An ex-Bellator MMA champ wants to make a statement against a rising Ultimate Fighting Championship star.
Former two-time Bellator bantamweight king and current Combate commentator Eduardo Dantas will be shifting gears soon to go over to the realm of grappling. The 35-year-old will face Umar Nurmagomedov in a no-gi featherweight grappling contest at ADXC 7 on Oct. 25 at the Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. While he was considering continuing his MMA career, according to an interview with Sherdog, he received an offer he could not refuse.
“I was getting ready to take an MMA fight in December when the promoter of ADXC made me that proposal to face Nurmagomedov, so I just had to stop my boxing and muay thai preparation to focus on my jiu-jitsu training,” revealed Dantas.
According to the Nova Uniao representative, the confrontation of a classical Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and a top Dagestani wrestler like Umar was his biggest motivation to accept the invitation.
“Since I started practicing jiu-jitsu, I’ve heard histories of masters Helio, Carlson and later Rickson showing the efficiency of jiu-jitsu against all other styles of each generation,” Dantas observed. “Today, grappling-wise, jiu-jitsu and wrestling are, no doubt, the most dominant styles, so it will be an honor to represent my art against a representative of the respected Dagestani school of wrestling, that is also close to dispute a UFC title.”
The event takes place one day before UFC 308 at the Etihad Arena also in Abu Dhabi, which is headlined by a featherweight title fight between champion Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway. With plenty of years left in him, Dantas made it clear he is not done with MMA yet, but has no expectation on receiving a UFC contract if he manages to defeat—or better yet, submit—the UFC’s likely upcoming title challenger.
“I’m a big fan of UFC, but I’m not doing this fight to get a place there,” “Dudu” admitted. “I accept this challenge because I consider Umar a great fighter and it will be a great grappling match. I didn’t go to the UFC because of Mr. Sean Shelby, who said to one of my managers, Ali, that I already had a lot of kilometers. If it were for Dana, I was already there, and I have to thank my friend Jose Aldo for having talked to him. But while someone who chooses fighters by his taste, not by numbers or titles, I have no expectation to fight there.”
When asked to break down an MMA match against Nurmagomedov, the Brazilian was confident in his skillset.
“Umar evolved a lot [in] his standup skills, but I believe he would feel my pressure of my boxing and my kicks and would go to his base style, wrestling, and I wouldn’t run from the ground fighting with him and would probably submit him with a heel hook or a kneebar. That’s how I predict an MMA fight with Umar,” the 35-year-old analyzed.
While ex-Bellator champ has no expectations of joining the UFC roster, he believes he could go far and climb the rankings in short order.
“I have no doubt that once in [the] UFC, I would be in the top 10 in less than one year, and would reach the title shot in less than 24 months,” Dantas boasted.
Raised in the Santo Amaro slum in Rio de Janeiro, Dantas was discovered by Nova Uniao founder Andre Pederneiras along with Hacran Dias and Marlon Moraes. After getting the Bellator title and being hailed as one of the best bantamweights in the world, ‘Dudu’ opened his own social project to give back to the community that made him the man he is today.
“Martial arts saved my life,” Dantas gushed. “My main goal in life today is give the same opportunity I had, to other poor children of favelas all over Brazil.”
While the Brazilian has an unquenchable thirst for combat, he found a second purpose with these various social projects to improve his community. Whether running programs for children, training students or rebuilding the area, Dantas has involved himself in more than 85 social projects all across the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro.
“My main work today is to make the bridge between who needs and who wants to help,” the former two-time Bellator champion and highly acclaimed jiu-jitsu black belt concluded.
Nurmagomedov is coming off a win over Cory Sandhagen in the main event of UFC on ABC 7. The undefeated 28-year-old emerged as a title contender and is expected to face newly crowned bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili in his first attempted title defense. With seven wins by submission, Dantas most recent appearance in MMA came in May 2023, where he suffered a decision loss to Denis Lavrentyev at RCC 15.
