Fernando Credits Wife After Nearly Quitting MMA

Lucas Fernando stopped Rafael Tobias in the third round at UFC 330, but the Brazilian heavyweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">light heavyweight almost walked away from the sport entirely two years ago.

Fernando landed a body knee that crumpled Tobias before finishing with ground strikes in his promotional debut, per Sherdog. The victory capped a four-fight winning streak that included two LFA title defenses after consecutive losses in 2023 and 2024.

Wife Convinced Fernando To Keep Fighting After DWCS Loss

Fernando lost a decision to Cesar Almeida on Dana White's Contender Series in 2023, then dropped another fight in the Legacy Fighting Alliance. He told reporters at the post-fight press conference that his wife stopped him from abandoning the sport during that stretch.

"After the loss in Contender, I called her up and said, 'You know, maybe this is not for me. I should look for something else. Or maybe shouldn't dedicate to this 100%," Fernando said, according to MMA Fighting. "She said no. She believed in me, she supported me, she supported this dream of mine to be in the UFC."

Fernando mentioned he spent a month in the United States preparing for his debut and was eager to return home to Brazil. He now holds a 14-3 professional record.

Reported via:

• Sherdog — Lucas Fernando nearly quit MMA before breakthrough UFC 330 victory