterweight title on the line against Andrey Koreshkov. “It’s really depressing being gone for this time, more than a year.

“It’s very frustrating. I won that fight with Ben Saunders (at Bellator 100), I think that was one of my best fights. I think that’s when I looked the best, and that’s how I plan on looking this next weekend. I feel like I’m the best and I train like I’m the best. I just want to perform the same way, just bring violence, hit hard, and hopefully get the finish again.”

Like his contemporaries in the UFC’s 170-pound division, Lima (26-5) is violence incarnate once he steps foot inside the cage, a born striker who’s all knees and elbows and head kicks when the time comes to bite down on his mouthpiece and sling it. All seven of his Bellator wins since late-2011 have ended by way of knockout, culminating last year in a vicious second-round TKO over Rick Hawn that won Lima the vacant Bellator title.

He’s also one of the promotion’s few remaining originals, a homegrown terror who’s been with Bellator since winning its fifth-season tournament. So while he admits the worry of his constant injury threat is “scary” at times, he can’t help but marvel at the sweeping changes that have reshaped Bellator’s image during his absence.

“Man, I absolutely love it,” Lima said. “I love it. I hope five million people watch us this time. It’s very exciting, man. I love what Scott Coker is doing. The big shows, the stage he’s gotten, I love all of that stuff, man.

“It’s just fun. It’s fun to see that big change in such a short period of time. Everything changed for the best and I’m just happy to be part of it now. It’s exciting.”

Now that he’s finally healthy, Lima hopes to use Bellator 140 as a “launching point” to show Scott Coker how he can become a major player in what Bellator is trying to build, a new era which revolves around violence and spectacle rather than the purist sensibilities of the previous regime.

In that vein, Lima fits perfectly. His ferocious striking abilities make him the very definition of a Coker guy, same as Koreshkov, Paul Daley, Michael Page, and many of Lima’s other welterweight stablemates.

The collection of talent strewn throughout the division is actually fairly impressive, and Lima believes that for all of the slights that get thrown at Bellator’s roster, the reality rests closer to past examples like Strikeforce and the WEC — where people didn’t realize how good divisions were until those same fighters wrecked shop in the UFC years later.

“Just like it was with Strikeforce, Pride, and everything else. They’re going to look back and they’re going to realize that we’re for real,” Lima said. “We’re not just a B-league, like a lot of people call it. We’ve got a lot of good fighters, man.

“Bring me the best guy (at 170). I’ll fight him, and I believe in myself I can beat him. I can beat anybody. I’m just very confident in my training. We’ll see, but I think we’re really solid, man. Bellator has got a really deep welterweight division, and people are going to see.”

The ‘B-league’ moniker is one that’s chased Bellator throughout its existence. It’s chased leagues like Strikeforce and WEC as well, which is obviously silly in retrospect considering what we now know about those fighters.

And frankly, Lima is sick of hearing it.

“I get mad, man,” Lima said. “I see that all the time, and man, it doesn’t make any sense. B-league, what are you talking about? I don’t know, I just don’t know what to say to that. I stopped reading (media), because that’s all I see, that’s all I read. We’ve gotta find a way to make people realize that they’re wrong.

“Go in there and get solid finishes. That’s all we can do. Fight the best guys, fight the badasses on top of the division, just go there and destroy them. That’s the idea. Show everybody out there, from the fans to the fighters. Everybody.”

Douglas Lima knows he’s one of the most destructive forces on the planet at 170 pounds, he just hasn’t gotten much of a chance to prove it. Injuries and circumstance have waylaid the reigning Bellator welterweight champion for much of the past 21 months, allowing him just one fight over that span and plenty of time to daydream about the comeback that’s now at his front door.

“It’s gratifying (to be back), man,” Lima told MMAFighting.com ahead of Bellator 140, where puts his welterweight title on the line against Andrey Koreshkov. “It’s really depressing being gone for this time, more than a year.

“It’s very frustrating. I won that fight with Ben Saunders (at Bellator 100), I think that was one of my best fights. I think that’s when I looked the best, and that’s how I plan on looking this next weekend. I feel like I’m the best and I train like I’m the best. I just want to perform the same way, just bring violence, hit hard, and hopefully get the finish again.”

Like his contemporaries in the UFC’s 170-pound division, Lima (26-5) is violence incarnate once he steps foot inside the cage, a born striker who’s all knees and elbows and head kicks when the time comes to bite down on his mouthpiece and sling it. All seven of his Bellator wins since late-2011 have ended by way of knockout, culminating last year in a vicious second-round TKO over Rick Hawn that won Lima the vacant Bellator title.

He’s also one of the promotion’s few remaining originals, a homegrown terror who’s been with Bellator since winning its fifth-season tournament. So while he admits the worry of his constant injury threat is “scary” at times, he can’t help but marvel at the sweeping changes that have reshaped Bellator’s image during his absence.

“Man, I absolutely love it,” Lima said. “I love it. I hope five million people watch us this time. It’s very exciting, man. I love what Scott Coker is doing. The big shows, the stage he’s gotten, I love all of that stuff, man.

“It’s just fun. It’s fun to see that big change in such a short period of time. Everything changed for the best and I’m just happy to be part of it now. It’s exciting.”

Now that he’s finally healthy, Lima hopes to use Bellator 140 as a “launching point” to show Scott Coker how he can become a major player in what Bellator is trying to build, a new era which revolves around violence and spectacle rather than the purist sensibilities of the previous regime.

In that vein, Lima fits perfectly. His ferocious striking abilities make him the very definition of a Coker guy, same as Koreshkov, Paul Daley, Michael Page, and many of Lima’s other welterweight stablemates.

The collection of talent strewn throughout the division is actually fairly impressive, and Lima believes that for all of the slights that get thrown at Bellator’s roster, the reality rests closer to past examples like Strikeforce and the WEC — where people didn’t realize how good divisions were until those same fighters wrecked shop in the UFC years later.

“Just like it was with Strikeforce, Pride, and everything else. They’re going to look back and they’re going to realize that we’re for real,” Lima said. “We’re not just a B-league, like a lot of people call it. We’ve got a lot of good fighters, man.

“Bring me the best guy (at 170). I’ll fight him, and I believe in myself I can beat him. I can beat anybody. I’m just very confident in my training. We’ll see, but I think we’re really solid, man. Bellator has got a really deep welterweight division, and people are going to see.”

The ‘B-league’ moniker is one that’s chased Bellator throughout its existence. It’s chased leagues like Strikeforce and WEC as well, which is obviously silly in retrospect considering what we now know about those fighters.

And frankly, Lima is sick of hearing it.

“I get mad, man,” Lima said. “I see that all the time, and man, it doesn’t make any sense. B-league, what are you talking about? I don’t know, I just don’t know what to say to that. I stopped reading (media), because that’s all I see, that’s all I read. We’ve gotta find a way to make people realize that they’re wrong.

“Go in there and get solid finishes. That’s all we can do. Fight the best guys, fight the badasses on top of the division, just go there and destroy them. That’s the idea. Show everybody out there, from the fans to the fighters. Everybody.”