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PRAGUE – Marcos Rogerio de Lima hasn’t been thrilled with how often he’s been able to fight in the UFC, but hopes that gets corrected in short order.

De Lima (16-5-1 MMA, 5-3 UFC) on Saturday has arguably his biggest test yet when he takes on Stefan Struve (28-11 MMA, 12-9 UFC) in a heavyweight bout. Their fight is the co-main event of UFC on ESPN+ 3 at O2 arena in Prague, Czech Republic. The main card streams on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN 2.

De Lima is approaching five years in the UFC this May, but this will be just his ninth fight with the promotion. And there are a couple reasons for the infrequency, he thinks.

“I haven’t fought much in the UFC due to some injuries and some other problems,” de Lima told MMAjunkie. “For example, when I was originally supposed to face Nikita Krylov in Sao Paulo (at UFC Fight Night 70), the card got moved to Hollywood, Fla. But I wasn’t able to get my travel visa in time.

“Previously, when I was in kickboxing, I always fought very frequently. When I started out in MMA, I had four bouts within the same year. Same thing in the next year. I’ve always enjoyed fighting regularly. Once in the UFC, I haven’t fought that much. But now that I’ve moved up to heavyweight, I think I’ll have more opportunities. I just fought in November. I’m booked in February, and probably after this bout, I’ll keep up this rhythm. It’s great for me.”

The 33-year-old Brazilian made his UFC debut at heavyweight with a win over Richardson Moreira after a run on Season 3 of “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil.” Then he returned to light heavyweight, and it’s been an up-and-down road for him since then.

He fought just once in 2015, twice in 2016 and twice in 2017. And those two fights in 2017 saw him miss the light heavyweight limit on the scale on both occasions – a TKO of Jeremy Kimball and a submission loss to Ovince Saint Preux.

So de Lima moved back up to heavyweight in 2018 for his only fight, and things turned around with a decision win over Adam Wieczorek at UFC 230 in New York.

But Struve might be a different kind of animal than anyone else he’s ever fought. For starters, he’ll be dealing with the tallest fighter in UFC history. And even though Struve has lost three straight, de Lima said he knows what he’s dealing with.

Stefan Struve and Marcos Rogerio de Lima

“Stefan Struve has been in the UFC for years,” he said. “He’s very experienced. His most recent results only affect his ranking. It doesn’t make him any less tough. He’s very dangerous. He is currently in the top 15. He’s much more dangerous than several fighters who are closer to a title shot. It’s a good fight for me. It’s a great test.

“… Without a doubt, Stefan will bring a very sharp game, since he hasn’t fought for some time. I feel he took time out to make adjustments. I expect to face a better Stefan Struve than what we saw in his last three fights.”

A win for de Lima would give him his first winning streak since 2014 and would be two straight at heavyweight. And it sounds like that’s going to be where he stays rather than attempting to cut to 205 pounds again down the road.

Considering he was 255 pounds on the scale today, that seems like a no-brainer.

“My plan is to remain in the heavyweight class,” de Lima said. “I don’t plan to drop down to light heavyweight anymore. It’s too exhausting. Between fights, I walk around at 267 pounds. I feel better now with better stamina. I’m stronger. I feel more athletic. I’ll stay here. Maybe I’ll give up height and reach, but I’m making that up in strength and health. Hopefully, with this win, I expect to have even greater challenges in the weight class.”

For more from de Lima, check out the video above from Prague.

And for more on UFC on ESPN+ 3, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.