Bruno Miranda Embraces the Road Warrior Within

Bruno Miranda would like nothing more than to steal a hometown star’s thunder.

“Robusto” will venture into hostile territory for his latest Professional Fighters League assignment, as he locks horns with former Cage Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder Paul Hughes in the PFL Europe 1 headliner this Saturday at The SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Hughes figures to draw quite the partisan crowd to a venue that sits a little more than an hour’s drive from where he grew up.

“I love challenges,” Miranda told Sherdog.com. “It’s an honor to fight Paul in Ireland. It’s a fighting nation like Brazil. They’re passionate about fighting. Without a doubt, I’ll bring the fire to the fans there. It will be an amazing fight.”

Miranda enters the cage with eight wins over his past 10 appearances. He last saw action at PFL 5, where took a split decision from ex-Bellator MMA champion Patricky Freire on June 21 and rebounded from back-to-back losses to Olivier Aubin-Mercier and Brent Primus.

“My fight with Patricky was all heart,” Miranda said. “It was the last spark of fire left inside of me. I was coming off two defeats against big names. Defeats are defeats, whether it’s to a champion or not. It was a crucial moment in my career. Imagine if I had yet another defeat in the PFL. It was all or nothing. I think that was it. Patricky and his brother—I’ve been following their career since I was a kid. Not that I’m that much younger, but they’ve been in the martial arts world for long time. I threw out any strategy. It was a matter of seeing who could take more damage and still find a way to win. It all worked out.”

Miranda operates out of the Bangtao Muay Thai camp in Thailand, where he has stationed himself for more than a decade. It has afforded him the opportunity to train with some of the sport’s most accomplished fighters, including two-time Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight titleholder Alexander Volkanovski.

“There’s a lot of talent coming through here,” Miranda said. “It’s hard to name everyone, but there are several athletes from many organizations. I’m feeling very strong mentally and physically. I’m not old but I’ve been fighting for a long time, so I’ve reached a good level of maturity. I’m currently in my best shape.”

Proof comes in how he fares against Hughes.

“My biggest focus is to win, and whatever happens after that will be a bonus,” Miranda said. “I want to win this fight and leave all the Irish fans on fire, because I know they love fighting. My goal is not to disappoint the fans and to bring this victory home. It’s going to be the best fight of the year.”