San Antonio, TX — Headlining this year’s Noche UFC card in San Antonio is Brazilian Jean Silva, who has been on an impressive run up the featherweight division thus far.
The Fighting Nerds team member is 5-0 in the promotion to date, with wins over Bryce Mitchell, Drew Dober (at lightweight), and Charles Jourdain among others. He’s notched post-fight bonuses in his last three contests, and his stock couldn’t be higher. That said, he toiled on the Brazilian regional scene for a good seven years to make it to this point.
“It’s a very long road to get here. I’m internalizing everything because I see everybody – we say something in Brazil that’s very popular. We say ‘we don’t have to pay taxes on having dreams.’ So everybody has dreams, everybody has a lot of dreams and aspirations. And I am blessed enough to have worked myself so hard to be able to be living my dream,” Silva (16-2) told media outlets including Cageside Press during Wednesday’s Noche UFC media day. “So I’m here living my dream. I’ve visualized this moment for a long time, and now I’m enjoying every aspect of this week. I’m taking everything in, because I’m living what I’ve set myself up to do.”
Silva’s popularity has been on a steady rise this year, hitting new heights when he stopped Bryce Mitchell in April. He later expanded on his journey ahead of his fight with Diego Lopes.
“This is bigger than you all think. This really has nothing to do with my opponent or Diego in any way, shape or form. I’m just a little guy, I’m just a kid that has been fulfilling his dreams and taking so long to get here.”
“Look at me, I’m the face of the company now. I’m the main event of one of the biggest and best events that the UFC throws every year,” Silva added. “So the person across from me in the cage, it doesn’t matter who it is. I’m just living proof that I’m living my dreams and I’m here. I can tell finally, for the first time in my life, I know there’s a lot of people that I care for that are really proud of me.”
Asked whether he’s looking to show he can go the distance in his first UFC main event, or find a quick knockout, Silva explained that “I’m just happy.”
“When I walk into a fight and the fight starts, I’m not looking to knock him out fast or to go to a quick submission. I’m enjoying, I’m living in the moment. I’m right there enjoying the moment. The problem is this: when I walk into a fight and I’m happy, the fight will not last long.”
Watch the full Noche UFC media day appearance by Jean Silva above.
