Rafael Carvalho and Lyoto Machida are in different stages of their careers, but the former Bellator champion wonders if the two countrymen share the same aspirations in the sport.
Carvalho, who is 15-2 in MMA, is looking to rebound from a title loss to Gegard Mousasi that he suffered in May. Machida, a former UFC champion with a record of 24-8, makes his Bellator debut after a competing for more than a decade in the Octagon.
The Brazilian middleweights will collide on Saturday in the co-main event of Bellator 213 in Honolulu, Hawaii, and Carvalho expects to face the best Machida has to offer — even if he questions what Machida’s plans for his Bellator future are at 40 years old.