Mayra Bueno Silva aims to reestablish herself in the bantamweight title race with a win over Macy Chiasson at UFC 303, while acknowledging a potential future clash with teammate Kayla Harrison if both continue their successful paths.
Mayra Bueno Silva aims to reestablish herself in the bantamweight title picture with a win over Macy Chiasson at UFC 303 this Saturday in Las Vegas. She knows she might be on a collision course with her teammate Kayla Harrison.
Silva occasionally trains with the two-time Olympic champion Harrison at American Top Team in Florida. Beating Chiasson at UFC 303 is her chance to rebound from a title loss to Raquel Pennington in January and show “that I own this division.”
Harrison, who dominated and finished Holly Holm in her UFC debut this past April, is also eyeing gold. “Sheetara” believes they could end up facing each other inside the octagon down the line.
“If we have to unfortunately fight each other, Kayla and I, it’s part of the game,” Silva told MMA Fighting. “We’re both professionals and there would be no problem. We fight for free in the gym, imagine with them paying. [Laughs.]”
They haven’t discussed it much because it’s tough. They laugh together, have fun, help each other when needed, but deep down they know if Silva wins Saturday, there’s a real possibility of facing off.
“Most of our coaches are the same, so we would have a huge problem on our hands,” she added. “But honestly, I’m not thinking about it at the moment. Kayla isn’t thinking about it either.”
Silva feels she has to prove herself again. Kayla has already done that by proving she deserves her shot.
Before any potential clash with Harrison can happen, Silva has to face Macy Chiasson on Saturday—a gigantic 5’11” problem.
Silva earned a shot at UFC gold by beating Holm in July 2023. However, that victory was later overturned to a no-contest due to a positive drug test caused by ADHD medication.
The Brazilian bantamweight admits her most recent performance versus Pennington was “very bad.” She vows to impress this Saturday and hopes to give UFC CEO Dana White doubts about who should be next in line for the belt.
“It’s going to be a very hard fight because [Chiasson] is very lengthy and tall and she moves well,” Silva said. She sees herself as superior in every aspect of the fight but acknowledges Chiasson’s nine-inch reach advantage as a new challenge.
“The dream scenario for me is a submission win,” she continued. But regardless of whether it’s a decision, submission, or knockout—her team is ready for anything.
In short? Silva’s prepared for all outcomes but would love nothing more than securing that perfect submission victory.