Sherdog Prospect Watch: PFL’s Eduardo Neves

Eduardo Neves enters PFL Charlotte after Dana White's Contender Series appearances and a difficult two-year layoff Eduardo Neves has an unusual nickname: Bbzao. But it makes perfect sense if you learn about its origin. When joining his first mixed martial arts class around the age of 14 in his native Brazil with the goal of losing weight, Eduardo already towered over his adult teammates. So, they called him “Bbzao,” a creative way to spell “big baby” in Portuguese. The 26-year-old heavyweight, a two-time participant in Dana White’s Contender Series, is preparing for his Professional Fighters League debut against Maxwell Djantou Nana at PFL Charlotte on Aug. 7. Having recently switched to the CM System academy in Curitiba, Brazil, the young fighter feels he has all he needs for an impressive showing against the England-based Cameroonian. “I worked with a great team for this fight -- CM System. Our head coach is Cristiano Marcello, who has a great history in the sport,” he told Sherdog.com in his native Portuguese. “My main sparring partner, as well as strategist, is PFL veteran Matheus Scheffel. I had a lot of great help with current UFC fighter Vitor Petrino. I’m confident I’m very ready for an impressive debut in the PFL.” Getting started in the sport as a teenager in Brazil was rough, but Neves made the best of it. “Our hometown academy in Paraiba was basically a backyard. I started training with older vale tudo-era fighters. I learned a lot from them. As I was being introduced to the sport, I kept learning techniques from outgoing fighters. By the time I wrapped up my schooling at age 19, I took the time to determine what I’d be doing going forward. I had the option to go to college, work a full-time job, or focus on my MMA training with the goal of being an athlete. I started training two to three times a day. After my pro MMA debut, I saw that this would be my pursuit for the rest of my life.” Although some municipalities in the country do contribute financially to support local athletes, that is the exception, not the rule. “It was very hard to get financial support from the local government. But I was able to finance my career with my family’s and my wife’s frequent help, as well as working jobs as a security guard, in addition to loading and unloading trucks. Often, I’d be working security all night long, and by the time I was off in the morning, it was already time to go train.” Despite the occasional setback, capturing belts in Legacy Fighting Alliance and Centurion FC left him feeling pride in his abilities. A recent two-year gap with no pro bouts, from 2024 to 2026, did not discourage him. The 265-pounder kept training and hoping for the right opportunity. “I was inactive for some time because, besides the fact that Brazilian promotions don’t pay very well, no one wanted to risk losing to me and having a stain on their record. It was very hard to find a fight, even though I’ll face anyone. So, in 2025, I only trained as no one would sign up to fight me. I even had fighters outside Brazil who refused to face me.” An elite middleweight clash headlines PFL Charlotte: Tune in on Friday, Aug. 7 at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN. A submission win over Badr Medkouri in May of this year caught the PFL’s attention. And now Neves has a few things to say about his next opponent. “I think it’s a good fight for my PFL debut. He’s not a very expressive fighter. And his hands don’t seem to be very heavy. I can see he has shown many improvements from fight to fight, but I’m confident he won’t be ready for my game. I’m confident that our strategy will play out as expected on Aug. 7.” Beyond this fight, Neves sees only good things going forward. “I feel very happy to see the PFL merge with MVP. It feels great to be part of the promotion during this key moment. I want people to get to know me and appreciate my brutal fight style. The time that was wasted when I wasn’t getting fights won’t determine who I’ll be in the future. I see a bright future ahead.”