Las Vegas, NV — Brazilian bantamweight Mayra Bueno Silva had to endure an odd scene in the aftermath of her UFC Vegas 59 fight against Stephanie Egger.
Silva (9-2-1) had Egger in an arm-bar early in the opening round, only to suddenly release the submission, informing the ref that Egger had tapped. Egger, for her part, stood up silently in disbelief, in seeming confusion as to why the fight had been stopped.
Eventually, a cageside judge informed the ref that he had seen a tap, which had been missed by the cameras used for video review. Silva was extremely emotional post-fight, and elaborated on that in her post-fight media appearance.
“I think a lot of children in Brazil— I learned about character. When she tapped, and then [played dumb], hopefully, my children watched this fight,” she told Cageside Press. “I need them to know not to be dirty.”
The tears came about when thinking about her kids. “I think of my children and my family. And then I cried,” said Silva, adding with a laugh “I cry for everything. I more cry than smile.”
As Silva later noted, she’s a fighter, not a judge, though she appeared somewhat surprised by Egger’s actions. But, she added, “God sees everything, and God is my judge.”
As for what comes next, Silva looks ready to roll on. “UFC, hey look, listen, put me versus someone, please give me one fight. I’m ready, I’m very ready.” Preferably in front of fans for a change. “Please! This month, I did four years since I came to the UFC on the Contender [Series] Brazil. Four years. Then now okay, stop the Apex. Give me a big arena.”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 59 post-fight press scrum with Mayra Bueno Silva above.
