Tag: Natalia Silva

Spinning Back Clique REPLAY: Sean Brady’s big win, Demetrious Johnson retires, UFC 306 preview, more

On the latest episode of Spinning Back Clique, we discuss Sean Brady’s win over Gilbert Burns, Demetrious Johnson’s retirement, UFC 306, and more.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.

This week’s panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Nolan King and Danny Segura will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate the following topics:

  • A couple of fresh faces stepped into title contention, while a couple of veterans were set back. Saturday at UFC Fight Night 242, [autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag] picked up a big win, dominating [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag] to win a unanimous decision in the main event. [autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag] also earned a win on the scorecards against former champion [autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag]. We discuss those two key wins, along with other highlights from the card.
  • UFC wasn’t the only brand in action. Bellator Champions Series: San Diego  saw [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] defend his lightweight title in the main event. Former UFC contender [autotag]Lorenz Larkin[/autotag] picked up a big KO win over Levan Chokheli, cementing himself as a No. 1 contender. What’s next for Nurmagomedov? Can Larkin become champion at 38? We discuss.
  • A legend of the game decided to hang up the gloves. Former UFC and ONE flyweight champion [autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] announced his retirement. Where does Johnson rank among the all-time greats? What legacy does he leave behind? We look back at the career of “Mighty Mouse” and his impact on MMA.
  • For our final segment, we look ahead to UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas. The card, which celebrates Mexican Independence Day weekend, features two title fights: [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Merab Dvlashvili[/autotag] in the main event, and [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag] 3 in the co-main. We analyze the pair of championship fights, along with other featured bouts on the card.

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Natalia Silva ready for UFC title shot after beating Jessica Andrade: ‘Send that belt over’

Natalia Silva got her biggest win yet at UFC Fight Night 242 despite personal tragedy, and now she’s ready to level up.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag] thinks she proved herself worthy of the next level in her division at UFC Fight Night 242.

Silva (18-5-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) remained unbeaten inside the octagon Saturday with a unanimous decision victory over former UFC champ Jessica Andrade (26-13 MMA, 17-11 UFC) in a women’s flyweight bout at the UFC Apex. It was a strong striking display from Silva, especially because she entered with a heavy heart after the death of her sister four months ago.

Andrade’s pressure for all 15 minutes was trademark to her style, but Silva had all the answers and got the clear-cut decision.

“Nothing that Jessica did in the octagon impressed me,” Silva told MMA Junkie and other reporters through an interpreter post-fight at UFC Fight Night 242. “I think our team put out a good strategy to prepare. We did everything that she did in the fight. Nothing that she did surprised me because we were able to do what she does.”

With the relief of a successful performance, Silva explained why she opted to go through with the fight despite such difficult personal circumstances.

“When I accepted this fight, it was a leap of faith,” Silva said. “I didn’t know what was going to happen, and the reason I accepted this fight was to prove the Lord is with me in very good times but is also my Lord in very bad times. There were times where I woke up in the morning to train, and I said, ‘It hurts do this fight, but come with me and train with me and let’s get through this.’ If I’m here today, it’s because of God, Jesus, and I hope to see that too.”

Silva, 27, is now tied for the second-longest active winning streak in the women’s 125-pound division behind Manon Fiorot. Her win comes just days before Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko will have a trilogy bout for the title at UFC 306, marking a significant time for the weight class.

It remains to be seen where matchmakers place Silva among the division’s best going forward, but she expressed hope there is a fight of major consequence on the horizon.

“If the UFC comes to me and says, ‘Do you want? Are you ready to fight for a belt at the end of the year?’ I will be ready,” Silva said. “I trained to be a champion. I came here to be a champion. If you give me the opportunity to get that belt, just send that belt over.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 242.

UFC Fight Night 242 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Gilbert Burns, Jessica Andrade net $21,000

UFC Fight Night 242 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 242 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $157,500.

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 Fight Night 242 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 242 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Sean Brady[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Gilbert Burns[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Steve Garcia[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Kyle Nelson[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Cody Durden[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Matt Schnell[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Yanal Ashmouz[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Trevor Peek[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Chris Padilla[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Rong Zhu[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Isaac Dulgarian[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Brendon Marotte[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Andre Lima[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Felipe dos Santos[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Gabriel Santos[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Yi Zha[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jaqueline Amorim[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Vanessa Demopoulos[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Andre Petroski[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Dylan Budka[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Nathan Fletcher[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Zygimantas Ramaska[/autotag]: $4,000

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 2421 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 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $5,482,000
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $28,219,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 242.

UFC Fight Night 242 results: Natalia Silva beats Jessica Andrade in entertaining, strike-heavy bout

A new UFC contender has emerged and she has title fights on her mind.

If [autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag] wasn’t a contender prior to Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 242, she is now.

In what was her most high-profile test to date, Silva (17-5-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) defeated [autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag] (26-12 MMA, 17-10 UFC) by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). The flyweight bout was the co-main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

For the majority of the 15-minute duration, the bout between Silva and Andrade was action-packed. Andrade was predominantly the one moving forward, but Silva found success on the backpedal. Her counters and spinning kicks were effective. In Round 2, she stunned Andrade with a big punch to the left side of her head. Andrade also had her moments, but they were fewer and farther between.

When the dust settled, Silva emerged the victor, as she swept all three rounds from all three judges on the scorecards.

“Dana, I came here to be a champion,” Silva said in the cage after her win. “I want that shot.”

With the win, Silva extends her winning streak to 12 and maintains a perfect UFC record. Her other UFC victories are against Viviane Araujo, Andrea Lee, Victoria Leonardo, Tereza Bleda, and Jasmine Jasudavicius.

In defeat, Andrade has a two-fight winning streak snapped. A former UFC strawweight champion, Andrade has lost five of her most recent seven bouts.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 242 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 242.

UFC Fight Night 242: Jessica Andrade vs. Natalia Silva odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 242 odds between Jessica Andrade and Natalia Silva, with MMA picks and predictions.

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In a 3-round women’s flyweight bout on the main card, Jessica Andrade and Natalia Silva meet Saturday at UFC Fight Night 242 — also known as UFC on ESPN+ 100 and UFC Vegas 97 — at UFC Apex. Let’s analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the UFC Fight Night 242: Andrade vs. Silva odds, and make our expert picks and predictions.

The prelims begin at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN+ with the main card starting at 7 p.m. ET.

Records: Andrade (26-12-0) | Silva (17-5-1)

The veteran Andrade snapped a 3-bout losing skid with a 2nd-round KO/TKO of Mackenzie Dern at UFC 295 in Nov. 2023. She followed that up with a split-decision win over Marina Rodriguez at UFC 300 in April, and she appears to be back on track.

Andrade is now 5 years removed from her title victory over Rose Namajunas at UFC 237 May 11, 2019, but “Bate Estaca” is still just 32 years old and very dangerous in the octagon.

Silva is a 27-year-old southpaw who has won all 5 fights since making her UFC debut with a unanimous-decision victory over Jasmine Jasudavicius June 18, 2022. She has 3 UD wins and 2 KO/TKO victories since making her company debut.

Silva has a 3-inch reach advantage over the veteran, and she stands 3 inches taller, too. Andrade is still a punching machine, though, holding a 6.62-to-4.53 significant strikes landed per minute advantage, and she is much more accurate with 56.66% of those strikes landed, to just 49.78% for the favorite.

Watch this card with ESPN+ by signing up here.

UFC Fight Night 242: Andrade vs. Silva odds

Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:10 a.m. ET.

  • Fight result (2-way line): Andrade +250 (bet $100 to win $250) | Silva -310 (bet $310 to win $100)
  • Over/Under: 2.5 rounds (Over -196 | Under +150)
  • Will the fight go the distance? (Yes -148 | No +116)

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UFC Fight Night 242: Andrade vs. Silva picks and predictions

Fight result (2-way line or moneyline)

It’s a strange position to see Andrade (+250), but she is a giant underdog to Silva (-310). This is a difficult fight to handicap, as the veteran still has plenty left in the tank and has had a resurgence of late. However, Silva is a heavy favorite who just has done everything right since joining the company.

PASS, and look to the distance instead. If you absolutely have to have action on this fight, the value is on the aging, but still very dangerous underdog Andrade.

Over/Under (O/U)

YES (-148): WILL THE FIGHT GO THE DISTANCE? is not priced out of line.

Andrade went the distance last time out against Rodriguez. While that was a bit of a rarity for her, Silva has gone the distance in the past 2 bouts and 3 of her 5 fights since joining the UFC.

Playing Over 2.5 Rounds (-196) doesn’t make as much sense, as you need to risk nearly 2 times your potential return for just a little bit of wiggle room in the event of a late Round 3 finish.

Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis.

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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter/X. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter/X and us on Facebook.

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Jessica Andrade vs. Natalia Silva prediction, pick, start time, odds for UFC Fight Night 242

Will Natalia Silva break through into title contention by getting past Jessica Andrade at UFC Fight Night 242?

[autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag] and [autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag] meet Saturday in the co-main event card of UFC Fight Night 242 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom. 

Last event: 6-0
UFC main cards, 2024: 76-61-3

Jessica Andrade vs. Natalia Silva UFC Fight Night 242 preview

Former strawweight champion Andrade (26-12 MMA,17-10 UFC) is back at 125 pounds. She will be looking to extend her current winning streak to three, following consecutive wins over Mackenzie Dern and Marina Rodriguez, which came at 115 pounds. Andrade’s last flyweight bout was a second-round submission loss to Erin Blanchfield last February, and since then, she has gone 2-2 as a strawweight. … Silva (17-5-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) has turned a lot of heads since her UFC debut in June 2022. She has competed in five fights in the promotion and won them all, including stoppages of Tereza Bleda and Victoria Leonardo. He last appearance was a unanimous decision win over Viviane Araujo in February.

Jessica Andrade vs. Natalia Silva UFC Fight Night 242 expert pick, prediction

The co-main event in Las Vegas features a top 10 attraction at women’s flyweight between Andrade and Silva.

Despite recently winning a fight down a division, Andrade finds herself, once again, campaigning at 125 pounds.

Standing in the perennial contender’s way is Silva, who is clearly
“the new hotness” in town, given her five-fight undefeated streak inside the octagon.

In fairness, the hype on Silva is largely justified, given her athletic ceiling and the clear improvements she’s made since stepping onto the UFC scene. Flashy repertoire aside, Silva demonstrates some sneaky counter-punching ability to go along with solid takedown defense fundamentals when working along the fence.

That said, Silva tends to play it a little too fast and loose on the back foot, which can be extra dangerous inside of the smaller octagon against a fighter whose preferred kill zone exists in the very same space as Andrade’s does.

Although I could easily see Andrade slipping into a head kick or dipping headfirst into a spinning sidekick from Silva, I believe that the smaller cage of the Apex will favor the former champion from both a striking and grappling perspective.

I’ll pick Andrade to win by club-and-sub in Round 2.

Jessica Andrade vs. Natalia Silva UFC Fight Night 242 odds

Despite the oddsmakers opening this bout closer to pick’em odds, public money has widened the gap in favor of the younger fighter, listing Silva (-320) and Andrade (+245) via FanDuel.

Jessica Andrade vs. Natalia Silva UFC Fight Night 242 start time, how to watch

As the co-main event, Andrade and Silva are expected to walk out to the cage at approximately 8:35 p.m. ET (5:35 p.m. PT). The fight will air on ESPN+.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 242.

After sister’s recent death, Natalia Silva chases ‘higher goal’ vs. Jessica Andrade at UFC Fight Night 242

Natalia Silva’s seven-month absence from the octagon ahead of UFC Fight Night 242 has been the product of personal struggle.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag]’s seven-month absence from the octagon ahead of UFC Fight Night 242 has been the product of personal struggle.

“I had a hard moment in my life,” Silva told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s media day. “I lost my sister recently, four months ago. I’d like to have fought again before, but I (couldn’t).”

The death of her sibling was a traumatic experience, but Silva (17-5-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) enters fight week for Saturday’s women’s flyweight matchup against former UFC champ Jessica Andrade (26-12 MMA, 17-10 UFC) with her signature smile still on her face. She knows the matchup, which takes place at the UFC Apex and streams on ESPN+, is one that could change her career in a significant way.

“This is my opportunity,” Silva said. “I can do this. Jessica is a good name in UFC, and I needed to accept this opportunity and show my skills, my work. Now I am here to fight against Jessica.

“I trained for three rounds, but if I have an opportunity to finish the fight, I will take it.”

Silva, No. 11 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie women’s flyweight rankings, is undefeated so far in her octagon tenure. She’s picked up some notable wins against the likes of Viviane Araujo, Andrea Lee and Jasmine Jasudavicius, but beating a former titleholder would put her resume on a different level.

Although Silva, 27, isn’t certain a victory over Andrade will put her next in line for a shot at the belt, she knows she’d at least be close. And with champion Alexa Grasso set to meet Valentina Shevchenko in a trilogy bout next week at UFC 306, the timing for an impressive win couldn’t be much better.

“A victory against Jessica will give me a new opportunity,” Silva said. “I know I can fight for the belt and a victory against Jessica will give me an opportunity for this. … Every fight that I go into I see as an opportunity to fight for the title. I see an opportunity to show my skills, show my hard work and going into the fight with Jessica, that’s how I approach it. But I think this is an opportunity for me for a higher goal, which is to be a champion.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 242.

Natalia Silva confident after UFC Fight Night 235 win: ‘I will be the champion soon’

Natalia Silva sees herself being UFC champion in the near future.

LAS VEGAS – For [autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag], it doesn’t matter who she fights next, as there’s only one thing she has her eyes on: The UFC championship belt.

The Brazilian women’s flyweight continued her impressive streak Saturday and improved her run to 11-0 since her most recent defeat, which dates back to 2017. Silva (18-5-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) defeated longtime UFC fighter Viviane Araujo (12-7 MMA, 6-6 UFC) with a unanimous decision on the main card of UFC Fight Night 235.

Although she was in a prime position to make a callout, Silva wanted to part in asking for a name and said she’s only focused on the title.

“I don’t know about the next opponent because all the time I’ve said I’m here to be the champion,” Silva said at the UFC Fight Night 235 post-fight press conference. “I’m working for this, and I’m here to fight whoever the UFC gives. I’ll fight and win because I have one focus on my life: I want to be the champion. I’m working all day for this, and I will be the champion soon. You can mark my words. I’m working for this.”

Although Silva has no one in mind, she does have a preference on where she wants to fight. Silva has no issue fighting at the UFC Apex, but she would like to fight in front of a crowd, especially if it’s in her home country.

“So when I’m fighting, it doesn’t matter the place because all the time I’m here in the cage in my mind I’m thinking that this is my gym,” Silva said. “In the cage or gym, I’m relaxed because every day I train in there, but I prefer to fight again with my fans watching me. I want to fight in Brazil or another event with people because the energy is so good.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.

UFC Fight Night 235 post-event facts: Randy Brown is on the rise

Check out all the facts from UFC Fight Night 235, which saw Randy Brown continue his run of success in the loaded welterweight division.

The UFC opened its four-event February schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 235, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

[autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] (13-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) achieved his first octagon main event win to close out the card when he outworked [autotag]Roman Dolidze[/autotag] (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) to a majority decision in their matchup of ranked UFC middleweights.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 235.

UFC Fight Night 235 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Drew Dober’s $21,000 tops card

UFC Fight Night 235 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 235 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $170,500.

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 Fight Night 235 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 235 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Roman Dolidze[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Drew Dober[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Randy Brown[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Muslim Salikhov[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Viviane Araujo[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Aliaskhab Khizriev[/autotag]: $4,000
vs. [autotag]Makhmud Muradov[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Charlie Radtke[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Gilbert Urbina[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Molly McCann[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Diana Belbita[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Charles Johnson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Azat Maksum[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Themba Gorimbo[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Pete Rodriguez[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jeong Yeong Lee[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Blake Bilder[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Luana Carolina[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Julija Stoliarenko[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Marquel Mederos[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Landon Quinones[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jamal Pogues[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Thomas Petersen[/autotag]: $4,000

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 2351 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 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $615,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $23,322,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.