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Thomas Almeida Not Getting Comfortable Ahead of UFC on FOX 25

July 20, 2017 | Posted by Jeremy Thomas

Thomas Almeida spoke with MMAjunkie ahead of his fight with Jimmie Rivera at UFC on FOX 25. Highlights are below:

On changing as a fighter: “I never settle; I never get comfortable. I always want to improve. That’s the important thing, and that’s what makes me a very tough opponent, in my opinion: because I’m always looking to improve and evolve. I’m on my way, and I’m sure that I’ll be able to show this evolution against Jimmie Rivera.”

On Rivera: “I think Jimmie is an excellent opponent. No wonder he has 20 wins. He’s a very tough guy. Very strategic. He fights to win. I’ve seen all of his fights, especially the ones in the UFC, and he’s a guy who uses the rules in his favor. With each fight, he adjusts his strategy and follows that well. He’s a dangerous guy. He’s very strong, the No. 5 in the rankings. But I trust my work. I trust my will. I know how much this fight matters to me.”

On the eight months since his last fight: “We tried getting a fight in Brazil, at (UFC 212, on June 3). I thought it was going to work, but there was no opponent. I had no injuries, I was well-prepared.”

On getting fights: “As you climb up the rankings, it’s harder to find fights. I can’t just go around fighting anyone. My goal is getting to the belt, so I need to do the right fights to get there. On the bright side, I had longer to prepare and to keep looking for evolution. Fight or no fight, I’m always training. I was sad about not fighting in Rio, but then they scheduled my fight right away.”