Brazilian middleweight Bruno Silva has just relinquished his M-1 Challenge championship belt to sign with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Silva's move comes off the heels of last year's UFC and M-1 Global announcement to form UFC Russia, a collaboration that would open the door for M-1 athletes to seamlessly transition over to the UFC.
"Blindado" owns an overall 19-6 MMA record, with his M-1 showing pristine at 2-0. Silva made waves in his M-1 debut when he punched his way to victory over Russia's Alexander Shlemenko by way of first-round knockout.
Silva, 29, impressed once again last November when he challenged Artem Frolov for the M-1 Challenge middleweight title and earned a fourth-round TKO victory. Silva touches down in the Octagon to face Deron Winn (5-0) on June 22 for UFC Fight Night 154 in Greenville, South Carolina.