Jason Da Silva-USA TODAY Sports
Ronaldo Souza is taking his UFC 249 Uriah Hall fight quite seriously.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist Ronaldo Souza is not taking his first fight of his forties lightly. Back at middleweight after a one-fight stint at 205, which ended with a split decision loss to Jan Blachowicz, ‘Jacare’ will now take on creative striker Uriah Hall in April. It’s a challenge the Brazilian deems to be one of his hardest yet.
In an interview with Ag Fight, Jacare emphasized just how much in need of a win he is after his most recent outings. However, he said he felt confident he’d be victorious against Hall, who currently rides a two-fight winning streak.
“I think it’s going to be a pretty hard fight. It may be one of the hardest fights of my career. I’m coming off of some bad results, so I really need to win. He is a tough opponent. I have nothing but respect for him. I even follow him on social media. All signs indicate he will use his style, he will try to impose his will, but we will know what will happen when the time comes. I’m training for everything and I hope I can execute my gameplan and win.”
Although Jacare lost a close fight to a top light heavyweight in his 205 debut, and even his own doctor recommended it would be better for him to stay at the heavier weight class, Souza guarantees he is back to middleweight for the time being, showing no interest in moving back up to take on larger opponents again.
“My doctor had told me to move up, that it would be good for me. They gave me high-ranked opponent, I thought that was interesting. Everyone thought he was going to kill me, but it wasn’t quite like that. I want to work as much as possible and put on good fights, I’m now focused on the middleweight division.”
Before his November 2019 loss to Jan Blachowicz, Ronaldo Souza (26-8-1 NC) dropped a unanimous decision to Jack Hermansson in April of the same year. The 40-year-old’s last win was a November 2018 knockout victory over former champion Chris Weidman.
Souza is expected to take on Uriah Hall at UFC 249, on April 14, in Brooklyn, New York. The card is expected to be headlined by a lightweight title fight between the champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov and former interim title holder Tony Ferguson.