Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos speaks on his upcoming fight at UFC Fight Night 254; Nicolas Dalby rematch, starting his MMA journey with Capoeira & more [Exclusive]

The Brazilian veteran is going up against Chidi Njokuani

UFC Welterweight veteran Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos is all set for his first fight in 2025 against a 6’3 striker in Chidi Njokuani. This will be his first fight since November 2024 when he defeated Zachary Scroggin in the very first round via KO, taking his undefeated record in the process.

Elizeu was originally planned to fight a familiar rival in Nicolas Dalby in November, this would have been a rematch from their first meeting in 2015 where Dalby picked up the win via split decision. This was also Elizeu’s first UFC fight.

However, the rematch never materialized as Dalby pulled out of the fight and Zachary Scroggin replaced him. Since losing to Dalby in his debut, Elizeu has fought fifteen times and has notable wins over stars like former UFC Middleweight Champion Sean Strickland and UFC Lightweight star Benoît Saint Denis.

Ahead of his fight on March 15, Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos sat down with Khel Now for an exclusive interview. Zaleski shared the lessons he has learned from his long and illustrious UFC career, the rematch with Nicolas Dalby, his upcoming fight, and starting his MMA journey with Capoeira.

Elizeu believes “resilience and hard work” is the key to a long and successful UFC career

Zaleski is known for his resilience and hard work, believes that “resilience and hard work” is the key to a long UFC career. However, he also acknowledged that there is always room for improvement with each fight and it is an ongoing work to remain in the organization.

“I think it’s mainly, uh, above resilience and hard work. You know, there’s no way of being in the UFC for this long and feeling like I’ve made it, you know, we always have a lot of work to do and a lot of things that you learn with each fight. So it’s really an, an ongoing, uh, work to, to remain in the organization.“

Do you still want the rematch against Nicolas Dalby?

Zaleski is not interested in the rematch against Nicolas Dalby anymore and states that while there was a chance for the rematch, it didn’t happen and now he is looking ahead for things on the horizon.

“It’s not that interesting for us at this point. You know, there was a chance for it to happen and it didn’t happen. So, you know, I see other things on the horizon now”

What do you think are Chidi Njokuani’s strengths and how do you plan to counter them?

Zaleski lauded Chidi and his kickboxing skills but revealed that he has a lot of kickboxers in his team, fighters who can imitate Chidi and he is looking to impose his game plan to take out Njokuani’s strengths.

“You know, he is a very experienced guy on the feet. He’s a, a renowned kickboxer. But, you know, there’s a lot of kickboxers in my team, there’s a lot of guys to emulate his game. So I just have to impose my game to, to be able to take out his“

Also Read: UFC Fight Night 254 Vettori vs Dolidze 2: Fight card, date, time, telecast, live streaming info & more

If this fight goes the distance, where does your strength lie?

Elizeu stated that his weight cut is going well and he feels in good shape and well trained, and feels wherever the fight goes he will have an upper hand against Chidi.

“I feel really good and I feel really well trained, so I feel like anywhere the fight goes, uh, I’m gonna have an edge and I’m gonna have the advantage.”

When asked if there are any dream fights that we want in the Welterweight division after Saturday, Zaleski replied that he is currently focused on fighting Chidi but hinted that he has a few names that he might callout after the fight.

“Yeah, right now I’m thinking about this fight, but, you know, getting through, uh, Chidi this weekend, there’s a few names and, a few things that I like to say.”

How do you balance both aspects (striking & grappling) of your fighting style?

Zaleski credits his foundation in the capoeira martial art for his dynamic style, which he successfully adapted to MMA with his team. While he has incorporated kickboxing, boxing, and jiujitsu, he still believes that he is primarily a capoeira practitioner who has effectively transitioned to MMA.

“You know, I had my start and my base is in capoeira (martial art), it’s a very dynamic, a very mobile art. So I think I was able to, along with my team, to really. Adapt that to MMA and, to really be able to use those qualities in MMA. So, you know, I used my kickboxing, my boxing, my jiujitsu and everything, but ultimately I, I see myself as a capoeira player who, who has adapted very well to MMA.”

Fight prediction & any message for UFC fans in India

Zaleski believes that the fight will be an aggressive affair likely ending before the third round, “I see a very aggressive fight and, it’s very, very likely that it will end before the third round.”

Zaleski thanked his fans for all the support and urged them to watch his fight this Saturday, He also promised to put on a great show at the UFC Apex on March 15. “Thanks to all my fans for all the support. I’m gonna be fighting this Saturday on the 15th, and you can be sure that I’m gonna give my all to put on a great show”

Watch the UFC Fight Night – Vettori vs. Dolidze 2 on 16th March 2025 at 4:30 AM IST live on Sony Sports Ten 2 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi), Sony Sports Ten 4 SD & HD (Tamil & Telugu).

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