Jussier Formiga vows to derail Henry Cejudo hype train in Mexico

Henry Cejudo quickly racked up three wins inside the Octagon and most expect him to be the next in line for the UFC flyweight title. The only thing between Cejudo and 125-pound champion Demetrious Johnson is Jussier Formiga, and the Brazilian flyweight plans on derailing the hype train in November.

Formiga and Cejudo are slated to meet at UFC’s third trip to Mexico on Nov. 21, and the Nova Uniao fighter feels nobody believes he can beat the Olympic gold medalist in Monterrey.

"Not only Americans fans, but Brazilians are also betting on him. They don’t see Brazilians having success in this division," Formiga told MMAFighting.com. "That doesn’t bother me at all. I will go there as the underdog. It doesn’t matter is no one believes in me, I’m going to shock them. That’s what I’ve been doing in every fight."

Cejudo was very critical of his own performance after his UFC 188 win over Chico Camus in Mexico City, but expects to perform better in Monterrey.

"I hope Cejudo comes in the best shape of his life so he won’t have an excuse or anything to blame after the fight," Formiga said. "Bring your best. My game plan is the same: work hard and do a great job there."

Formiga vs. Cejudo is not officially a No. 1 contender fight. The Brazilian, who enters the bout coming off wins over Scott Jorgensen, Zach Makovsky and Wilson Reis, expects a shot at "Mighty Mouse" with a win in November, but won’t think about it before he gets the victory.

"People say the winner will be the next contender, but everyone bets on him," he said. "I try not to think about it because it brings an extra weigh over you. When I entered the UFC, they put me in this situation against (John) Dodson. Dana (White) said the winner would be the next contender, and I thought about that a lot before the fight. I’m not saying that was the key for my loss, but was an issue. I think about Cejudo now, and we’ll see what comes next."

Fighting a decorate wrestler like Cejudo is a challenge jiu-jitsu black belt Formiga was already looking forward too, but won’t be surprised if they never go to the ground at UFC Fight Night 78.

"That’s what motivates me a lot about this fight with Cejudo," Formiga said. "His striking game is good and he’s an Olympic champion in wrestling. That excites me because his wrestling is phenomenal and I can test my weapons against him. I will try to surprise him. I don’t know if he will change his strategy, but I will also be ready to stand and trade punches and kicks with him."