Mayra Bueno Silva pulled off the biggest win of her career by tapping former UFC champion Holly Holm, and then proceeded to call out another former champ.
The women’s bantamweight bout served as the headliner of UFC on ESPN 49 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Bueno Silva (11-2-1 MMA, 6-2-1 UFC) entered the fight with high confidence that she would upset the former champ, and she proved herself correct by tapping Holm (15-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) 38 seconds into Round 2.
Holm got the action started by blitzing forward with punches, testing the defense of her opponent early. Bueno Silva was ready and returned fire with a solid inside leg kick. Holm threatened a takedown attempt, but the fight would remain standing. Striking exchanges continued throughout the first with both fighters having moments, but the round concluded with Holm pressing Bueno Silva against the cage in the clinch.
Holm closed the distance and looked to get the fight to the ground early in the second. Just as Holm changed levels, Bueno Silva got her left arm under the neck, and quickly slapped on a slick ninja choke. Holm was trapped, and couldn’t escape the standing submission despite her best effort. The former champ had no choice but to tap.
A BIG submission win for Mayra Bueno Silva over Holly Holm at #UFCVegas77 😤 pic.twitter.com/iGYvWRAmUg
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 16, 2023
Overwhelmed with emotions, Bueno Silva, 31, dropped to the center of the canvas to process her third-straight submission win, which came on the biggest stage of her career thus far. On her current run, Bueno Silva has won four straight, and may have another big stage to perform on in the near future.
During her post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier, “Sheetara” called her shot for the vacant women’s bantamweight title, and called out another former champion Julianna Peña.
🙌 @MayraSheetara making a case for her title shot! #UFCVegas77 pic.twitter.com/6ECEABm3Xp
— UFC (@ufc) July 16, 2023
Mayra Bueno Silva literally couldn't contain her laughter when asked about Julianna Peña's tweet. 😂
"I will smash you. … Oh, Julianna. Shut up."#UFCVegas77 | Full video: https://t.co/sZjDBPMSc2 pic.twitter.com/XMSFKnnC4m
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) July 16, 2023
For Holm, 41, the momentum of her unanimous decision win over Yana Santos in March is halted in the first stoppage loss since falling to Amanda Nunes in her bid to regain the title at UFC 239.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 49 results include:
- Mayra Bueno Silva def. Holly Holm via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 0:38
- Jack Della Maddalena def. Bassil Hafez via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Francisco Prado def. Ottman Azaitar via TKO (elbow, punches) – Round 1, 4:05
- Junyong Park def. Albert Duraev via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:45
- Norma Dumont def. Chelsea Chandler via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Nazim Sadykhov def. Terrance McKinney via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 1:07
- Melsik Baghdasaryan def. Tucker Lutz via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Viktoriia Dudakova def. Istela Nunes via TKO (injury) – Round 1, 0:34
- Melquizael Costa def. Austin Lingo via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
- Evan Elder def. Genaro Valdez via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-28, 29-28)
- Azat Maksum def. Tyson Nam via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Alexander Munoz def. Carl Deaton via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 29-28)
- Ailin Perez def. Ashlee Evans-Smith via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-26)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 49.
