Jean Silva is hungry to punch someone in the face after a frustrating week at UFC 301, and he plans on making Charles Jourdain pay for it Saturday at UFC 303.
Silva made weight for his UFC 301 bout with William Gomis in early May, but saw his opponent in visible pain on the scale. Gomis ultimately came in way under the featherweight limit after throwing up backstage and was deemed unable to compete by doctors. Silva flew back home with no fight, and now he celebrates finally getting one at UFC 303.
“Charles Jourdain is the man I love the most until I get to punch him, because without him, there’s nothing,” Silva told MMA Fighting. “But, to be honest with you, Charles Jourdain is easier to beat [than Gomis] because it’s a better matchup for ‘Lord.’ William Gomis ran too much, brother. He’s more technical and versatile and fights well with his back against the cage. Charles Jourdain is more scared and just comes in to fight. And let’s be honest here, it would be stupid to brawl with me. It would be like laying your head on the ground and asking me to hammer it.”
Jourdain has more experience in MMA, having competed 13 times under the UFC banner alone, while Silva brings a pro record of 12-2 to his second octagon appearance. “Lord Assassin” impressed in his first trip to the UFC, dismantling Westin Wilson with a first-round knockout, and already proclaims himself “the best in the world until I retire.”
“Deep in your heart, you know I’m going to knock him out,” Silva said. “That’s obvious. It’s no secret to anyone. Chuck Liddell style, brother. I’ll stop their takedowns and punch their heads. And if they want to stand and trade with me, that’s even worse for them. Charles Jourdain has good jiu-jitsu, good scrambles, good guillotines, but that’s my move. I teach guillotines. If he wants to take me down, I’ll catch him with a guillotine to show people it’s worth paying for my guillotine classes. That’s it.”
Silva wants to make it clear he’s not being cocky. The right word, in his mind, is confident.
And the fact that Jourdain has beaten some fellow Brazilians before, from Kron Gracie to Ricardo Ramos, doesn’t raise any concerns.
“Charles Jourdain does good things, he has 13 fights [in the UFC] and has a good record against Brazilians. But who?” Silva said. “We’re talking about Brazilians that entered the UFC to be another one. Sorry, I’m not being cocky, but it’s clear to people who enters the UFC to become champion and who enters the UFC to change their lives. If you go to the UFC or any other big company thinking about changing your life, nothing bigger will happen.
“I’ve always wanted to be in the big promotions to beat the guys that people call the world’s best and be known for it. I want to be famous for beating people. The consequence of that is me winning the belt, being recognized, seeing my name up there, people knowing who I am, but that’s not what I’m here for.”
