CR Exclusive Interview with Antonio Carvalho

Photo via MMAJunkie.com

Antonio Carvalho could very well be the most underrated fighter in the UFC’s featherweight division, if not all of the UFC, or even MMA. He came in against the young Felipe Arantes as a small favorite at UFC 142. He ended up losing a decision in a very underwhelming performance. Some people still saw some potential to do damage at 145 and others lost interest and didn’t expect much.

The former was right, and oh how right they were.

Antonio Carvalho went into his fight with Daniel Pineda at UFC 149 as a hefty underdog. Almost everyone thought that Pineda would easily run through Carvalho, including us here at CR. “Pato” quickly turned the tide in only 71 seconds as he knocked him out with a beautiful kick followed by a barrage of ground-and-pound. Carvalho became a very interesting contender at 145, and certainly a dark horse at 145.

His next fight is at UFC 154 in Montreal against TUF: Brazil standout in Rodrigo Damm. He sat down with us for an interview talking about his UFC career, his upcoming fight, and his personal heroes.

Check it out:

Championship Rounds: So your next fight is against Rodrigo Damm at UFC 154 in Montreal. Talk about this fight. How has training camp been going?

Antonio Carvalho: I haven't officially started my camp. At the moment, I am fixing up my techniques and trying to add some new ones that I hope to have ready come November 17th. Also, I’m still having fun training in a Gi and sparring with my students as well. It's important to have some fun prior to starting a camp. It's easy to burn out in this sport. As far as the fight, Rodrigo is a very tough veteran of this sport. Like me, he has travelled all over the globe and fought some of the best out there. Not to mention, he looked really impressive in his last fight as a featherweight. This division seems to be a good fit for him.

CR: Where do you believe your strengths matchup the best with Damm's weaknesses?

AC: I think we match up quite well in general. He is very strong on the mat and has good wrestling. He has also been working on his striking a lot recently and constantly improving. Truth is, though, I don't know where I will be stronger. That's why I like this fight. It intrigues me because I really don't know what he will try and do. I can only prepare for everything and hope for the best result.

CR: How will the home field advantage play into this next fight?

AC: I think for me, it will be the fact that I won't be changing time zones. He will. He will need to get to Montreal early enough to acclimatize himself. That said, like me, he is a veteran and used to fighting abroad. So that may or may not play a factor. One way or another, right off the bat, things will be more difficult for him. I certainly respect anyone who comes into someone else's backyard to fight.

CR: You were a sizable underdog going into your last fight with Daniel Pineda, how does the underdog status affect you?

AC: I'm kind of used to the underdog status. I am pretty inconsistent with my performances so I can see why I am often counted out. If anything, being the underdog motivates me. Then again, I always see myself as an underdog anyways. So that never bugs me.

CR: Was the plan to KO Pineda or try and get it to the ground?

AC: I went in there expecting everything from him. So I prepared everywhere. It just so happened that my striking was sharper then his that night and I caught him. I was very fortunate to get the win that night.

CR: So how come your UFC debut was so much more lackluster than the one that followed, which wasn't anything short of spectacular?

AC: Sometimes, things simply don't fall into place. I did the best I could that night and it wasn't good enough. I took that loss as a learning experience and came back stronger. I hope to keep that momentum going and stay on a winning path.

CR: What inspired you to become a mixed martial artist?

AC: Actually, I just wanted to be a martial artist and do martial arts. I really didn't get into martial arts thinking I was going to fight professionally. It just kind of came up one day and my old coach figured I should try it out. Once I tried it though, I knew I wanted to do it again. So now I have been at it for almost a decade now!

CR: On UFC.com, Darren Uyenoyama has you listed as one of his heroes. I'm curious, is there any story behind that?

AC: Really?! Darren is my hero too! Actually, myself, Darren and Joachim "Hellboy" Hansen come from the Japanese circuits and that is where we all met. We all learned from each other and influenced each other in some way shape or form.

I am quite humbled that he feels that way about me. I feel the same way about him. He is a great friend and I am happy he is both successful in and out of the cage.

CR: Thanks again Antonio! We will be cheering for you!

AC: Thanks! Cheers!

Thanks again to Antonio and we wish him the best of luck in his upcoming fight! Make sure you guys go follow him on Twitter @AntonioPatoMMA and support him at UFC 154.

UFC 149: Barao vs. Faber Prelim Recap

Ryan Jimmo celebrating his win over Anthony Perosh
Photo by Fighters.com

This event started off with some of the best prelims we have had in some time and it was capped off by one of the worst PPV main cards that the UFC has ever had. Not only this, but Dave and I had our worst prediction night since starting CR. Weird night but let’s head into the recap.

Anton Kuivanen vs. Mitch Clarke: This surprisingly turned out to be an awesome fight, mainly on the ground. Kuivanen and Clarke battled back and forth for the better part of 3 rounds in a closely contested fight. I ended up scoring the bout for Kuivanen, 29-28, but the second round truly could have gone either way, leading to the split decision. With Clarke now going 0-2, my guess is that he will be released.

Possible matchups for Kuivanen: This win didn’t do much in adding to his stock but it was an entertaining fight and he showed that he can hang with a talented grappler. It’s hard looking for a fight with a guy like Kuivanen but the one that makes the most sense is one with Rafaello Oliviera. “The Tractor” just won a close decision win over Yoislandy Izquierdo, putting him in a similar spot as Kuivanen.

Antonio Carvalho vs. Daniel Pineda: Carvalho came out in this fight looking to put his first UFC loss behind him with a win over the tenacious Daniel Pineda. He did so in just 71 seconds with a beautifully set up combo that put Pineda out.

Possible matchups for Carvalho: This guy looked amazing out there. He came out very calm, which was something that he lacked in his fight with Arantes. He was very robotic and clunky in his striking with Felipe and this time around, he was smooth and relaxed. With a win over a guy like Pineda, who a lot of people were considering to be one of the next big things at 145 pounds, Carvalho has shown he deserves a step up. The former WEC featherweight champion looked very good in his win over Pineda himself. A win over Mike Brown would be a huge feather in the cap of Carvalho.

Possible matchups for Pineda: Losing two in row in the UFC is never good, but Pineda still has potential. He deserves a rebound fight and Cody McKenzie is coming off a quick TKO loss himself at the hands of Chad Mendes. Pineda should rather easily dispatch of him.

Bryan Caraway vs. Mitch Gagnon: This fight was FOTN for a reason, Gagnon came out hard and quick and nearly finished Caraway in the first two rounds with some brutal knees. Caraway showed that he is a solid vet as he came back to submit Gagnon in the closing frame after Mitch had visibly slowed down dramatically.

Possible matchups for Caraway: Caraway clearly needs to work on his standup, he’s tough but is capable of being finished. His ground game is fantastic and he is a very experienced guy. Matt Grice just came off a very impressive win over Leonard Garcia, a fight in which he really showed off his wrestling ability. They are in similar spots in their career and a win would catapult either fighter into the mid-tier range of 145 pounds.

Possible matchups for Gagnon: Gagnon had a bad case of the UFC jitters as he gassed out hard after the first round. But before that, he was looking good. With his first UFC fight under his belt, his gas tank will most likely be much better in his sophomore UFC fight. Fellow 149 loser Roland Delorme is coming off a devastating first round KO loss at the hands of Francisco Rivera. A bout between them would definitely be an exciting fight wherever it goes, and a competitive one at that.

Ryan Jimmo vs. Anthony Perosh: One punch can end your night and sometimes, the first one will do just that. Jimmo threw one punch and ended Perosh’s 3-fight win streak in just 7 seconds.

Possible matchups for Jimmo: You can’t do much better in a UFC debut than what Jimmo did on Saturday. After being unfairly criticized for being too boring, he put his naysayers to bed with one big overhand right. Jimmo has the ability to be solid fighter at 205. Chad Griggs has yet to make his 205 debut and a fight between them would be fun and the winner would deserve a big step up in competition.

Possible matchups for Perosh: At 40 years old, “The Hippo” has to be considering retirement by now, but if he isn’t, he could fight the loser of Jorden Kruth and Fabio Maldonado and would make sense; considering they are all in similar spots in their careers as Perosh.

Francisco Rivera vs. Roland Delorme: Rivera looked like a title contender out there. He had pinpoint accuracy, powerful knees and punches, and a lot of speed to top it off. Rivera looked like he had some of the best standup at 135 pounds. Delorme is not an easy guy to finish and Rivera seemed to have done it with ease.

Possible matchups for Rivera: Rivera looked absolutely outstanding in his win over Delorme. The question still remains about Rivera, how has his ground game come along since his submission loss to Reuban Duran? He looked like he is very ready for a step up in competition and a man who can test his ground game and be a step up is Ivan Menjivar. He just came off a loss to Mike Easton and they would put up an awesome fight.

Nick Ring vs. Court McGee: A lot of people following this fight are saying that McGee definitely won this fight but I actually scored it for Ring 29-28. It was really close, don’t get me wrong, I just thought that Nick Ring won that fight.

Possible matchups for Ring and McGee: With this fight technically being their 1^st (they fought during their time on The Ultimate Fighter) and the fact that it was very entertaining and super close, I wouldn’t mind seeing them duke it out again.

For the main card recap, click here.