A day after the UFC introduced Diego Lopes vs. Jean Silva as the principle occasion of Noche UFC 3 on Sept. 13, Silva went again to a week-old tweet from Lopes to counsel a guess. Lopes was engaged on his wrestling in Oklahoma, and Silva instructed a guess.
“I guess my purse that you simply don’t take me down,” Silva wrote in Portuguese. “Go on, hold mendacity to your self.”
Lopes, who went two for 5 in takedown makes an attempt over seven UFC bouts — profitable 5 of these matches —, reacted to the supply in a dialog with MMA Preventing.
“I didn’t even see that,” Lopes mentioned with fun. “I’m solely seeing this message two months later [laughs].”
Silva is 5-0 with 5 finishes within the UFC, together with a current second-round submission over Bryce Mitchell, and has given away 4 takedowns in 28 makes an attempt by his UFC opponents.
“Brother, go away him together with his cash,” Lopes laughed. “I don’t need to make him haven’t any cash. Go away him together with his cash as a result of I feel he’ll want the cash, proper?”
Lopes has proven nice jiu-jitsu abilities and knockout energy thus far within the UFC, dropping solely to top-ranked contender Movsar Evloev — on quick discover — and a UFC title conflict with Alexander Volkanovski. All that, he mentioned, with out coaching wrestling till January 2025.
“After I went there [to Oklahoma], it wasn’t my concept to be taught wrestling for MMA,” Lopes mentioned. “Each time I be taught a brand new sport or one thing new, I wish to be taught it from scratch. I don’t wish to adapt something to my sport, you understand? I used to be in a fitness center the place everyone was All-Individuals, world champions, Pan-American champions, Olympic athletes. and that adjustments your head utterly. What I did, greater than something, was be taught from zero what wrestling is all about.”
“After I went there to be taught wrestling they mentioned, ‘Oh, you could have a great base,’” he continued. “After all, due to jiu-jitsu, however I didn’t need to simply have a great base and make it stronger. I wished to be taught extra issues. After I went there in January, that was earlier than they introduced the Volk struggle. I didn’t even know I used to be going to struggle him. My objective was to be taught and make my takedown protection higher, as a result of I don’t have good takedown protection, however I’m getting higher at it. Within the Volk struggle, of the 11 takedowns he tried, I defended 10.”
Once they meet contained in the cage on Sept. 13 in San Antonio, Texas, Lopes expects the Preventing Nerds expertise to maintain it on the ft as a substitute of testing his wrestling skills.
“I don’t suppose he’ll attempt to take me down, man,” Lopes laughed. “Not underestimating him or any of that. He would possibly strive — however such as you mentioned, if he takes me down, I’ve no drawback being on the underside. However I don’t suppose he’ll do this. He received’t attempt to take me down. I’ll be actually stunned if he tries to take me down.
“I’m solely seeing this [bet] remark now since you’re displaying me,” he continued. “Cool. Let him be, man. I didn’t go [to Oklahoma] to be taught takedowns or something particular for this struggle. I went there to enhance myself, to be taught true wrestling. I didn’t go there to be taught takedowns for MMA or any of that. Of all my fights, folks see that I’ve a great floor sport, I understand how to submit folks.”
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