UFC veteran Matheus Nicolau signs with Future FC and fans will decide debut date and opponent

Matheus Nicolau will move up to bantamweight after parting ways with the UFC.

Once ranked among the best flyweights in the UFC, Matheus Nicolau has moved up to bantamweight and signed with Brazilian mixed martial arts promotion Future FC, MMA Fighting has confirmed.

The date and opponent for Nicolau’s first Future FC bout will be decided by the fans.

Through the company’s app or website, fans can work as matchmakers for specific fights on every card, voting on who should compete against who, and that’s how it will work for Nicolau’s debut.

Nicolau will be one of the names up for voting for Future FC 5, scheduled for May 24 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Nicolau will compete with Alex Bassani (13-5) for a spot on the card, and whoever gets more votes will face either Alan Gomes (11-1-1) or Wagner Lima (12-3). Fans will also get to play matchmaker for five other contests on Future FC 5.

Nicolau (13-2-1) was part of the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter Brazil in 2015 as a bantamweight, and scored wins over John Moraga and Louis Smolka after cutting down to 125 pounds. He parted ways with the UFC after losing to Dustin Ortiz in July 2018.

Fans can vote between Friday and Wednesday. The FFC app can be downloaded at Google Play and App Store. Fans can also cast their votes on the official website.

Future FC has a partnership with North American promotion Legacy Fighting Alliance, which has so far signed six FFC talents. Rafael Barbosa (11-1) successfully debuted in the LFA cage in March, defeating Cameron Graves via decision. LFA has yet to book fights for Gustavo Erak (21-4-1, 1 no-contest), Joao Elias (13-2, 1 no-contest), Joanderson Brito (10-2-1), Anderson Ferreira (13-1) and Alex Sandro (10-3).

Future FC 5 will be headlined by Elton Alves (10-1) vs. Adriano Ramos (10-3) for the inaugural flyweight championship. The current fight card, which airs live and free on YouTube on May 24, can be seen below. Ex-UFC flyweight Kalindra Faria is also battling for votes to be part of the FFC 5 card in May.

Elton Alves vs. Adriano Ramos

Matheus Nicolau/Alex Bassani vs. Alan Gomes/Wagner Lima

Willian Cilli/Igor Fernandes vs. Oton Jasse/Bruce Souto

Antonio Carlos Ribeiro/Marcos Vinicius vs. Bruno Roverso/Fabrício Soares

Kalindra Faria/Ariane Cristina vs. Ketlen Souza/Daniela Maria da Silva

Edilceu Alves/Flavio Queiroz vs. Elvis Picanco/Welinton Kakaroto

Vanessa Melo/Rosy Duarte vs. Karon Rosa/Mayara Ketlen

Taigro Costa vs. Claudio Marcelino

Antonio Paulo vs. Rander Junior

Yasmin Castanho vs. Jady Menezes

Thiago Lima vs. TBD

Alan Franci vs. Augusto Matias

The upcoming Future FC card is scheduled for April 19 in Sao Paulo and features UFC veterans Marcio Alexandre Jr. and Bruno Mesquita, and ex-Bellator fighter Gleristone Santos, taking on Wellington Turman, Leandro Soares and Marcos Schmitz, respectively.