On the road Kopylov – Hulk. Roman’s next fight will be with a Brazilian knockout artist
Igor Nekrasov July 5, 2024, 16:00 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
The Russian is racing toward the UFC’s top 15 and will enter the octagon for the second time in three months.
On August 24, the UFC Vegas 96 tournament will be held in Las Vegas. Russian middleweight Roman Kopylov will have his next fight on the tournament card, his opponent will be Brazilian Brunno Ferreira, nicknamed Hulk; Roman Kopylov has been playing in the best league in the world since November 2019. Roman entered the UFC with an 8-0 record and as the Fight Night Global champion. However, the journey in the Dana White League began for the Russian with two defeats: first he lost by choke to Karl Roberson, and then he lost to his compatriot Albert Duraev by unanimous decision. Kopylov was on the verge of being fired, but he managed to get out of a difficult situation and put together a powerful winning streak. Roman knocked out Alessio Di Chirico, Punaele Soriano, Claudio Ribeiro and Josh Fremd in a row, took two bonuses for his performance of the night and became one of the main contenders to enter the top 15.
How Kopylov restarted his career:
Kopylov was on the verge of being fired and now he’s knocking on the door of the top 15. How a Russian conquers the UFC
However, in February 2024, Kopylov agreed to replace him on short notice for a fight against Anthony Hernandez. A tournament counted, a chance to break into the elite – Roman took a risk, but again lost by choke, which again knocked the Russian out of the rankings. I had to start all over again and in the last fight Kopylov won a difficult victory over a very difficult opponent. The Russian shared the cage with Cesar Almeida, who has a victory over Alex Pereira himself in kickboxing. It is interesting that Kopylov, famous for his striking technique, decided to expand his fight and before the fight with Almeida went to a training camp in Dagestan. And in a duel with a tough kickboxer, it was his fighting skills that helped Roman win a difficult victory.
Kopylov defeated criminal Alex Pereira:
Training in Dagestan was not in vain! Kopylov defeated the unyielding Brazilian
Now Kopylov will have a fight with another powerful Brazilian, Brunno Ferreira. Ferreira made his debut in mixed martial arts quite late – in 2019, when he was 26 years old. But the physically strong Brazilian quickly racked up a series of six early victories, entered Dana White’s Challenger Series, where he knocked out Leon Aliu in the first round, and received a contract with the best league in the world. In the UFC, Hulk started with a knockout victory over Gregory Rodriguez, but then Ferreira suffered the first and only defeat of his career – he lost by knockout to Nursulton Ruziboev.
The loss didn’t break Brazilian Brunno; he returned to the Octagon in early 2024 and scored another knockout in a fight with Phil Howes. And in the last fight, Ferreira turned the lights out on Dustin Stoltzfus with a fantastic spinning elbow.
Brunno Ferreira vs Dustin Stoltzfus
Photo: Jeff Bottari/Getty Images
Brunno is short for a middleweight – 177 cm. At the same time, the Brazilian is endowed with physical strength and has a knockout punch. It should be said that none of Ferreira’s fights came to a judge’s decision – he lost by knockout, and out of 11 victories, eight were won by knockout and three more by submission. Like any Brazilian, Ferreira feels good on the ground, but at the same time Hulk prefers to fight standing.
Perhaps this will play into Kopylov’s hands. Roman is an excellent striker who has never lost by knockout. Kopylov can work well from distance and in a fight with Ferreira he will have an advantage in both height and arm extension. At the same time, as we saw in the last fight, Roman is becoming a more versatile fighter, improving his wrestling skills and being able to adapt to his opponent.
The Russian is rushing towards the top 15 of the middleweight division. Despite the fact that his last fight took place in June and was not the easiest, Roman agreed to another fight in August. A victory over Brunno, especially a confident victory, could give Kopylov a coveted place in the top 15, after which the Russian can count on more serious challenges. It only remains to formalize this victory.
