In February 2009, Paulo Thiago was making his UFC debut.
Despite being 10-0 at the time and a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt, Thiago was coming into the fight as an underdog against former TUF competiter Josh Koscheck.
Although he was supposed to be the inferior striker, Thiago ended up knocking out Koscheck in the first round of their fight.
Fast forward three years, and it’s Thiago on the receiving end of a knockout from a debuting UFC fighter.
At last night’s UFC on Fuel 2, Thiago was not only knocked out by Siyar Bahadurzada; it only took 42 seconds for Bahadurzada to knock him unconscious.
Thiago has now gone 3-4 in his last seven fights after starting his career 11-0.
While Thiago has had wins against lower-level welterweights, his losses have come to top contenders like Jon Fitch, Diego Sanchez and Martin Kampmann.
While Thiago could have been talked about as one of the upper-tier welterweights in the division, he is now looking to stay relevant and climb back up the division.
With the quick KO loss sinking in, Thiago should take some time off and try to figure out what he needs to do to change his game.
Of course last night’s loss could have simply been Thiago just getting caught. As quick as it came, it was the first loss by stoppage in his career.
But Thiago is in danger of possibly getting cut if he does not put together multiple wins.
What’s next for Thiago? Maybe a rematch with Jon Fitch, who is also coming off of a quick KO loss, could push him back up the division.
If that’s shooting too high, then a matchup with fellow losers from last night, Papy Abedi or DeMarques Johnson, could be in order for Thiago.
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