Rizin FF's Allan Nascimento looking for longterm deal – with current home or UFC

Allan Nascimento

Allan Nascimento is a flyweight – a division that could use some fresh faces – and pretty good one at that. So following his next bout, he’s looking to plant some roots.

Nascimento (14-3) meets Yuki Motoya (15-4) at Sunday’s Rizin FF event at Nippon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya, Japan.

Nascimento, a 24-year-old Brazilian, had won four consecutive bouts before a March 15 decision loss to Bruno Azevedo (13-2). That’s why, despite a little career planning, he said he can’t look too far beyond his next challenge.

“I’m currently focused on my next fight,” he told MMAjunkie. “After that, maybe I’ll think about signing a long-term contract with a major organization. It could be Rizin, or it could be the UFC. I would be happy with either. I’m on a one-fight contract.

“Besides that, I’m really looking forward to some churrasco (Brazilian barbecue) since I had to remove it from my daily diet to make weight for this fight.”

In 14 career wins, Nascimento has submitted his opponent 12 times. He’s competed with organizations such as XFCi and Legacy FC, but he’s hoping to sign a long-term deal after his upcoming Rizin FF debut. To do that, he needs a solid performance against Motoya, a 26-year-old Japanese fighter who’s riding a seven-fight winning streak with 12 victories in his past 13 fights.

“Motoya is a good fighter, no doubt,” Nascimento said. “I think he prefers to grapple. And he likes to take chances on the feet. I look forward to facing him on his home turf. Japan might be where he’s from, but my gym Chute Boxe is always at home in Japan. Add to that the fact that Rizin is a direct descendent of PRIDE. We’ll have a great fight. I’m sure of that.”

To prepare for his upcoming bout, Nascimento spent time with top UFC prospect Thomas Almeida and vet Felipe Arantes, among others. He said Motoya should be prepared for an extended period of misery.

“Everything has been great,” Nascimento said. “I’ve been training hard. I’m very focused on winning. My stamina is great, and I’m feeling very happy. My preparation was done at the Chute Boxe Diego Lima academy in Sao Paulo. The only other place I train in is the B9 academy, run by jiu-jitsu master Marco Barbosa. He’s a phenom. He even has a branch of his academy in Japan.

“I am confident that the Chute Boxe style will be victorious in our fight. It’s all about hitting hard and being aggressive.”

Nascimento is no rookie, and he’s proven himself against some tough competition. But he’s yet to break through on MMA’s biggest stages, though he feels he could do that at Rizin FF. Sure, he’s had some past losses – like a 2013 Legacy FC title defeat to vet Will Campuzano, which Nascimento said he’s grateful for since “we need to stumble so we can get better.”

“Thankfully, I’ve only had happy moments in my career,” he said. “I have 17 bouts on my record, most of them being wins by submission. Since I feel safe on the ground, I tend to want to strike by using my muay Thai. I feel fine whether on the ground or banging it out.

“I’m very happy to be fighting in Rizin. It’s one of the highest-profile promotions in the world.”