Unfortunately for Almeida and his camp, the main card fight on Paramount Plus didn’t go so well. Over the course of 15 minutes of action, Rizvan Kuniev defeated Jailton Almeida 102-52 in total punches and also stuffed all eight of his opponent’s takedown attempts.
After three rounds, the scorecards were all in Kuniev’s favor (30-27, 30-27, 29-28). This was Jailton Almeida’s second loss in a row. It also appears to be his last fight in the heavyweight division.
Jailton Almeida is eager for a fresh start next time out at light heavyweight
Earlier Monday, during the latest episode of the Connect Cast podcast, the topic of Almeida’s fight against Kuniev was discussed, as well as Saturday night’s entire card at the Meta Apex.
The episode revealed that Jailton Almeida plans to return to light heavyweight in the wake of this weekend’s UFC Vegas 113. Then his manager acknowledged the move via social media later in the day.
The 34-year-old Almeida fought at light heavyweight between 2019 and 2022, after previous stints at heavyweight, welterweight and middleweight. During his previous light heavyweight run, he caught the attention of the UFC by winning the Thunder Fight Light Heavyweight Championship in Sao Paulo in early 2021.
A fight in September 2021 will go ahead Contender series by Dana White saw Jailton Almeida pull the assignment from Nasrudin Nasrudinov (11-3 MMA) at the then UFC Apex in Enterprise, NV. This match resulted in a second-round victory and a UFC contract by the end of the show.
Jailton Almeida moves up to heavyweight in 2022
After Almeida’s UFC promotional debut yielded a first-round TKO victory by punch over Danilo Marques (15-6 MMA, 2-2 UFC), his second appearance for the world’s No. 1 MMA promotion saw him climb up the heavyweight rankings for a bout against Parker Porter (14-9 MMA, 4-4 UFC).
Once again, Jailton Almeida had a quick night at the office that night, finishing Porter with a rear-naked choke in the first five minutes of action. Stoppage wins would become a habit for him during this phase of his UFC tenure.
Each of his first five matches ended without the use of the judges’ scorecards. Even more impressive, four of his first five victories came before the horn blared to end the opening round of the fight. This luck couldn’t last forever, and a November 2023 fight against Derrick Lewis (29-13, 1 NC MMA, 20-11 UFC) found him in waters he hadn’t swum in since January 2018, with that match requiring the judges’ scorecards to determine the winner.
However, unlike the 2018 fight, Jailton Almeida emerged victorious after the final horn.
Jailton Almeida goes 2-3 before retiring from heavyweight
In March 2024, Almeida fought Curtis Blaydes (19-5, 1 NC MMA, 14-5, 1 NC UFC) at UFC 299 and was defeated for the first time in over six years after being stopped with punches in the second round. A two-fight winning streak followed, with both victories coming within the first round.
On the heels of a January 2025 win over Serghei Spivac (17-6 MMA, 8-6 UFC), Almeida was set to face Alexander Volkov (39-11 MMA, 13-5 UFC). This match was left in the hands of the judges after 15 minutes in the cage, resulting in a split-decision defeat.
As previously mentioned, Almeida’s Saturday night against Kuniev would prove to be Almeida’s last appearance at heavyweight. At the time of Jailton Almeida’s departure from the heavyweight division, he claimed sixth spot in the rankings.
Final Thoughts: Why is Jailton Almeida moving up to light heavyweight now?
Why does Jailton Almeida decide to return to the light heavyweight division at this time? The fact that this move is being made after losing just two fights in a row could be seen by some as hitting the panic button.
Considering that Jailton Almeida was just a few wins away from putting himself firmly in the picture in the UFC Heavyweight Championship last week, the decision to move back to the 205-lb division adds even more intrigue to this story. If Almeida had chosen a different approach in the fight against Kuniev last Saturday evening, a different story will now be told.
As it stands, Jailton Almeida will return to 205 in his next fight. Whether or not he will return to the win column in that fight remains to be seen.
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