Top-10 ranked flyweights Jussier da Silva and Mamoru Yamaguchi will clash this Friday night at Tachi Palace Fights 10 in Lemoore, Calif. The 26-year-old da Silva (9-1) is coming off the first loss of his career, a decision loss to number two ranked Ian McCall back in February.
ProMMAnow.com (www.prommanow.com) caught up with da Silva this week to find out what he was able to learn from the loss to McCall and how he feels he matches up with Yamaguchi. We talked about his training for this fight, he explained what a win over Yamaguchi would mean and shared his thoughts on a possible rematch with “Uncle Creepy” down the road.
PRO MMA NOW: Thanks for talking to us at ProMMAnow.com, Jussier. How has your preparation and training been going for your upcoming fight this Friday against Mamoru Yamaguchi at Tachi Palace Fights 10?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: It’s been pretty good, I did the best I could within my limitations. I would go to Rio de Janeiro to train at Nova União with Renan Barão, José Aldo and the other guys for 20 days, but I couldn’t afford the plane tickets and everything, so I stayed in Natal and trained with my team Kimura/Nova União here. But even though I didn’t go to Rio the training was great and I could keep going with the physical preparation I started back in the Danny Martinez fight. I gained 10 more pounds from the start of December of last year to today.
PRO MMA NOW: You had a tough fight with Ian McCall back in February. It was the first loss of your career. How did the loss affect you mentally and emotionally and how did you deal with it?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: It gave me motivation to train much more, and the desire to be more of a fighter, have a bigger heart. It helped me to correct lots of my mistakes.
PRO MMA NOW: Were you able to go back and look at that fight, watch the video, and learn from it — and if so, what do you think you learned from that fight?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: I’ve watched it countless times. I learned that I should have more of that “eye of the tiger” kind of thing, to go in there without hesitation to trade punches with him, put pressure standing. Also I realized I was way too small for the weight class, I had started a physical training after the Martinez fight, but there wasn’t enough time between that fight and the McCall fight to become stronger.
PRO MMA NOW: Are you interested in getting a rematch with Ian McCall, and if so, what would you need to do differently next time?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: Of course! I want to rematch him ever since the decision was announced. But just as much as I want it, I don’t think about it for now. I have a very tough challenge ahead of me in Mamoru, and I can’t dare to look past him.
PRO MMA NOW: As we said earlier, you are fighting Mamoru Yamaguchi this Friday. He’s an older, more experienced fighter. How do you see yourself matching up with him and what type of gameplan will you need to win this fight?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: I think I match up pretty well with him, he’s had trouble with grapplers before. I can’t tell much of the gameplan, but I will be looking to pressure him all the time wherever the fight goes.
PRO MMA NOW: What would a win over Yamaguchi mean to you personally and to your career?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: It means everything to me. Mamoru is a legend and it’s an honor to have the opportunity to fight him. Also, I really want to get back to my winning days and be closer to the title.
PRO MMA NOW: Where did you train and who helped you get ready for this fight?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: As I said previously, I trained in Natal with my team Kimura/Nova União. Just changed the boxing coach. I had the help of my jiu jitsu master and head coach Jair Lourenço, Fabio Bolinho who helped me a lot with boxing and wrestling, and my physical trainner Thiago Macedo who gave continuity to the job we started since December so I could be as strong as the other guys in the weight class. Also I had great sparrings like my friend Marlon Silva and André Robô.
PRO MMA NOW: Do you plan to fight for Shooto again or would you like to continue fighting in America?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: Before I went to the U.S. I had the dream to become Shooto World Champion. I really loved to fight in Japan as much as I love to fight at Tachi. Today my focus is to fight in the U.S. and get the Tachi Palace Fights belt – it is a dream just like the Shooto belt was back then. If some day the opportunity presents and it’s interesting to everybody I would like to fight in Japan again, but Tachi is my house.
PRO MMA NOW: Tell the MMA fans the one thing you want them to know about Jussier da Silva.
JUSSIER DA SILVA: I’m a warrior of faith that will never give up on his dreams, and expect great fights from me in the future.
PRO MMA NOW: Thank you Jussier for talking with us. We wish you the best of luck against Yamaguchi. Are there any sponsors or anyone you would like to thank?
JUSSIER DA SILVA: I wish there were some sponsors to thank, but we couldn’t have any for this fight. For some reason no one thought it would be interesting to sponsor me. I want to thank God, my son Pedro Davi, my friend Julio, my coaches Jair Lourenço, Fabio Bolinho, my physical trainer Thiago Macedo, my team partners and friends Jorge Rodrigues, Renan Barão, Marlon Silva, my manager Matheus Aquino and everyone who helped me in this training camp.
MMA fans be sure to watch”Tachi Palace Fights 10: Let the Chips Fall” streaming LIVE on Sherdog.com this Friday night, Aug. 5.