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Francisco Trinaldo wants a slugfest against fellow Brazilian Edson Barboza in March.
Lightweight veteran Francisco Trinaldo does not want to wait around for too long after his unanimous decision win over Bobby Green at UFC Sao Paulo. In fact, ‘Massaranduba’ would like to perform in Brazil once again, namely at the upcoming Brasilia event on March 14, and already has one opponent in mind: his fellow countryman Edson Barboza.
In an interview with Combate, Trinaldo makes it clear that there is no bad blood between himself and Barboza, but believes the fight would be an entertaining one for the fans, especially in the striking department.
“I want to fight in Brasilia. I have nothing against Barboza, who, to me, is the best muay thai fighter. Can you imagine me and Barboza fighting in Brasilia? I think the fans would enjoy the hell out of that. I like Barboza, I think it would be interesting to fight him. People like him a lot. I’ve defeated some guys he has defeated, too. (Bobby Green, Evan Dunham, and Paul Felder).”
“I’m not challenging him, I just think it would be a good fight for the fans in Brasilia, a main event or something to sell for the public.” Trinaldo continued. “I’m sure we’ll throw down. Barboza is tough, but I have tough sparring partners. Muay thai guys, like him. Our gym is good at striking. I can go five rounds, all striking. Here in Brazil, few fighters have more fans than me.”
Before the win over Bobby Green, Francisco Trinaldo (23-7) dropped a unanimous decision to Alexander Hernandez back in July. The loss came right after the 41-year-old scored a TKO victory over the now-retired Dunham, in September 2018.
Edson Barboza (20-8) has been away from the Octagon ever since losing a rematch to Paul Felder via split decision, back in September. The loss put the 33-year-old on a two-fight losing skid, with a KO defeat to Justin Gaethje prior to the Felder fight. Barboza’s last win came in December 2018, when he bested Dan Hooker via TKO.