Welterweight Dhiego Lima embraces a new philosophy as he prepares to take Yushin Okami on April 14.
A veteran of two seasons of The Ultimate Fighter, Dhiego Lima is ready to turn his UFC career around as he trudges on his second Octagon stint following a 1-3 run back in 2014 and 2015. Now, as the Brazilian makes the final preparations for his bout against Yushin Okami on April 14, Lima believes he’s more mature and ready to start picking up some wins in the UFC.
As Lima told Portal do Vale Tudo, he began taking better care of his weight cutting and now analyzes his potential opponents with more caution.
“Some things needed to change. Now, I keep my weight closer to the division’s limit, so I don’t have to go through such a gruelling process every time. That’ll certainly show in the Octagon.
“Besides, I’m more mature. Before, I was just happy to be in the UFC, I didn’t know how to wait. I took every fight they offered me, including fights I wasn’t ready for, because of the time to prepare and my opponents’ level. I was afraid the company wouldn’t like me, so I accepted them all. I didn’t care. I was sure I could win. Even though I lost, I learned a lot.”
Already coming from a submission loss to Jesse Taylor in July 2017, Lima believes he knows how to defeat his next opponent in Yushin Okami. Dhiego feels like Okami might have some problems cutting and intends to explore that.
“I need to dictate the fight. I trained a lot. I’m ready to be back in the Octagon and give it my best. I have more gas than I need to. I’ll pressure him for three rounds, if I must. He’s dropping (from 185) now. We’re about the same size, so I know the hard times he must be going through in order to make weight. My goal is to make him gas. Kick him in the body a lot and see if he can take it. I’m going to test him, I don’t know if he can go three rounds.”
Dhiego Lima is expected to take on Yushin Okami at UFC on Fox 29, in Glendale, Arizona. The card will be headlined by a lightweight bout between contenders Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje.