After her upset submission win over Holly Holm at UFC Vegas 77, Mayra Bueno Silva responded dismissively to Julianna Pena‘s comment to “get in line” indicating she is not afraid to face Pena, despite Pena’s confidence because of being widely considered as the frontrunner for the next shot at the title.
Mayra Bueno Silva, a Portuguese-speaking fighter, had a clear message for Julianna Pena after her participation in UFC Vegas 77. Upon gaining an unexpected submission win over prior champion Holly Holm, Silva addressed Pena’s disregard of her performance at the UFC APEX on Saturday night. When aware of Pena’s tweet instructing her to “get in line,” Silva reacted with a mix of sourness and amusement.
Silva laughed loudly and remarked, “Ah-hah! She’s scared. She’s funny. OK, I love you Julianna, but I will smash you. Look at my fight. Look at your fight. Who won? Ah, Julianna, shut up.” For Pena, her chances of a trilogy with Amanda Nunes came to an end after Nunes’ retirement. Pena declared she’d be willing to fight with both Silva and Raquel Pennington on the same night. In the UFC’s ranking system, Pennington is currently the No. 2 fighter – she’s also tied for No. 10 with Alexis Davis in Global Rankings – and is widely thought to be next in line for a shot at the title.
Silva showed blatant contempt for a title fight between Pena and Pennington for the empty title, declaring, “Nobody watches this fight,” to laughs from reporters in attendance at the post-fight press conference. After her submission win over Holm, Silva once again showed her worth in the bantamweight division. She now holds four consecutive wins and has only suffered defeats against Manon Fiorot and Maryna Moroz in flyweight bouts. Throughout her career, she has secured four performance bonuses.
Expressing her joy, Silva said, “I’m very happy. I don’t know what’s happening today. It’s Holly Holm. I’m very emotional. I’m grateful for my life, for my team. God told me, ‘Hey, you win this fight.’ This week, I’m afraid of Holly, every f****** day. I cry too much. I don’t believe in myself in this fight. When I win…what? I win! This was in my mind.” When it comes to engaging Pena, who will be returning from a rib injury that had Irene Aldana substitute in what turned out to be Nunes’ retirement fight at UFC 289, Silva believes strongly in her chances of success. Furthermore, Silva expressed respect towards her potential opponent, declaring, “Julianna, I respect you, but I will smash you.”