Drew Dober nearly didn’t land an opponent for Saturday’s UFC Denver card, which would have no doubt been a massive disappointment for the man who trains at Elevation Fight Team alongside the likes of Kamaru Usman and Justin Gaethje. At least until Jean Silva stepped up.
Silva, fresh off a win over Charles Jourdain at UFC 303 just two weeks ago, was not satisfied with his performance despite becoming the first man to finish the Canadian. And so the Brazilian pulled the trigged on a move to lightweight for the short-notice opportunity with Dober.
In the opening frame, a bit of feeling out led to a tricky jump knee by Silva. Dober worked his hands as a stand-up battle unfolded. Silva began to simply stand and cover up, weathering Dober’s attacks. Perhaps not the greatest idea. But Dober was bloodied from some of Silva’s handiwork; the Brazilian threatened with his left hand, barely missing on occasion. Late in the round, Dober fanned on a spinning kick, which drew an amused reaction from Jean Silva.
Round two opened with an inside kick from Dober that nearly grazed the cup, or might have hit it, but they fought on. Silva’s left hand was incredibly sneaky, but Dober fired back despite his face being a bloody mess from a cut opened earlier in the fight. Silva’s elbows were nasty, but Dober answered back, turning things into a bit of a hockey fight as he clinched with one hand and fired uppercuts. Silva weathered the storm, rallied back, and whiffed on a big uppercut.
Dober, meanwhile, had fans chanting for him as the action continued. He ate a shot from Silva, then went in on a takedown. Silva cracked him at the end of the round, going on the attack.
Round three started with an ovation for both men, who hugged and got to work. But after a little under 90 seconds, Dober’s cut was looking like it was straight out of a horror movie. His eyebrow seemed to be hanging off his face, and ref Herb Dean called in the doctor. No way that was going to be allowed to continue, and it wasn’t, with the doc waving it off. An upbeat Dober told the crowd after the fight that he’d be back.
Official Result: Jean Silva def. Drew Dober by TKO (doctor’s stoppage), Round 3, 1:28
