After fighting 'Anderson Silva' in pro debut, Vinicius de Jesus starts anew at Bellator 163

So why didn’t Vinicius De Jesus fight in the cage for nearly two years – just after his pro career started with a win over a familiar name? He needed time to get acclimated in a new environment.

De Jesus (4-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), who meets welterweight James Boran (6-0) tonight at Bellator 163, wanted to get settled in the U.S. before turning his primary focus back to MMA.

In an MMAjunkie-streamed preliminary-card bout tonight at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. (the main card airs on Spike), De Jesus looks to make it 4-0 since making that decision. The 26-year-old returned to the cage in November 2015 and went 3-0 with two stoppages for the Premier FC promotion.

“One of the main reasons I wasn’t fighting at that time was the move from Brazil to the U.S.” he told MMAjunkie. “It was a major change, and I didn’t speak English at first. So I took some time to refocus and adapt to my new country. I wasn’t going to be possible do that while training full time.”

De Jesus, who began jiu-jitsu at 13, was finally old enough to try amateur boxing when he turned 18. He loved to strike, so a move to MMA seemed fitting, even if the local scene didn’t seem all that promising at first.

“Around that time, MMA didn’t have a good reputation in Brazil,” he said. “There were no UFC events in Brazil at that time. The biggest tournaments were in Japan. Wanderlei Silva and ‘Shogun’ Rua were idols around the world, but the sport wasn’t well regarded in Brazil. So I kept training, hoping the sport would become more popular in Brazil.”

The gamble paid off, and in 2013, he made a successful pro debut – against Anderson Silva. No, it wasn’t that Anderson Silva, but the name certainly helped draw some eyeballs to the fight – and de Jesus’ remarkable performance (via YouTube):

“My first fight in Brazil was a blast,” he said. “I knocked out my opponent in 24 seconds. There was a lot of coverage, especially since my opponent was called Anderson Silva. Anderson Silva was the UFC champion at the time.

“The second fight, against Jeferson Negrini was a split-decision loss. It left a bad taste in my mouth. By my criteria, I should have won that fight. I was also a big naive about MMA. I had lost a point in the first round, and that was the factor that allowed him to be victorious. But that’s fine. We also learn in losses.”

Then came his two-year layoff.

“After that, I moved to the U.S. to join my wife,” he said. “She was already here working as an instructor. She’s a jiu-jitsu black belt. Around that time, I wasn’t fighting. It was also hard for me to find opponents, since I’m a jiu-jitsu black belt myself, with good striking. I only started getting fights after hooking up with my manager Marco Alvan. He got me into better promotions, against serious opponents. I started in a smaller promotion, Premier FC. I fought for them three times. I was able to stand out enough to get an offer from Bellator.”

Now, he’s competing on a one-fight deal. He’s confident he can get by Boran tonight – he’s “very complete” but his “previous opponents aren’t on my level,” de Jesus said – and if he does, it’ll be time to do a little future planning.

“Regardless of how I win, we’re still thinking about my next step,” he said. “My manager is very intelligent and strategic with a lot of contacts. We are happy with my one-fight contract. Depending on how to fight goes, we can renew or remain free to fight in other promotions. After the fight, I’ll sit with my manager to figure out what’s next.”

For more on Bellator 163, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.