UFC Fight Night 259: Diego Lopes vs Jean Silva Preview & Prediction
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The high stakes of UFC Fight Night 259's main event see bad blood boil over, as recent title challenger, Diego Lopes, defends his spot in the rankings against the upstart, Jean Silva.
Diego Lopes vs Jean Silva facts
What time are Diego Lopes and Jean Silva expected to walk out?
Where is UFC Fight Night 259: Lopes vs Silva? Frost Bank Center, San Antonio, USA
Where can I get tickets for UFC Fight Night 259: Lopes vs Silva? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC Fight Night 259
What TV channel is UFC Fight Night 259: Lopes vs Silva on? UK – TNT Sports / USA – ESPN+
Where can I stream UFC Fight Night 259: Lopes vs Silva? UK – TNT Sports subscribers can stream the event online via the TNT Sports website and discovery+ / USA – ESPN+ & UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Night 259: Lopes vs Silva main card
Diego Lopes vs Jean Silva (Featherweight)
Rob Font vs David Martinez (Bantamweight)
Rafa Garcia vs Jared Gordon (Lightweight)
Kelvin Gastelum vs Dustin Stoltzfus (Middleweight)
Santiago Luna vs Quang Le (Bantamweight)
UFC Fight Night 259: Lopes vs Silva prelims
Alexander Hernandez vs Carlos Diego Ferreira (Lightweight)
Jose Daniel Medina vs Dusko Todorovic (Middleweight)
Claudio Puelles vs Joaquim Silva (Lightweight)
Tatiana Suarez vs Amanda Lemos (Women’s Strawweight)
Jesus Santos Aguilar vs Luis Gurule (Flyweight)
Zachary Reese vs Sedriques Dumas (Middleweight)
Alessandro Costa vs Alden Coria (Flyweight)
Montserrat Rendon vs Alice Pereira (Women’s Bantamweight)
Rodrigo Sezinando vs Daniil Donchenko (Welterweight)
Diego Lopes: The Man in Black aims to turn back the division's boogeyman and reinsert his name into title discussion
Arriving in the UFC with a late-notice loss to Movsar Evloev in 2023, Diego Lopes (26-7) earned high praise for his Fight of the Night winning debut despite coming up short. However, that clearly wasn't enough for Lopes. The Brazilian proceeded to run riot through the division in the aftermath of his first defeat, going 5-0 with three finishes to earn a title shot against divisional GOAT Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 314. Despite a valiant effort where he hurt the champ on multiple occasions, Lopes would ultimately come up short via unanimous decision. Primarily regarded as a grappler when he entered the UFC, Lopes likes to bang his fights out on the feet these days, with his submission acumen serving as an excellent ace up his sleeve should his fights hit the mat.
Jean Silva: "Lord" looks to right the ship for the Fighting Nerds and stake his claim for a title shot at 145 pounds
One of the most memorable faces to debut in the promotion in recent years, to say that Jean Silva (16-2) is quite a character is akin to saying Mike Tyson used to hit people quite hard. However, while it's easy to get distracted by "Lord's" barking and showboating, he's an absolutely elite fighter beneath all the bluster. A precociously talented striker with underrated grappling ability, the Fighting Nerds standout is capable of ending the fight at any given second, boasting knockout power in every limb. With five wins and five finishes in his first five UFC fights, Silva enters the biggest spot of his career following a highly impressive submission victory over Bryce Mitchell during their grudge match in April.
Diego Lopes vs Jean Silva prediction
While Silva still enters this match up as the favorite, the fate of the Fighting Nerds at UFC Paris last weekend have sowed doubt in the minds of some fans.
While his loss to Volkanovski laid bare some technical shortcomings that indicate he is unlikely to ever be champion, Lopes is still an elite level featherweight. He gave the Australian a legitimate run for his money across five rounds, and was seemingly inches away from finishing the two-time champion at times. As such, there's a good chance that this proves to be a case of too much, too soon for Silva. Lopes is also enormous for the division and could very well end up big brothering "Lord" on the mat if he is able to secure top position.
However, while recent results for Mauricio Ruffy and Caio Borralho bode ill for the Fighting Nerds' plot armor, it doesn't change the fact that Silva legitimately looks like championship level material. "Lord" hasn't even looked vaguely perturbed throughout five UFC fights against dangerous opposition, smirking disdainfully through his opponent's offense before landing a killer blow of his own. Lopes has an iron chin but he gets hit a lot in his fights, a concerning omen when faced with a striker of Silva's power.
In any case, this is likely to be a high-pace, white-knuckle barnburner. Lopes will come out swinging, but it will be Silva barking triumphantly into the microphone when the dust settles on this one.
Prediction: Jean Silva to win
