After a decade as an MMA fighter, foreign judge Felipe Silva has decided to retire at the age of 38. The athlete was among those in the modality, with stints through major events in the fighting world, such as the UFC and the brave. In an interview with Tribuna, the fighter confirmed the end of his career in the octagon, in addition to remembering his main moments in the sport and projecting the future, which will always be involved in fights, even outside. from the ring.

The decision to hang up the gloves came, according to Felipe, after realizing he was no longer at his peak as a fighter. “I wasn’t having a great time. I was coming off of three straight losses and that had never happened before. I thought it was better to spend some time there, because I didn’t feel good in my skin,” he explains.

Despite this, the judge keeps open the possibility of having one last fight to end his career with a victory. “A lot of people tell me, mainly athletes: ‘you have potential, why don’t you fight yet?’ Maybe I can do it because I ended my last fight in a loss. That would be something more personal. But for now, I’m still retired, “says the veteran.

Felipe Silva’s last fight was in April 2021, when the fighter was knocked out by Poland’s Maciej Gierszewski, in Brave. In the duel, the judge-foran ended up fracturing his shin, but managed to stay on his feet during the fight. During those two years between the last step in the ring and the announcement of his retirement, Silva says he devoted himself to training in Buffalo (USA), where he currently lives with his family.

“Today I operate a gym here with a large number of students. They hired me to be able to develop the professional part of the academy, because it is an environment with many members, but focused on conventional training for those who seek quality of life, self-defense. In this new project, in which I have been participating for a year and five months, I have already succeeded in getting many athletes to fight. We already have two professional fights in MMA, on the American circuit, ”he reports.

Beginnings and highs in the UFC

Felipe entered the fighting world through muay thai, in 1999. His first fight in the modality was in 2001 and two years later he became a professional athlete. Within muay thai, the fighter accumulated a record of 21 wins in 23 bouts, 16 of which were by knockout. The transition to MMA was only made at the age of 28, in 2013 and, in May 2016, the first professional duel, for Cage 35, with victory. The knockout against Finland’s Anton Kuivenen prompted the UFC, the category’s main event, to take a closer look at the judge.

In his first fight for the UFC, Silva took just one minute and 13 seconds to defeat Canadian Shane Campbell, the “Shaolin”. In 2019, the Brazilian transferred to Brave, where he remained until 2021.

Reviewing his career, Felipe considers himself an accomplished person. “I achieved my goal within the limits of what I set out to do. Today, I am in the United States, able to provide an excellent quality of life for my family, a quality education at my son. My wife is now pregnant and the baby, due in August, will be an American citizen. I have also started my work visa process, which allows my family to stay for a long time”, analyzes Silva.

Felipe Silva understands that he has had many special and victorious moments in his career, but one glory in particular has marked him: the victory at Cage 35. marked a lot and which has been very important in my life. But I think the most glorious moment was the fight against the Finn (Anton Kuivenen)”, he assesses. “It was a title fight, at one of the biggest events in Europe, where I got my seventh victory by knockout in the first round, against a guy who was a former UFC fighter, with many names. I managed to knock him out after only four minutes of fighting. This accredited me to enter the scene. It was really a turning point in my career,” he says.

Future as a coach

Even retired, Felipe has no intention of leaving MMA. Currently working as a coach, the veteran intends to stay in the United States and open his own academy. “My plan for the future is to create my academy here in the United States. I already spoke a little English and now that I have been here for a year and a half, I have improved the language a lot. I study business issues to set up my academy and continue with an MMA team, “he projects. Currently, the judge-foran, with his brother and trainer, Fabiano Silva, manages a network of gyms in Brazil.

“In the United States, the support is higher”

Felipe Silva understands that due to the lack of support, both public and private, Brazilian fighters face many difficulties in devoting themselves to fighting and, therefore, are forced to combine work and training. “In the United States there is more support than we have in Brazil. Those who fight there (in Brazil) today, know that it is not easy to get up early, to work and to arrive at the end of the day, still having to train hard to be able to fight. Many professional athletes still do it today. Here you have a few more possibilities, in terms of sponsorship, support. There are also athletes here who work and fight, but the vast majority of professional athletes can afford the luxury of just training, ”analyzes the judge.

Despite the difficulties, Felipe sees that in Juiz de Fora there is great potential given the results that the city’s athletes achieve in national competitions. “Juiz de Fora is a barn of great athletes. I think that if it continues like this, the future will be very good for the city”.