Cezar Ferreira says he was not at 100 percent when he made the walk against Chris Camozzi.

Ferreira is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Camozzi in June, but his first-round knockout of Nick Roehrick in the opening bout of his 2021 PFL season earned him enough points to advance to the playoffs.

The Brazilian got off to a strong start against Camozzi, dominating him on the ground for the majority of Round 1, but Camozzi was able to completely turn things around in the second frame, when he dropped Ferreira and almost finished him. He carried that momentum into Round 3, where he was able to fend off Ferreira’s takedowns and was the much fresher fighter.

But Ferreira says he wasn’t able to compete to his full potential because he entered the fight compromised.

“The last fight wasn’t so good because – I never want to give any excuses, but  that fight that I had against Camozzi should have been canceled but I didn’t cancel because I would be pulled out of the tournament,” Ferreira told MMA Junkie Radio. “Ten days before the fight, I couldn’t even walk because of some back pain problems that I had.

“I had to take a lot of pain killers, a lot of medication that made me kind of intoxicated. People that saw the fight, it was clear that in the first round I was OK. I was good, and then my cardio just disappeared, and then it happened what happened.”

Now that he’s healed and well-rested, Ferreira (14-9) expects to give a much better account of himself against Hamlet (7-2) at the 2021 PFL Playoffs 3 on Friday.

“For this upcoming fight, I’m feeling great,” Ferreira said. “Great training, no injuries, no medication, and if my opponent studied me based on my last fight, he’s going to get surprised because Cezar here is sharp. Kicks, punches, takedowns – everything is on point.”

2021 PFL Playoffs 3 takes place Friday at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. The main card airs on ESPN2 following prelims on ESPN+.