Redemption: Second Chances on Dana White’s Contender Series — JP Buys, Jacob Silva, Sherrard Blackledge and Tucker Lutz

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – AUGUST 25: (L-R) Jacob Silva punches Jeffrey Molina in a flyweight bout during week four of Dana White’s Contender Series season four at UFC APEX on August 25, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/DWCS LLC/Zuffa LLC)

Jacob “Lil Animal” Silva (6-3 MMA)

Age: 32 years old

Height: 5’5”

Weight Class: Flyweight (125lbs.)

First DW’s Contender Series Fight: 2020 (Week 4)

Old DW’s Contender Series Opponent: Jeff Molina (8-2 MMA)

Second DW’s Contender Series Fight:  2020 (Week 10)

New Opponent: JP Buys (8-2 MMA)

First DWCS Fight

Silva and his opponent Jeff Molina put on a hyper-violent, UFC caliber fight that really entertained fans of the sport.

Jacob Silva absorbed a massive amount of leg kicks from his opponent, and still stayed in the fight.

Silva showed that he has a chin made of absolute granite to stay in the fight after being dropped and wobbled multiple times. He threw punches in bunches with bad intentions always coming forward. Due to how much energy the combinations that Silva produces takes, he often fights in short bursts.

Silva ultimately lost a unanimous decision to his opponent but it was one of the best fights of the 2020 DWCS season. Jacob Silva was one of the fighters that Dana was very impressed with over the summer of 2020 on DWCS that he couldn’t quite give a contract but was dazzled enough by, to bring back again for the series short stint in the fall.

Contender Series Opponent

Jacob Silva’s Cpmtender Series opponent Jeff Molina now has a professional MMA record of 8-2. The 23-year-old is scheduled to make his UFC debut at the end of January 2020 against 3-2 Zarrukh Adashev.

The Road Back

Because Jacob was one of the fighters invited back from DWCS in 2020, he has just been resting up and training since his fight less than four months ago.

Gameplan/ New Opponent 

In Jacob Silva’s second appearance on DWCS 2020, he will be competing against JP Buys. JP is getting his second chance on the Contender Series as well and has a very wrestling heavy style.

Thanks to his high-pressure style, Silva is often there to be countered. Also, to the amount of pressure Silva puts on his opponents it could potentially be easier to time a takedown, as his new opponents game relies so much on grappling. Silva can finish the fight early, it’ll just be important for him to continue to throw out as much volume as possible and avoid just throwing out single shots. But, at the same time, not so much volume or at such a high intensity that it empties his gas tank.