Despite being mired in a lengthy losing streak, former
UFC heavyweight title challenger Antonio
Silva continues to soldier onward.
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The Brazilian known as “Bigfoot” on Tuesday announced via social
media that he will square off against fellow UFC veteran Juan Espino
on March 23 at Gran Canaria Arena in Las Palmas, Canary Islands,
Spain. The event is entitled “La Despedida,” or The Farewell. Rules
for the bout were not revealed.
“I am very happy to fight against [someone I respect] in my career,
someone who motivates me to be a better fighter and I admire,”
Silva wrote on Instagram (via translated text). “A fight full of
respect where victory or defeat is not sought but to thank all the
fans who have supported us with a great show.”
Including boxing and bare knuckle boxing, Silva has lost 11
consecutive professional fights dating back to November 2015, with
all but two of those defeats coming via knockout or technical
knockout. The 44-year-old Brazilian hasn’t tasted victory since a
second-round stoppage of Soa Palelei
at UFC 190 on Aug. 1, 2015. In his heyday, Silva was a heavyweight
contender in both the UFC and Strikeforce
who earned notable wins over the likes of Alistair
Overeem, Travis
Browne, Fedor
Emelianenko and Andrei
Arlovski, among others.
Espino, who won Season 28 of “The Ultimate Fighter,”
announced his retirement from MMA in April 2023. That
announcement came two years after his last bout, a technical
decision loss to Alexander
Romanov at UFC on ESPN 22 on April 17, 2021. “El Guapo” went
2-1 in the UFC and 10-2 as a professional, but he admitted to
wanting to exit the sport on his terms in a post on social
media.
“Deep in my heart I was left with a prickly thorn,” Espino wrote on
Instagram (via translated text). “It has nothing to do with winning
or losing… . I couldn’t allow injuries to keep me from saying
goodbye the way I like best.”