UFC 332 will solidify Deiveson Figueiredo as a stepping stone

Deiveson Figueiredo faces rising bantamweight prospect Payton Talbott at UFC 332. The pair will serve as the co-main event in a bout that's clearly meant to further elevate Talbott by giving him a very winnable matchup against an over-the-hill legend on the worst rough patch of his career. Unfortunately for Figueiredo, it isn't the first time he's been in this position, and it's unlikely to be the last.

Deiveson Figueiredo has become easy fight with a big name

There was a time when Deiveson Figueiredo seemed unstoppable. It was brief and when he had demolished Joseph Benavidez in a rematch to capture the vacant flyweight title at UFC Fight Island 2. Those days, though, are long gone. Figueiredo later met his match at flyweight, and also found it increasingly difficult to make 125 pounds, causing him to spend most of his training camps cutting weight rather than sharpening his technique and gameplanning. Once he could no longer cut it at flyweight, he moved up to bantamweight, where he got off to a flying start.

After authoring a three-fight win streak, including wins over Marlon 'Chito' Vera and Cody Garbrandt, 'Daico' seemed like he'd finally found some stability. Though one obvious difference between his success at bantamweight and his prior success at flyweight was his distinct lack of finishing ability at 135 pounds. His cardio issues also remained a problem, and his smaller size became more and more obvious. After that initial run of success, he sufferedd two back-to-back losses. First, it was a unanimous decision to future two-time bantamweight champion Petr Yan at UFC Fight Night 248, then a second-round TKO due to a knee injury against Cory Sandhagen at UFC on ESPN 67.

He briefly snapped his losing streak with a split-decision win over Montel Jackson at UFC Fight Night 261, but the writing was on the wall. Figueiredo was aging, couldn't finish anyone in his new weight class, and was struggling against the true bantamweight elites, and barely making it past Jackson, of all fighters, was not convincing. So, Figueiredo quickly became the old lion the UFC uses to elevate younger, more valuable stars. His first assignment in the new role was a bout with Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 324, where he missed weight and lost via unanimous decision in a listless display, refusing to engage for most of the fight. This was followed by a more definitive loss at UFC Fight Night 277, where he was submitted in round two by Song Yadong.

So, after an initial three-fight win streak at bantamweight, Figueiredo went 1-4, with his latest win coming against someone who is unranked by the media panel. At 38 years old, he isn't going to get any better. He'll only get slower and more vulnerable to the damage he's absorbed throughout the years. Now, at UFC 332, he takes on the heavy-handed Payton Talbott, who is much younger and riding serious momentum. The reasoning behind the matchup is clear. The UFC is using Figueiredo, much like they used Henry Cejudo at UFC 323, to give Talbott a win over a recognizable name with a strong legacy. A win over a former champion.

Figueiredo will almost certainly lose, and he'll have to make peace with the role the UFC has given him, because he'll continue to be fed to up-and-comers until his value drops and he's inevitably cut.