MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay — Sometimes, all you need is to move away from family and friends to focus.
Weeks after being signed by the UFC, Raulian Paiva’s world fell apart with the death of his girlfriend, killed after they were struck by a car in Brazil in October. The promising flyweight, who was already negotiating his Octagon debut at the time, asked the promotion to push it back a few months.
Paiva finally made his official debut in February, flying across the world to meet Kai Kara-France in Australia, but lost a close split decision at UFC 234.