Intense and eccentric featherweight contender Jean Silva will bring the chaos when he clashes with Jose Delgado in the main event of Noche UFC in Glendale on Saturday night (Sunday morning SA time), writes Quintin van Jaarsveld.
ALSO READ: August’s Top 10 UFC Knockouts.
Two of Mexico’s greatest-ever fighters, both former flyweight champions, will be in action, as Brandon Moreno meets Joseph Morales in the co-headliner and Alexa Grasso faces Manon Fiorot.
Also on the main card, top-10 heavyweights Waldo Cortes-Acosta and Curtis Blaydes collide, Tommy McMillen and Marwan Rahiki throw hands in a banger between unbeaten featherweights, and bantamweight contender David Martinez takes on veteran Dan Ige.
MAIN CARD:
Saturday, September 12, 11:00 PM SAST
Jean Silva (1.22) vs Jose Delgado (4.30) (Featherweight)
One is a barking mixed martial arts mad man and one of the best and most violent featherweights in the world. The other is a prospect hoping to seize a chance opportunity and change his life in front of his hometown crowd.
It’s Silva (17-3), the No. 6-ranked contender who’ll bring a Brazilian storm to the Desert Diamond Arena, against Delgado (12-2), who’ll showcase his Mexican fighting spirit on the UFC’s annual event celebrating Mexican Independence Day.
Silva was originally set to fight fellow top-10 standout Yair Rodriguez; however, the former interim featherweight champion was forced to withdraw due to injury. Enter Delgado, the son of immigrants, who’s stepped up on roughly three weeks’ notice for a headlining opportunity that could shake up the 145-pound division.
Silva is a savage. He stacked one sensational showing on top of another after joining the UFC in 2024, winning his first five fights inside the Octagon, all by finish.
On the same night that Alexander Volkanovski beat Diego Lopes for the vacant title last April, Silva won his grudge match against Bryce Mitchell in devastating fashion, putting “Thug Nasty” to sleep with a ninja choke. His four previous UFC wins – over Westin Wilson, Charles Jourdain, Drew Dober, and Melsik Bagdasaryan – were all by knockout.
His triumph over Mitchell at UFC 314 saw him improve his overall winning streak to 13 and earned him a main event showdown with Lopes at last year’s Noche UFC. “Lord” had his moments but was overaggressive and paid the price, suffering a stoppage loss.
He returned to winning ways at the start of the year, outstriking Arnold Allen, and has nothing but bad intentions as he headlines Noche UFC for the second year in a row. A well-rounded assassin who always goes for the kill, he’s claimed all but two of his wins by finish (12 knockouts and three submissions).
Delgado is on a two-fight win streak – decision victories over Andre Fili and Austin Bashi that saw him break into the rankings at No. 15. He’s 4-1 in the UFC, with two first-round knockouts, while his only Octagon loss came against his only elite opponent in eighth-ranked Nathaniel Wood.
This is a huge step up for him, made all the more daunting due to the fact that he hasn’t had a full training camp. Yet, he’s uber-confident and is talking a big game, saying he’ll put down Silva – who likes to bark at opponents – like a dog.
“It’s an illusion for him, man. He’s a coward,” he said of Silva’s peculiar personality. “He needs that mask to make himself feel good. It’s a disguise, and it’s a farce. I don’t respect it. I think it’s cowardly.
“He won’t face the reality of what this is. He tried to be buddy-buddy in the cage and make it seem like we’re not trying to kill each other. I know he’s trying to hurt me and take everything I’ve ever worked for. I will put him down like a dog.”
It’s all well and good to talk tough, and one can’t blame Delgado for believing the stars have aligned for him to stun Silva and possibly earn a title shot out of nowhere. However, he’s in for a punishing reality check, as he’s simply not on Silva’s level.
Prediction: Silva by knockout.
Best Bet: Silva by KO/TKO/DQ at 1.63.
Brandon Moreno (2.00) vs Joseph Morales (1.82) (Flyweight)
A man who personifies the Mexican fighting spirit, Moreno (23-10-2) is a gold-blooded trailblazer. Mexico’s first-ever UFC champion, he is a bona fide legend and future Hall of Famer.
However, “The Assassin Baby” heads into the weekend hoping to avoid losing three straight for the first time in his career. After being stopped for the first time by Tatsuro Taira at the end of last year, he lost a decision to Lone’er Kavanagh in the main event of UFC Mexico earlier this year and slid down to No. 8 in the rankings.
A man on the comeback trail, Morales (14-2) failed to make an impact in his first go-around in the UFC, going 1-2 from 2017 to 2018 and being relegated to the regional scene.
A determined “Bopo” felt he had unfinished business in the UFC and earned his way back by winning season 33 of The Ultimate Fighter last August. Three months later, he tapped out Matt Schnell – his eighth win by submission – and now has the opportunity of a lifetime.
Momentum is on Morales’ side, but Moreno isn’t washed, and this is the type of stylistic match-up for the former champion to get back on track.
Prediction: Moreno by decision.
Best Bet: Moreno at 2.00.
Alternative Bet: Moreno by decision at 2.59.
Tommy McMillen (1.58) vs Marwan Rahiki (2.41) (Featherweight)
A clash of undefeated featherweights, this should be a fun one.
McMillen (11-0) is one of the most badass up-and-comers in the UFC. He’s like a third Diaz brother – as raw and real as it gets and a savage inside the Octagon.
Calling for a spot on the card after knocking out Alberto Montes in July to move to 11-0, “Gun” gets his wish and promises to go off in Glendale.
He has followed the same path as his mentor, former bantamweight champ “Suga” Sean O’Malley in moving from Montana to Arizona to train under Tim Welch and vows to maximise the moment.
He’ll be sharing the Octagon with another ascending talent in Rahiki, who has similarly parlayed a contract-winning performance on Dana White’s Contender Series last season into a 2-0 start to his UFC career.
After battering former Cage Warriors champ Harry Hardwick in his debut, the Moroccan-born Australian made quick work of short-notice replacement Ollie Schmid in Perth back in May, advancing to 9-0 and maintaining his 100% finishing rate in the process.
In a dogfight, you go with the guy who has more grit, and that is McMillen.
Prediction: McMillen by knockout.
Best Bet: McMillen by KO/TKO/DQ at 4.25.
Alternative Bet: McMillen at 1.58.
Manon Fiorot (1.40) vs Alexa Grasso (3.00) (Flyweight)
A level-headed, cerebral striker, Fiorot (13-2) will be quietly seething going into this pivotal flyweight fight.
The Frenchwoman is ranked second, and her only loss inside the Octagon was against champion Valentina Shevchenko. Thus, she seemed like an obvious candidate to fight for the vacant title at UFC 322. Instead, it’ll be Natalia Silva and Wang Cong competing for the gold.
Known as a methodical point-fighter, she earned her first finish in five years last October, sleeping Jasmine Jasudavicius to bounce back from the Shevchenko loss in style, and seeks to make a statement against Grasso (17-5-1) on Saturday.
Three years ago, Grasso submitted Shevchenko in one of the biggest upsets ever to become the first Mexican woman to win a UFC championship. After battling “The Bullet” to a draw in the sequel, she lost the trilogy fight and also came up short against Silva, leaving her in desperate need of course-correcting.
Streets will never forget UFC Seattle Alexa Grasso pic.twitter.com/XiSXdiVlKn
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) March 30, 2026
She did just that in March, rediscovering her killer instinct and taking out Maycee Barber in a Knockout of the Year contender. Ranked third, she too can re-enter the title picture if she’s able to slay “The Beast.” Fiorot, however, is such a master of movement and striking at range that she should prevail on the scorecards.
Prediction: Fiorot by decision.
Best Bet: Fiorot by decision at 1.72.
Waldo Cortes-Acosta (1.48) vs Curtis Blaydes (2.65) (Heavyweight)
Top-10 heavyweights hungry for gold will go at it in this one.
Fifth-ranked Cortes-Acosta (17-3) was one of the most active fighters in 2025, fighting no less than five times and winning four of those bouts.
Knockout victories over Ante Delija and Shamil Gaziev earned him a crack at former two-time title challenger Derrick Lewis, who he proceeded to finish to start his 2026 campaign with a bang.
His hot streak was halted in controversial fashion in May, when he landed on the wrong side of the scorecards against Alexander Volkov in a fight many believed he won.
Sixth-ranked Blaydes (19-6) was in an absolute war and the frontrunner for Fight of the Year against Josh Hokit in April, showing incredible heart by refusing to quit.
It was a classic brawl destined for Hall of Fame honours and the breakdown moment for the victorious Hokit. It also showed that while “Razor” is still more than willing, he’s no longer as sharp as he was in his prime.
“Salsa Boy” should lead the dance and return to winning ways.
Prediction: Cortes-Acosta by decision.
Best Bet: Cortes-Acosta by decision at 2.95.
Alternative Bet: Cortes-Acosta by KO/TKO/DQ at 2.59.
David Martinez (1.24) vs Dan Ige (4.05) (Bantamweight)
No. 8-ranked Martinez (14-1) welcomes veteran Ige (19-11) to the bantamweight division in the main card opener.
Enjoying the best year of his career, Martinez beat Rob Font in the co-main event of last year’s Noche UFC and followed it up with another decision win over former title challenger Marlon Vera in February.
A staple in the featherweight division dating back to 2018, a brutal run of four losses in his last five fights saw Ige rethink things and announce a move down to bantamweight.
It remains to be seen how much the added weight cut will take out of the veteran. Either way, at this stage of their careers, Martinez should have little problems spoiling Ige’s 135-pound debut.
Prediction: Martinez by decision.
Best Bet: Martinez by decision at 1.79.
Note: Odds subject to change.
Quintin van Jaarsveld is a former MDDA-Sanlam SA Local Sports Journalist of the Year and a former three-time Vodacom KwaZulu-Natal Sports Journalist of the Year. Formerly the sports editor and Outstanding Journalist of the Year award winner at The Fever Media Group, deputy editor at eHowzit, editor at SARugby.com and senior staff writer at Rugby365.com, he boasts over 20 years of experience.
