While there appears to be new life in the flyweight division, Raulian Paiva seeks to notch his first UFC win at flyweight then move up a weight class.
He takes on fellow Dana White Contender Series alum Rogerio Bontorin, at UFC on ESPN+ 14 on Saturday in Montevideo, Uruguay, and doesn’t believe that the 125-pound division will stick around for much longer. Paiva (18-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) earned his UFC contract on DWCS 2018, but narrowly dropped his UFC debut to Kai Kara-France at UFC 234 via split decision, in a fight that he thought he won.
Paiva is currently training at Team Alpha Male, and has won 12 of his last 13 fights.
Ahead of UFC on ESPN+ 14, get to know more about Brazil’s Paiva below:
Full name: Raulian Paiva Frazao
Nickname: I don’t have a nickname at the moment.
Height: 1.73 (5’8″)
Weight: 57 kg (flyweight)
Academy: I represent the Ronildo Nobre academy in Brazil, and in the U.S., Team Alpha Male.
City of birth, Where do you live today: Santana, state of Amapa, Brazil.
DOB: October 17, 1995. I’m 23 years old.
How did you get into professional martial arts?
I started training to get out of the streets. As a kid, I would spend my time playing with my friends on the streets. I would hear people talk about the Ronildo Nobre academy. One day, I walked in and took a trial class. I enjoyed it and continued to train. Within the same year, I started to train even harder, and participated in a local amateur event run by Ronildo himself. I won my bout and fell in love with martial arts. I haven’t stopped since. After my win, master Ronildo encouraged me to continue on this path, and that’s how I came to this point. I haven’t stopped and have no plans to do so.
When you were younger, did you have emotional or financial support in your chosen career path?
I had support from both my family and friends. Unfortunately, our home state, Amapa, doesn’t invest too much in sports (compared to the state of Amazonas). Thankfully, I’ve been able to get to this far, regardless.
Can you talk about your professional career thus far?
Every fight has been difficult. But as I kept on winning, my dedication and focus kept increasing. It’s like climbing a ladder, one rung at a time. My loss to Luan Lacerda forced me to start putting more faith in my own skills – my striking, my footwork, my jiu-jitsu. I was winning against him, but I made an error. And MMA doesn’t allow for errors. I further dedicated myself to the sport. More recently, I defeated (UFC veteran) Iliarde Santos, who’s very skilled, in less than one minute. Then I found out I’d be facing a very dangerous Allan Nascimento at Dana White’s Contender Series. It gave me the additional incentive to train more and more. I beat him and earned my UFC contract. Now I’m focused on staying in the UFC. I want to make my name in the UFC. I’m going to put in the work and give my best.
Your UFC debut was a split decision loss to Kai Kara-France. It was somewhat controversial . Can you talk about that?
My fight against Kai Kara-France was closely contested. We were closely matched. My cornermen and I were confident I had won. I dominated the center of the octagon and landed more strikes. Unfortunately, he was awarded the win. As I see it, he was fighting at home, and was already a known fighter in the UFC. It all matters. But it didn’t affect me negatively – just the opposite. It left me even stronger and more focused. It further solidified in my mind the idea that I should never leave things up to the judges. I’ll be giving my best in every fight to get a finish as quickly as possible. A lot of major MMA websites, as well as some of the UFC folks, felt I had won. I’m moving on.
You’re ranked as a UFC flyweight, but the roster is barely big enough to fill the top 15. How do you feel about that?
I’m concerned about flyweight class in the UFC. There are very few fighters. My next opponent, Rogerio (Rogério) Bontorim, is ranked above me. My goal right now is to defeat him in great fashion, and then move up to bantamweight. I don’t expect the flyweight category will continue to exist in the UFC.
What can you say about your next opponent, a fellow Brazilian?
Rogerio is a tough fighter. We were both on the Contender Series, in Las Vegas. I saw him fight there. He comes from jiu-jitsu. But I don’t feel his boxing or wrestling are that great. As I see it, this fight will not go to the judges. It won’t last past the second round. I’m training hard to make that happen. I’m getting ready at the Alpha Male academy, in Sacramento, under Urijah Faber. I train in every facet. If I have to stand up, I will. And if it goes to the ground, that’s fine too. Wherever Rogerio wants to go, I’ll be ready. My plan is to knock him out, but if I see an opening, I’ll submit him. I’ll get a finish as quickly as possible. I’m training with UFC fighters like Urijah Faber, Andre Fili, Josh Emmett, and Clay Guida. We have a great team. I feel I’m evolving every day. I’m ready for Rogerio. It will be a war.
Shortly before your UFC debut, your girlfriend was killed after two assailants intentionally struck your motorcycle in Brazil. Is there any update on the criminal case against the men who caused her death?
After the incident, both perpetrators were arrested. They have remained in jail ever since. There was an audience where the judge decided that they could not be released while awaiting the sentence, to be handed down by a jury. Both will remain imprisoned until at least that day. The maximum sentence could be up to 20 years. Once the jury hands down the sentence, they’ll get credit for time served, which could be up to two years. They’re expected to serve at the very least 10 years, with no early release.
