"At least one more fight for sure"- Demian Maia is not keen on retiring if he gets past Belal Muhammad at UFC 263 (Exclusive)
UFC veteran Demian Maia will make a return to the octagon against Belal Muhammad in a welterweight matchup at UFC 263 this weekend.
Ahead of the bout, the grappling legend weighed in on various topics in a recent interview with Sportskeeda.
While Maia claimed to be performing well in training sessions, he also acknowledged the uncertainty of the fight game.
Maia revealed that we might see him inside the octagon for at least one more outing if he can get past Belal Muhammad in impressive fashion.
When asked about his future as a fighter, Demian Maia told Andrew Whitelaw-
"Depends how I am gonna perform in this fight. I'm feeling great and I'm performing well during my training camp. And you know, feeling great. But there is a thing about MMA, you don't really know how you are gonna perform inside the cage. So, when I'm there and I think I would perform great but you know, a fight's a fight. But if I do perform well, I would like to do more fights. At least one more fight for sure."
Demian Maia is widely regarded as one of the best grapplers of all time and has wins over notable opponents like Carlos Condit, Jorge Masvidal and Neil Magny to name just a few.
While Maia is known for his dominance on the mat, the 43-year-old Brazilian is at the back-end of his career and has only competed once in the past year.
In his most recent UFC outing back in March 2020, Maia suffered a painful TKO loss to Gilbert Burns.
Meanwhile, Belal Muhammad rode an impressive four-fight winning streak into a recent main event against top contender Leon Edwards.
It was a massive opportunity for 'Remember the Name', but the fight came to an unexpected end after Muhammad suffered an unintentional eye-poke from Edwards.
While a win for Muhammad would push him closer to the title picture, a loss for Demian Maia would likely bring his career to an end.
Demian Maia is also eyeing a UFC record
Demian Maia made his UFC debut in 2007 and has amassed a 28-10 professional record in his 13-year career.
Out of Maia's 28 career wins, 22 have come inside the UFC, which falls just short of the record for most wins in the promotion's history.
When he faces Belal Muhammad at UFC 263, the Brazilian will be looking to level the all-time record for most UFC wins, currently solely held by fellow veteran Donald Cerrone.