Fight Coverage
Mario Pinto | A New Threat Is Coming
Born in Portugal And Proudly Representing London, England, Mario Pinto is Ready To Deliver In His Hometown
Most observers who have watched his two fights so far would likely agree that Mario Pinto has made an impressive start to life in the UFC heavyweight division. But Pinto himself isn’t one of them.
“On a scale of one to 10, I'll probably say my debut was a four, and my second one, I'd say I give it a seven,” he told UFC.com ahead of his upcoming bout at UFC London. And The Contender Series – I still count that one under Zuffa – I’d say that was an eight out of 10.”
In truth, he’s being hard on himself.
His so-called four-out-of-10 performance saw him knock out Austen Lane in the second round to earn a Performance of the Night bonus in his UFC debut, while his follow-up display delivered another second-round stoppage as he took down and finished Brazilian striker Jhonata Diniz in front of a partisan crowd in Rio de Janeiro.
Now Pinto, who was born in Lisbon, Portugal, but grew up in Camden, North London, gets a home game as he prepares to make the walk at The O2 Arena on Saturday night.
"Oh, man, it means so much,” said the 29-year-old. “Finally, people don't have to fly so far to watch me fight. I get to fight on home soil. So it's a privilege to fight here, man, and I'm excited.”
Despite not being a huge fan of his first two UFC performances, Pinto’s displays were impressive enough to earn him a shot against ranked opposition this weekend, and he was duly matched with England’s No. 12-ranked Mick Parkin.
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But as fight week got underway in the English capital, news emerged that Parkin had been forced to withdraw from the matchup, with Dana White’s Contender Series alum Felipe Franco stepping in on short notice to make his UFC debut.
It means Pinto stays on his hometown card, but rather than fight for a spot on the rankings, he faces a dangerous newcomer with nothing to lose.
“Oh, man, it's so frustrating,” he admitted. “I don't swear, but I was swearing at the time. But these things happen, I'm a professional, and I’ve gotta be prepared for anything? If King Kong steps in, I'm ready, you know? So you've got to just prepare, change the gameplan a little bit, but I'm ready to go."
“I’ve studied him well. A lot of people don't know him, but this guy, he's dangerous. This is a win-win for him. It's a golden ticket, and I know what it's like, especially flying so far for a fight, you don't want to come back without the win. So I know what he's going through, but I'm not planning to be part of that story for him.”
The matchup change poses an additional challenge to Pinto in fight week, but not necessarily a downgrade in opposition, as he explained.
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“In terms of athleticism, he's explosive” he said. “I’d say he's more versatile, but I'd say Mick is definitely more technical – he's got more experience. I’d say Mick has the better fight IQ, but this still makes [Franco] dangerous. He’s gonna be the first person I’ve fought that's younger than me, so I reckon he’ll be a bit ignorant, but that makes people dangerous.
“The way the heavyweight division is, you can see how quickly you can move up. So, he's just as dangerous. He's fought in Contender Series, so he knows what it's like competing under the bright lights of the UFC. I’m thinking this guy is just as good as Mick Parkin, if not better, so I'm treating it the same way. And for me, it's just cage time. I don’t really care who the opponent is – right now, I just want the cage time (and) the experience.”
With the heavyweight division looking wide open, the opportunity for rapid progression could be there for a fighter who strings together a succession of impressive wins. But, as he explained, Pinto isn’t in a mad rush to reach the heavyweight summit. But he plans to get there, and be fully prepared for the big names in the division when he does.
“I want to go steady. And for me, it's just getting experience, building my name, going through different experiences. Sometimes winning rounds, losing rounds, you know?” he said.
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“Sometimes, if you get rushed too forward, man, you jump into the deep end, and it's too early for you (and) you're not prepared. There's a big difference between the top 10 and the top 15. I've been warned about this, training with other guys as well (with) more experience, especially training with the champ, that the guys in the top five, they're just different. You can't get away with certain things you do with the guys in the top 15 or under the rankings. So you have to stay sharp and be ready for anything, because you might fight ranked number one, or you might fight the champ, or you might fight number three, and everyone's dangerous.”
The wider MMA world got its first real glimpse of Pinto’s personality after his victory over Diniz in Rio, where he respectfully began his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping speaking in Portuguese, then flipping the script mid-way through by switching to his English, spoken in a distinctively London accent. It caught Bisping by surprise and made Pinto’s post-fight interview immediately memorable.
When we asked him about that moment, Pinto grinned, and revealed that, surprisingly, the moment wasn’t pre-planned.
“Just we thought of it on the spot, and we're like, why not? Let’s play with their minds a bit,” he said. “Especially being out in Brazil. I felt like everyone who wasn't fighting under (the flag of) Brazil was getting destroyed by the crowd and stuff. And I was like, I don't want to put the middle fingers up and be like, ‘Oh, I beat your country!’ You want to make them laugh, embrace them a little bit, get them on your side, so I had to change it a bit.”
As a Portuguese-born athlete, Pinto flies the flag of his birthplace when he competes, but he also represents his hometown as a proud Londoner.
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“Definitely both, man,” he said. “I grew up in Camden, so it's a big part of me. I'm part of London. I'm showing that there's so many cultures in London as well, so it's very important for me representing here.”
With a perfect 11-0 record that includes eight finishes, and the chance to fight in his hometown at The O2 Arena, Pinto has all the motivation in the world to go out and deliver a big performance on Saturday night as he plans to do two things: make himself happy with his performance, and issue a warning to the heavyweight division that a talented new threat is on his way.
“For me, I should be content, man,” he said. “I need to get the win and let them know I'm coming up. Man, I'm coming!”
UFC Fight Night: Evloev vs Murphy took place live from The O2 in London, England On March 21, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!