Demian Maia talks his return to BJJ, quest towards the Welterweight title

It appears that former Middleweight title challenger Demian Maia‘s reinvention on himself at 170 is beginning to pay off in spades. After running through worthy contenders like Dong Hyun Kim and Rick Story, Maia recently took his game to another level by defeating top flight Jon Fitch at UFC 156 last Saturday.

In this MMA H.E.A.T. interview, Maia touches on the subject that many had derided him for, which was his insistence on striking when most knew he an absolutely world-class practicioner of jiujitsu. Maia acknowledges that he initially knew nothing about striking, and needed to up that part of his game over the course of a few years. This belief lead to some lackluster fights at Middleweight, noteably his decision losses to Chris Weidman and Mark Munoz.

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Now, Maia has returned to his bread and butter, and it is working quite well. The Welterweight division is stacked up right now, but with one more quality win, it would be tough to deny Maia his coveted title shot. Maia appears professional and calm as always, and it is evident that his love for grappling has returned to make him a true force to be reckoned with.