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SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE – OCTOBER 26: Demian Maia of Brazil celebrates his submission victory over Ben Askren in their welterweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at Singapore Indoor Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
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SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE – OCTOBER 26: Demian Maia of Brazil celebrates his submission victory over Ben Askren in their welterweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at Singapore Indoor Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
UFC welterweight Demian Maia appeared on The MMA Hour and spoke to Ariel Helwani about the future of his career. The 43-year-old Brazilian pioneer is on a two-fight skid but still wants to compete one last time in the UFC. It’s no secret that Maia has been angling for a fight in Brazil so he can receive a proper send-off.
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In conversation with Helwani, Demian Maia pulled back the curtain on the thought process involved in securing one last fight. He detailed the manner in which his most recent loss to Belal Muhammad fired him up to chase the win again. He believes he didn’t perform to the best of his caliber and wants retribution.
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SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE – OCTOBER 26: Demian Maia of Brazil celebrates his submission victory over Ben Askren in their welterweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at Singapore Indoor Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
“Because of this crazy world we live in right now with the problem of the pandemic, I was like, ‘I don’t want to finish my career right now, I think I have one more left.’.. It was not the way I wanted to be in that fight. I didn’t think I was in my best.”
“Of course, he was great that day. Belal was great that day, he did all the gameplan perfectly but I think I could do better. So, I said I want to do one more if of course, Dana and the UFC give me the chance.”
Demian Maia can’t seem to get enough
The 28-11 veteran also revealed that he has kept contemplating coming back to action at different intervals in his career. He explained how he was supposed to finish off his career after defeating Ben Askren in Singapore. However, the competitor inside him urged him to continue fighting, leading to his current two-fight skid.
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SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE – OCTOBER 26: (R-L) Ben Askren punches Demian Maia of Brazil in their welterweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at Singapore Indoor Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Singapore. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
“You know I won two fights and I was going to that fight in Singapore. I said ‘I think I want to have couple more fights after that.’ We renegotiate with the UFC and they agree two more fights after the Askren fight which was the last one.”
Unfortunately, it’s not unheard of for veteran fighters to struggle when it comes time to walking away. In MMA, fans have seen this trend on plenty of occasions and it doesn’t seem like some fighters know when to hang it up. However, Maia has been a longstanding staple of the division and he certainly deserves another crack at a welterweight fighter.
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