Canada’s number five-ranked light heavyweight will be back in action next week.
A top-five ranking in Canada's deepest division is the kind of position that makes every fight a title eliminator in practice — Stoute at 36 is fighting for more than wins at this point, and a new five-fight Brave CF contract means every bout on it is a step toward the belt or a step off the roster.
Canada’s Toud Stoute (10-6) will take on Brazil’s Amilcar Alves (18-19) in a non-title bout at Brave CF 36. The main event fight will be in the promotion’s light heavyweight division, and will be held in Bucharest, Romania on Monday, beginning at noon EST.
The middle-of-a-pandemic timing makes this card different from a normal regional booking — a fighter taking a bout during COVID when gyms are closed and camps are improvised is betting that the opportunity is worth the compromised preparation, and Stoute taking a fight on a week's notice in Bahrain suggests he's operating on a different risk calculus than most.
“I don’t care that (this fight) is in the middle of a pandemic. It’s worth it,” Stoute said in an interview with MMA Empire.
Stoute focusing on Brave CF light heavyweight championship
“This fight is the start of my title run,” Stoute said.
The title-run framing is the right ambition for this stage of Stoute's career — a 36-year-old with a new contract and a clear runway to a championship is fighting for the kind of legacy that regional MMA rewards, and beating a durable veteran like Alves is exactly the kind of result that gets a title conversation started.
Stoute’s upcoming fight against Alves is his third with Brave CF, and the first of his new five-fight contract. His goals are to become the promotion’s light heavyweight champion and win all five fights.
The five-fight deal is the biggest development of Stoute's career — Brave CF has become the promotion that gives experienced veterans a legitimate stage between the regional circuit and the UFC, and a fighter who commits five bouts to the promotion is betting that the Bahrain-based outfit is where his late-career run actually happens.
“I’m not looking at promotion-jumping. What I’m looking at right now is making the best out of five fights.” Stoute said.
“I’m going to fight out my contract and see what happens after that.”
Stoute, 36, made his Brave CF debut on three weeks notice at Brave CF 30. He defeated Lukasz Parobiec via TKO in the second round before fighting Mohamed Said Maalem nearly one month later. He went on to lose to Maalem via unanimous decision at Brave CF 33.
The short-notice debut says everything about how Brave CF operates — a promotion that can call a fighter with three weeks and get a performance like the Parobiec bout is one that knows its roster is ready, and Stoute's willingness to answer that call is why the promotion keeps bringing him back.
“I suffered a couple injuries at training camp and ended up fighting at like 30 per cent,” Stoute said.
“(The fight) got taken to the distance and I lost by a point or two points, which is very frustrating. But I didn’t want to (back out). I still wanted to fight.”
Monday’s bout against Alves will be Stoute’s first fight since Dec. 27. Eager to get back into the cage, his game plan is to “pressure, smash and finish” his opponent and keep the fight away from the judges’ scorecards.
When preparing for upcoming fights, “The Black Hulk” opts to study his own footage in order to improve his game. While he takes notes on himself, his coaches focus on his opponent’s film when preparing training sessions and workouts.
“A lot of guys look at their opponent’s footage over and over again and don’t listen to their coaches,” Stoute said.
“If you’re looking at highlights of your opponent knocking people out, you think of him as more than what he is. I mostly watch my own film and trust my coaches.”
While Stoute noted the importance of focusing on one fighter at a time, he also made it clear that he’s after the light heavyweight title.
“I’m not going to look past this guy—I’m going to go through this guy. The goal doesn’t stop at (Alves). The goal is that light heavyweight belt.”
Alves looks to end losing streak
Alves, 40, is currently on a three-fight losing streak—all losses coming via TKO. The loss to Andreas Gustafsson Berg in May 2019 was especially frustrating for the Brazilian native.
Three straight TKO losses at 40 is the kind of slide that ends careers — Alves is a veteran of nearly 40 professional bouts who's fought everywhere from regional shows to the UFC, and the fact that all three losses came by stoppage suggests the durability that made him dangerous is finally wearing thin.
“My fight against Gustafsson was really not fair,” Alves said in an interview with MMA Empire.
“I broke his nose and the referee should’ve stopped the fight because he didn’t stop bleeding. I had to wait three minutes until he could fight again. We all know what should happen when a fighter’s bleeding can’t stop.”
Alves altered his training to prepare for Monday’s fight, adding new grappling practices into his routine. He noted that his muay thai and jiu-jitsu backgrounds give him an advantage.
“Todd is a big guy and has good footwork,” Alves said.
“I have to be careful with his kicks. I’ve worked on improving my wrestling, so I think that will help me.”
Like his opponent, Alves hopes to make a statement by finishing the fight on Monday.
“I hope I can get a contract with Brave CF,” Alves said.
“I think this will be a really interesting fight.”
Brave Combat Federation resumed competition on July 20 with Brave CF 35. The fight card was the first in an ongoing series of eight events in Europe. The series, dubbed “European Invasion,” will conclude on Oct. 10 in Belgium.
Brave CF resuming cards in July was one of the more significant returns in international MMA — a Bahrain-based promotion running through the pandemic when most regional circuits were shut down gave fighters like Stoute and Alves a place to work when there was nowhere else to go, and that context makes this bout more than just another fight.
