UFC 207's Antonio Carlos Junior wants to keep the rhythm of 3 fights a year going in 2017

LAS VEGAS – Throughout history, the number 3 has held much symbolism. Antonio Carlos Junior is hoping the number is key for him in 2017 the way it was in 2016.

Junior (7-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) on Friday night took a unanimous decision from Marvin Vettori (11-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) on the UFC 207 preliminary card in Las Vegas. The narrow decision – 29-28 on all three cards – gave the Brazilian back-to-back wins and three octagon appearances in the calendar year, something he’s banking on having again.

“I think I’m improving my game, getting more experience,” Junior told MMAjunkie after his win at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “I don’t have anyone in mind. But whatever, I’ll do my best. I’d like to do like I did this year. Three fights in a year is awesome for me. You get in a rhythm. You keep fighting and improving. It gives you a reason to train. Three fights (in 2016) was good for me, and that’s what I expect for next year.”

Junior said he was pretty sure Bruce Buffer was going to call his name on Friday and not Vettori’s. But he also knows going to the judges might not always work in his favor. Instead, he knows the importance of getting finishes.

“I wasn’t sure, but I thought I got the first round and the third,” Junior said. “I knew I lost the second one. I didn’t know for sure, but I thought so. I’d like to give more – I think I could’ve used more ground-and-pound, and other things. But he’s a tough fighter – I knew that. For sure, I have some things I need to improve.”

We’ll see if those improvements lead to some stoppages in 2017, and time will tell how many chances he’ll get at that goal in the calendar year.

For more from Junior, including his explanation for the genesis of his “Shoeface” nickname, check out the video above.

And for complete coverage of UFC 207, check out the UFC Events section of the site.