Matheus Nicolau Focused On Jiu-Jitsu During His UFC Suspension

In an interview with MMA Junkie, Matheus Nicolau spoke about how he spent his one-year suspension from the UFC after he tested positive for anastrozole. He will return at UFC 219 this Saturday in a fight with Louis Smolka. Here are highlights:

On how he spent his time away: “I focused on jiu-jitsu competition. I hadn’t competed regularly since I was a blue belt, at 17, which is when I had my professional MMA debut. And now I got to go back to competing at black belt, at the highest level. So that was cool. I had to set aside my ego and step out of my comfort zone. I had to start fresh. It was one of the things in which I focused my energy in order to keep the competitive flame alive. In order to keep focused. It really helped make that time away from MMA be useful to me.”

On working toward a return: “It wasn’t time off – I kept working every day. I woke up and went to bed thinking about it. Not a day went by that I didn’t think about my career. And I never stopped working toward my evolution as a mixed martial artist.”

On focusing on the positives: “I believe rough times make us tougher. And I got to see that. I think I’m now not only a more mature martial artist, but I’m a more mature man and human being. And I also saw how blessed I am, because it happened, it was very tough, but I got to see that I have wonderful people around me. My family, my friends – I’m very blessed that they were by my side even when things got tough.”