Did Matavao’s performance against Vemola tell him to continue in the Octagon? We need to talk, he’s perfect in fights, says Novotny

Al Matavao has had an extremely tough fight. He wasn’t counted on at all, but in the end he didn’t give the bettors a reason to be happy. Karlos Vémola confirmed his role as the favourite, and took the Samoan fighter. But what will be Matava’s future?

OKTAGON 41 offered a great show on Saturday, great fights, many early finishes and some big surprises. It was almost as if the night was shaping up to be a big shock to the local MMA scene.

Karlos Vémola as a huge favorite, Al Matavao as an even bigger underdog. It was known that if the Samoan fighter wanted to succeed, he had to stay standing as long as possible. And indeed he did for a while.

During that moment he was truly dangerous, hitting the Terminator several times, the latter even admitting that he was shaken after one of the blows. Vemola also revealed that he got carried away by the crowd and unnecessarily stepped on the gas too much instead of a calm tactical performance.

In the end, however, he has no regrets, as he did get the fight to the ground where he felt like a fish in water and forced the Samoan fighter to tap out with a choke. So not making the weight limit didn’t help Matava.

Weight is the main reason why there is some debate as to whether Matavao should have a place in the Octagon. It wasn’t the first time he failed to drop to the required limit. Promoter Ondrej Novotny had already questioned his future with the organization before the tournament.

And what does he say now? “I don’t know now, we have to talk. I don’t want to say anything bad about him. He’s always perfect in matches, but he can’t handle the weight. We have to sort it out. I respect him as a human being, a fighter, but we have to be professionals,” he let himself be heard at the press conference.

However, if Matavao does stay in the Octagon, Novotny would like to see him at welterweight. This is despite the fact that Samoan himself would like to fight at middleweight. But then again, we’re talking about the need to fit into the weight limit.

Matavao himself is aware of his mistakes. He promises to do better next time. He revealed that he would like to stay in the organization. And that he didn’t make weight? “I did everything I could for it. I love wrestling,” he says.

Source: Octagon MMA