Caio Borralho Says He’s Ready for PPV Stage: ‘You Guys Know I Can Sell Fights’

It wasn’t the most exciting of fights, but Caio Borralho was in complete control for the majority of his unanimous decision triumph over Armen Petrosyan in the UFC on ESPN 39 co-main event this past Saturday.

The 29-year-old Brazilian landed multiple takedowns and spent long periods of the fight attached to Petrosyan’s back in a drama-free victory. Borralho has won nine straight professional outings, including two in the UFC and two on Dana White’s Contender Series. Winning, not entertaining, was the primary objective against a dangerous kickboxer like Petrosyan.

“I got the job done, that’s what matters,” Borralho said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “This is my fourth fight in 10 months, my fourth fight at a high level, and my fourth domination win.

“…I feel blessed, I’m happy with my performance, I did what I needed to do. I got the job done. I’m happy with my performance. I’m a fighting nerd, I will calculate everything and I will do what I need to do to win the fight. I’m not going to just brawl and be a dumb fighter. No, I’m a fighting nerd and it’s bully payback time.”

Borralho claims he was never tempted to test himself in his opponent’s comfort zone. With his latest challenge complete, “The Natural” is confident that he can step up to higher-profile matchups.

“It’s never tough to be in the game plan. That’s what I needed to do. In the third round I was feeling my foot, my shoulder. I had big injuries in this camp too,” Borralho said.

“I’m ready for new challenges and the big stage, on a pay-per-view card. You guys know I can sell fights. I can talk and I can win. That’s what matters.”

Borralho did his best to set up such a challenge by calling out Dricus Du Plessis in his post-fight interview. The South African middleweight is 3-0 in the Octagon and is coming off a decision victory against Brad Tavares at UFC 276.

“I don’t have anything against the guy,” Barralho said. “I know that I can beat him. He’s ranked right now and I want [to fight] him.