5 Things You Might Not Know About Raoni Barcelos

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Raoni Barcelos went back to the drawing board in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s bantamweight division and may soon discover whether or not it was time well spent.

The 34-year-old Brazilian will welcome Victor Henry to the Octagon when he locks horns with the former Deep champion as part of the UFC 270 undercard on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Barcelos has rattled off nine victories across his past 10 outings. However, he finds himself on the rebound following a majority decision defeat to Timur Valiev at UFC Fight Night 190 on June 26. The Pedro Rizzo protégé has delivered 10 of his 16 pro victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission.

As Barcelos prepares for his preliminary confrontation with Henry, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. His martial arts roots run deep.

Barcelos started his formal jiu-jitsu training under his father, Laerte, at the age of 5. He now holds the rank of black belt in the discipline and in 2009 won a no-gi national championship in his native Brazil. Their lineage can be traced back to Mitsuyo Maeda, one of the founding fathers of Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

2. He waited on his man strength before he took the dive.

The Rio de Janeiro native did not make his professional mixed martial arts debut until he was 25 years old, as he prompted a first-round doctor stoppage against Vitor Riso at a Shooto Brazil event on March 10, 2012. Barcelos has secured nearly one-third (five) of his 16 career victories after the age of 30.

3. Gold bolstered his portfolio.

Barcelos held championships in the Shooto Brazil and Resurrection Fighting Alliance promotions prior to his arrival in the UFC. He laid claim to the Shooto Brazil featherweight crown with a unanimous decision over Jorge Rodrigues Silva in September 2012 and struck RFA gold with a unanimous verdict over Ricky Musgrave in August 2015.

4. His skills lend themselves to notice and acclaim.

The former Shooto Brazil and Resurrection Fighting Alliance titleholder has pocketed three post-fight bonuses in six UFC appearances, resulting in $150,000 of additional income. Barcelos was awarded “Fight of the Night” honors at UFC Fight Night 133, UFC on ESPN 17 and UFC Fight Night 190.

5. Consistency has been a hallmark.

Barcelos went 2,633 days between defeats. He suffered his first setback when he submitted to a rear-naked choke from Mark Dickman at RFA 14 on April 11, 2014 and did not lose again until he was outpointed by Valiev some 376 weeks later.