Prediction: Payton Talbott via Decision
Let’s be real: Payton Talbott moves like he’s been forged in a lab built for chaos. Everything he throws is fluid, like a stream that drowns you slowly but with power behind every ripple. It’s not just kicks, punches, or knees—it’s how he blends them. It’s how he fights like his entire body is built for violence on autopilot. And even though the Barcelos fight exposed that he’s not perfect, it also confirmed one thing loud and clear: he will still march forward against a guy with elite credentials and still cook.
Now Felipe Lima is no joke. He’s clean. He’s composed. He’s technical. He’s the guy who wins exchanges by being slicker and tighter than his opponent. But that’s exactly where things get dangerous for him—because you don’t get to be slick when Payton Talbott is marching forward. Lima’s game is built on space, rhythm, and reads, and Payton’s style suffocates all of that. You could see it in Lima’s debut—he needs time to process, to warm up, to set his feet. Talbott’s not gonna give him that time. He’ll be in his face from the jump, turning a fight into a war, not a sparring match.
And yes, people are looking at the Barcelos fight like it knocked some shine off Talbott, but that’s short-sighted. The dude fought a wrestling champ and a BJJ black belt and still walked him down like he owed him money. Now he gets someone who isn’t trying to drag him into a grappling clinic? It’s dangerous hours. Lima has solid grappling, but he’s not Barcelos. His game is complete, but it isn’t overwhelming in any one direction. And that makes him exactly the kind of fighter Talbott thrives against.
If you’re part of that group that flipped on Talbott just because he didn’t blow the doors off a high-level vet in his 3rd UFC fight, you never understood what made him dangerous in the first place. He’s not hype—he’s pressure, toughness, rhythm, and violence packaged into a frame that’s growing stronger every fight. That chin? Legit. That pace? Relentless. And his striking doesn’t just land—it builds. Volume turns to damage, damage turns to momentum, and suddenly you’re drowning in exchanges you didn’t want to be in.
Payton Talbott is still a problem—and this fight is going to remind people exactly why.