LAS VEGAS – Cesar Almeida showed much more of his potential than he did on Dana White’s Contender Series during Saturday’s octagon debut at UFC Fight Night 240.
The powerful striking of kickboxing specialist Almeida (5-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC), who holds a win in that sport over current UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, was on full display. He thwarted key takedown attempts from opponent Dylan Budka (7-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC), then rattled off elbows, punches then ground-and-pound for the TKO at the 2:13 mark of Round 2 in the middleweight bout at the UFC Apex.
Check out the replay of the final sequence below (via X):
Cesar Almeida wins his UFC debut with authority 💥 #UFCVegas90 pic.twitter.com/LUUrGNVvFE
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) April 6, 2024
PUNCHING his way to victory 💥
Cesar Almeida's UFC debut ends early with a TKO! #UFCVegas90 pic.twitter.com/enbQZK36JV
— UFC (@ufc) April 6, 2024
After the fight, Almeida hailed his growth in the grappling. He was frustrated he gave up an early takedown in the fight, but thinks he’s evolving where that’s not going to happen too often in the future.
“I trained a lot of jiu-jitsu in Brazil,” Almeida told Michael Bisping in his post-fight interview. “I’m ready for all the wresters in this division. I’m ready, motherf*ckers.”
Almeida wasn’t kidding, either. He called out former UFC middleweight champ Chris Weidman after the fight and said he would happy to be tested on the mat.
“Weidman, I’m ready for you brother,” Almeida said. “Let’s see if you can stop me on the ground. Let’s go brother.”
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 240 results include:
- Cesar Almeida def. Dylan Budka via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:13
- Nora Cornolle def. Melissa Mullins via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:06
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 240.
