Manager: No One Deserves UFC Middleweight Title Shot More Than ‘Jacare’ Souza

Ronaldo Souza and those closest to him believe he is next in line to challenge for the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight title.

The two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championships gold medalist won for the ninth time in 10 fights at UFC 198 on May 14, when he stopped Vitor Belfort with first-round punches in Curitiba, Brazil. Souza’s manager, Gilberto Farias, sees “Jacare” as the clear No. 1 contender at 185 pounds -- a division now ruled by Michael Bisping. Marketability, Farias claims, is no longer an issue.

“People who say Jacare doesn’t deserve the title shot because he’s not popular in the United States are making a big mistake,” he told Sherdog.com. “Backstage at UFC 199, he was beside Nate Diaz taking pictures, and there more fans around him than Diaz, who just beat [Conor] McGregor. In shopping malls, at weigh-ins, whenever Jacare arrives, many fans come to talk to him.”

“The growth of his popularity in Brazil also impressed me,” Farias added. “During UFC 198, fans started screaming ‘Uuuh vai morrer’ to Belfort. Vitor is one of the most popular fighters in Brazil. Maybe only Anderson [Silva] is more famous than him, and to see a large number of the 45,000 people there screaming for Jacare during the fight gives you an idea of how popular he is in Brazil now. I’ve followed him since 2002, and I can feel exactly how big his name is in the United States and Brazil. I have no doubt that if he gets a title shot, he will soon be among the most popular fighters in the UFC.”

Farias also had issues with the Brazilian media, which pointed at Silva, Dan Henderson and Chris Weidman as possible candidates to cut in front of Souza in the title-shot queue.

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“I don’t see that possibility, because they are all coming in from a sequence of defeats. It doesn’t make sense to give them the prize when the man who’s first in line is coming in from a sequence of impressive wins,” he said. “Henderson is a legend, but even after his win over [Hector] Lombard, he has six losses in nine fights. It would make sense to make a super fight between him and Bisping -- I would be in the front row for that -- but not a title shot. Weidman is coming off a loss and is also injured. Anderson lost three of his last four fights. It makes no sense. Lyoto [Machida] and [Yoel] Romero are dealing with doping issues. I don’t see anyone who deserves it more than Jacare.”

Farias indicated that Souza’s recovery from recent knee surgery has gone as expected. The former Strikeforce champion plans to return to training soon and has already begun mapping out a strategy for Bisping.

“Jacare is really motivated once he can’t see any other possibility,” Farias said. “He’s already studying the champion’s game. By the way, thanks to Bisping we have great material to study: five rounds against Anderson and one round against [Luke] Rockhold. We know how tough he is, and Jacare will face him with the same seriousness he showed against Belfort.”