‘Upset’ Jacare Souza vows to come back stronger from knockout loss at UFC 256

Longtime UFC middleweight contender Ronaldo Souza suffered his third straight loss last weekend in Las Vegas, getting knocked out by rising prospect Kevin Holland in the very first round of their UFC 256 pay-per-view (PPV) fight.

“Jacare” has now dropped five of his last seven.

“I’d like to say thanks to everyone who was rooting for me,” Souza said on social media (transcribed by Tom Taylor). “I did a very hard training camp. I’m very upset because I lost the fight. Right now I’m going to Brazil. I will spend time with my family right now. Thank you everyone that rooted for me. I will be back stronger.”

The Brazilian turned 41 earlier this month.

Souza (26-9, 1 NC) has been a fixture in the middleweight division as far back as his days under the Strikeforce banner, but routinely came up short when it counted most. Losses to Yoel Romero and Robert Whittaker come to mind, as do more recent defeats to the likes of Kelvin Gastelum and Jack Hermansson.

Perhaps it’s time for Souza to start thinking about life after UFC?