"What a bitter taste it has" - Matheus Nicolau issues statement after knockout loss to Alex Perez at UFC Vegas 91
Matheus Nicolau recently addressed his defeat against Alex Perez at UFC Vegas 91.
The main event of UFC Vegas 91 featured a five-round flyweight fight between Nicolau and Perez. The event took place at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, Nevada, on April 27. He was originally scheduled to face Manel Kape but the latter had to pull out of the fight and was replaced by Perez.
Nicolau made his octagon comeback with this bout following a year-long break. He last competed in April 2023, losing to Brandon Royval via knockout. Before that, the Brazilian had a six-fight winning streak.
Perez, on the other hand, was coming off a three-fight losing streak against Deiveson Figueiredo, Alexandre Pantoja, and Muhammad Mokaev.
After a very close first round, Perez stunned his opponent with a right hook in the second and then proceeded to knock him out.
Following the defeat, Nicolau shared a post on Instagram, citing his poor performance against Perez. He wrote:
''Last night I failed. I fell. What a bitter taste it has!! I have prepared very well! As the saying goes: "I did what needed to be done." Felt pretty good at workouts all camp had a great week during fight week with a great weight cut. No excuses, just thanking my entire team and my training partners."
Nicolau added:
"Felt good in the fight, following the strategy we created for a five-round fight. End of the first round I was finding my opponent's time, watching his shots and starting to connect mine. Round two started off more active putting more punches and feeling the fight was going where we wanted until I got caught and fell. I accept what happened with an open heart and move on. We lost the battle, but the war goes on! #DeathBeforeDishonor''
Check out the post below:
When Matheus Nicolau addressed Alex Perez's weight-cutting struggles
Before their fight, Matheus Nicolau talked candidly about Alex Perez's struggles to make weight before fights.
Unfortunately, the American has seen several bout cancellations in recent years. Since 2020, he has had 11 scrapped fights, including ones against high-profile flyweights Kai Kara-France, Amir Albazi, and Manel Kape, due to various causes.
In an interview with Sportskeeda MMA, Nicolau discussed Perez's struggles:
"This has crossed my mind, but I think he just fought recently, so I think he's still in fighting shape. With an opportunity like this, to do the main event, I don't think he's going to screw with that. I think he's going to do his part of the deal and I hope he comes in on weight all good and do an excellent fight.''
Check out Matheus Nicolau's comments below (5:08):