Ariane da Silva experienced a significant wake-up call in her most recent appearance in the Octagon. Her eye-opening defeat to Jasmine Jasudavicius exposed a critical flaw in her skillset, prompting a focused shift in her training strategy leading up to her next fight. She is scheduled to compete against Wang Cong on the preliminary portion of the upcoming UFC 316 card in Newark.
In an interview, Da Silva shared that she left her usual training base in Florida for a three-week intensive wrestling program in Arizona. Under the guidance of Angel Cejudo, brother of former UFC champion Henry Cejudo, she aimed to address the vulnerabilities in her grappling defense. Her time there was almost exclusively dedicated to no-gi wrestling and grappling, occasionally training alongside Henry and Tracy Cortez.
“Last year was somewhat challenging,” Da Silva stated. “While I had some wrestling partners, my coach opened a new facility, and our schedules became incompatible after the Casey O’Neill fight, preventing us from training together. As a result, my wrestling practice was limited to just general MMA training.”
She elaborated on the realization after her fights: “Following the Karine [Silva] bout, I felt my performance might have been hindered more by mental blocks than technical issues. However, the fight against Jasmine made it clear. It wasn`t that I lacked knowledge of how to defend single or double leg takedowns; it was that my body didn`t react instinctively or correctly when needed, failing to execute the necessary techniques to prevent the takedown.”
The former KSW flyweight champion recognized that this dedicated training was essential, especially after her three-fight winning streak was snapped by consecutive losses to Karine Silva and Jasudavicius.
“We understood that I needed specific, focused training,” Da Silva explained. “Every athlete learns differently. For me, it`s through repetition. I need to train extensively and repeat techniques countless times so my body responds automatically and correctly during competition. That`s precisely what we focused on recently. We underwent a crash course in wrestling without even knowing who my next opponent would be.”
Da Silva had initially expected to face Miranda Maverick next. Instead, she is matched against Wang Cong, a Chinese fighter who recently bounced back from a surprising upset loss to Gabriella Fernandes with a decision victory over Bruna Brasil.
“I suspect she might even try to implement a grappling game plan against me, given the weakness I displayed in my recent fights,” Da Silva commented. “Therefore, I have to be fully prepared for anything. I`ve trained for all possibilities as intensely as possible to ensure my body reacts with the appropriate response to whatever the fight demands.”
Despite coming off two consecutive losses in the UFC, Da Silva remains confident. She expects similar confidence from Cong, even though Cong`s momentum was somewhat disrupted by the loss to Fernandes and taking a decision against a natural strawweight.
“I believe that every fighter steps into a bout with confidence, regardless of their recent results,” said Da Silva. “Speaking for myself, I`ve lost my last two but still feel confident. I can`t look at her past performances and guess her mindset. However, I can analyze her technically, and I anticipate a very competitive fight because we are both primarily strikers.”
She concluded, “She is technically proficient on the feet and doesn`t take unnecessary risks. So, I expect this fight to primarily unfold in the striking department, and it should be an entertaining watch for the fans. It represents an opportunity for me to demonstrate my overall progress in MMA, but most importantly, to enjoy the experience. Facing another striker, I feel confident I can go in there, have fun, showcase my technical skills, and unleash my complete striking repertoire.”
Marcus Blakely