Edson Barboza doesn’t plan on taking a vacation anytime soon.
Barboza is coming off a TKO loss at the hands of Kevin Lee. For the most part, Lee was dominant and Barboza only had one moment of success in the third round by landing a wheel kick. Barboza couldn’t seal the deal and that meant the end of his chances of winning the UFC Atlantic City main event.
This is the first time in Barboza’s professional mixed martial arts career where he’s lost back-to-back bouts. While both bouts were lopsided in favor of Barboza’s opponents, the Brazilian bruiser wants to get back inside the Octagon quickly.
He explained why he doesn’t want to wait much longer in an interview with MMAFighting.com:
“My plan is to fight again as soon as possible. I love what I do and I’m still motivated and hungry to keep training and getting better. I want to fight at least two times more this year.”
Following UFC Atlantic City, Barboza was medically suspended indefinitely pending a CT scan of his head and facial bones. Even with clearance, Barboza has to sit on the sidelines for at least 60 days with 30 days of no contact.
Barboza has gone 3-2 in his last five outings. With the loss to Lee, he now sits at the sixth spot on the official UFC lightweight rankings. Lee took his fifth spot. Barboza’s last victory was a devastating knockout via knee against Beneil Dariush back in March 2017.
There are many potential match-ups for Barboza in a stacked lightweight division. Justin Gaethje is coming off a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier. Both men are known for their vicious leg kicks and stand-up. If these two compete, then the fear of takedowns isn’t likely to be present.
Where do you think Edson Barboza will go from here?
