1 week Ago By Mathew Riddle
Payton Talbott was one of the biggest betting favorites entering his UFC 311 contest with Raoni Barcelos. Talbott made a great impression in his first three UFC appearances, demolishing South African prospect Cameron Saaiman and decimating Yanis Ghemmouri within 20 seconds to secure a high-caliber fight. A lot was riding on Talbott’s performance ahead of UFC 311 , and if he had won dominantly, he’d have been one of the hottest prospects on the roster.
This came crashing down when MMA veteran Barcelos manhandled Talbott over three rounds for a unanimous decision victory. His wrestling was too much for Talbott, who had just enough experience to ride out the rounds without being caught in submissions . Payton Talbott calls Barcelos defeat his ‘first scar’ in first major statement since UFC 311 With UFC bantamweight containing grappling threats like Umar Nurmagomedov , Cory Sandhagen , and Merab Dvalishvili, the latter whom Talbott had drama with , it doesn’t paint a good picture of Talbott’s chances of breaking the rankings.
However, Talbott admits the loss is nothing more than a “scar.” Speaking on Instagram, Talbott admitted, “The [veteran] gave me my first scar. May the skin heal itself to be strong and never split again.
Lucky to have such people in my life. Fortunate to be able to learn valuable lessons. Still had fun.
” High hopes for Payton Talbott with the proper adjustments At 26 years old, Talbott has a long career ahead of him if he continues to fight. Besides having his hands low and chin high to draw out shots, not much can be said to criticize his striking acumen, as he worked Barcelos whenever they traded on the feet. Still, if Talbott plans to compete at bantamweight, he must work on his grappling defense.
The Nevada fighter did well to defend Barcelos’ submissions, but the three rounds dissolved quickly, as did Talbott’s chances of pulling off a hail-mary victory. As UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev suggested for Daniel Cormier’s son, perhaps Talbott should train in Russia for three years and return transformed. It wouldn’t be the first long hiatus we’ve seen from prospects, as most of the South Korean roster, like Chang Sung Jung and Doo Ho Choi, took two years for their mandatory military service.
That might be extreme, but grappling experience doesn’t come quick, and Talbott will need it now the blueprint has been laid at UFC 311..
