The former two-time title challenger, Demian Maia lost the last fight on his UFC contract against the rising prospect in the Welterweight division, Belal Muhammad by a unanimous decision of the judges at UFC 263.
The 43-year-old Brazilian grappler, Maia seemed completely out of touch in this fight and he struggled to implement his game plan of carving the win via takedowns that helped him secure 22 victories in UFC.
Before this fight, much of the talk revolved around whether Demian Maia will be signed again or not. In the post-fight press conference at UFC 263, Dana White answered he didn’t expect Maia to fight again in UFC.
White says, “I think that was his last fight, It was the last fight on his deal. He’s 43 years old. He’s been so good at getting in there, securing the takedown, getting on top of people and just strangling them,”
“Grabbing something and twisting it until you quit, and he couldn’t get it done tonight. He’s 43 years old, he’s a great guy, he’s had a great career, and yes, I would say that’s probably it.” {H/T MMA Fighting}
Demian Maia talked about the legacy he wants to leave heading into this fight
Demian Maia stepped into this fight with a first-round TKO loss against Gilbert Burns in March last year. Before this loss, he was on a three fights win streak coming against Ben Askren, Lyman Good, and Anthony Rocco Martin.
Before heading into this fight, he talked about the legacy he wanted to leave in the field of mixed martial art in an interview with MMA Fighting, Maia said, “The man that went in there and represented jiu-jitsu,” That’s how he wanted to be remembered.
“Everything I train, boxing, everything is about moving to understand how to use my jiu-jitsu in there. And be remembered as a man that believed in certain principals and didn’t change with the flow. I have to behave a certain way as a fighter.” {H/T MMA Fighting}
Demian Maia added, “Back when I was on my winning streak, I remember everybody saying, ‘You have to talk a bunch of crap, you have to do this and do that, or you’ll never fight for the title.’ And I thought to myself, if I changed things because it’s convenient, I think I’d regret that.”
“You can change what you believe when it goes according to your personal evolution, not because it’s convenient. You can’t have varying principles. That’s something I would have regretted a lot, as a man, if I had done it.”
Demian Maia will be leaving UFC with a record of 28-11 after his loss at UFC 263. He fought for the UFC title two times and holds notable victories over Chael Sonnen, Jorge Masvidal, Carlos Condit, and many others.
