Karine Silva explains how fast UFC rise was actually deceivingly long

Ahead of UFC on ESPN 55, Karine Silva says her rise hasn’t been quick, though she plans to continue her trajectory vs. Ariane Lipski.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag] has heard the praise.

Even though the narratives are largely complementary, Silva (17-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) admits her run toward UFC notoriety isn’t as quick and effortless as it may seem.

“It wasn’t quick, guys. It wasn’t fast,” Silva told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a UFC on ESPN 55 pre-fight news conference. “It was actually the work of 12 years. When I say ‘our’ work, what I mean by ‘our,’ is our team. It’s the people. We have taken one day at a time, but it’s taken a long time. It was not quick.”

Since a UFC ticket-punching performance on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2021, Silva has defeated Poliana Botelho, Ketlen Souza, and Maryna Moroz with first-round submissions. The results of a decade-plus of hard work have felt rewarding.

“It’s been wonderful,” Silva said. “The only thing that’s changed has been the frequency of training has increased. The intensity of training has increased. The routine changed but my life has been the same.”

At Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 55 (ESPN, ESPN+) at the UFC Apex, Silva battles seasoned veteran Ariane Lipski (17-8 MMA, 6-5 UFC), who is on a three-fight winning streak. Nicknamed “The Queen of Violence,” Lipski has finishing abilities herself. Regardless, Silva is confident Lipski won’t hinder her trajectory.

“I think the fight is going to happen the way it’s going to happen whether it’s going to be in the first, second, or third round,” Silva said. “What I believe in is my win.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 55.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC, PFL, Bellator fights announced in the past week (Jan. 15-21)

Check out the UFC, PFL, and Bellator fights that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC, PFL, and Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Jan. 15-21.

UFC in 2023: A ridiculously robust look at the stats, streaks, skids and record-setters

Check out a full recap of 2023’s most significant footnotes and milestones from the events, the fights and individual performances.

Now that the year has come to a close, and with a major assist from UFC research analyst and live statistics producers Michael Carroll, here are some of 2023’s most significant milestones from the events, the fights and individual performances.

MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Month for August: Da’Mon Blackshear’s ultra-rare twister

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submission from August 2023.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submissions from August 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Month award for August.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.

Nominees

Karine Silva sees years of work pay off with trip to record books after UFC 292

Karine Silva has all 17 of her career wins by stoppage, including a new UFC women’s record.

BOSTON – [autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag] beat Maryna Moroz with a first-round submission Saturday to open up the preliminary card at UFC 292 at TD Garden in Boston.

Take a look inside the fight with Silva, who has all 17 of her career wins by stoppage, and now has more submissions than knockouts.

UFC 292 post-event facts: Ian Machado Garry enters record book with 6-0 octagon start

The best facts to come out of UFC 292, which saw Sean O’Malley, Zhang Weili, Ian Machado Garry and others record statistical achievements.

One of the biggest UFC events of the year thus far went down Saturday with UFC 292, which took place at TD Garden in Boston and featured two championship fights with different results.

In the main event, [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) shocked [autotag]Aljamain Sterling[/autotag] (23-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC) with a second-round TKO to capture the bantamweight belt, while in the co-headliner, [autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag] (24-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) got her second strawweight title reign off a dominant start with a lopsided unanimous decision over Brazilian challenger [autotag]Amanda Lemos[/autotag] (13-3-1 MMA, 7-3 UFC).

For more on the numbers behind the two championship bouts, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 292.

UFC 292 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: All-time program total passes $20 million

Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 292 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $340.500.

BOSTON – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 292 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $340.500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC 292 took place at TD Garden. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

The full UFC 292 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Aljamain Sterling[/autotag]: $42,000

[autotag]Zhang Weili[/autotag]: $42,000
def. [autotag]Amanda Lemos[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Ian Machado Garry[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Neil Magny[/autotag]: $21,00

[autotag]Mario Bautista[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Da’Mon Blackshear[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Marlon Vera[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Pedro Munhoz[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Brad Tavares[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Chris Weidman[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Gregory Rodrigues[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Denis Tiuliulin[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Kurt Holobaugh[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Brad Katona[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Cody Gibson[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Andre Petroski[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Gerald Meerschaert[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Andrea Lee[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Maryna Moroz[/autotag]: $11,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $5,735,500
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $20,324,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.

UFC 292 play-by-play and live results

Check out live play-by-play from UFC 292 in Boston with Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O’Malley and Zhang Weili vs. Amanda Lemos title fights.

BOSTON – UFC 292 took place at TD Garden. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

In the main event, bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling (23-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC) took on challenger Sean O’Malley (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC). Sterling holds the UFC record for most consecutive title defenses at 135 pounds. In the co-feature, women’s strawweight champ Zhang Weili (24-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) met challenger Amanda Lemos (13-3-1 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in the first test of her second reign as titleholder.

In addition, former middleweight champ Chris Weidman (15-7 MMA, 11-7 UFC) returned from more than two years out after a severe broken leg in 2021. He took on Brad Tavares (20-9 MMA, 15-8 UFC) in a featured bout on the prelims. Plus, two new “Ultimate Fighter” winners will be crowned on the prelims.

Karine Silva def. Maryna Moroz at UFC 292: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Karine Silva’s first-round submission win over Maryna Moroz at UFC 292 at TD Garden in Boston.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag]’s first-round submission win over [autotag]Maryna Moroz[/autotag] at UFC 292 at TD Garden in Boston. (Photos by Bob DeChiara, USA TODAY Sports, MMA Junkie and UFC)

UFC 292 video: Karine Silva avenges loss to Maryna Moroz with buzzer-beater submission

Karine Silva is the first female in UFC history to win three straight fights by first-round submission after stopping Maryna Moroz at UFC 292.

[autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag] avenged a key early loss in her career on Saturday at UFC 292, paying [autotag]Maryna Moroz[/autotag] back with a first-round submission of her own.

After being caught in an armbar in the opening round of their November 2014 bout, Silva (17-4 MMA, 3-0 UFC) had the chance to rematch Moroz (11-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC) in a women’s flyweight matchup at TD Garden in Boston. She got the job done with a guillotine choke submission at the 4:59 mark of Round 1.

The finish made Silva the first female in UFC history to win three consecutive fights by submission inside the opening round.

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Check out the replay of her handiwork below (via X):

With three straight wins to begin her UFC tenure, Silva is proving herself to be a threat in the weight class. She’s stopped her opponent inside the distance in all 17 of her career wins, with 13 of those now coming within the first frame.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.