UFC Middleweight Bruno Silva Discusses Mental, Physical Recovery Following Defeat

Heavy-handed Ultimate Fighting Championship 185er Bruno Silva believes the worst is behind him now.

Due to his strong mind, tough chin and aggressive style, Silva earned the nickname of “Blindado,” or “armored,” by his teammates many years ago. In the sport of MMA, there are limits to how far one’s toughness can go, and even the stoutest competitor can reach a breaking point. Brazil’s Silva, who raced through a torrid schedule with the promotion with five appearances in less than 14 months, started to slow down. After his most recent outing, a deflating submission loss to Gerald Meerschaert, Silva suffered a serious accident that put him on the shelf for some time. The subsequent injury may have been a blessing in disguise for Silva, who spoke to Sherdog on Thursday about his last performance and the accident.

“I don’t want to say how was the accident now, but it caused me a very serious injury that demanded an immediate surgery,” Silva explained. “It tore all ligaments in my clavicle, and the doctor [told] me [I would need upwards of six months] to recover. I told him I would recover in a way that [would be shocking]. And that’s what I did. Two physiotherapy sessions per day, ice every two hours. Thank God, I’m 100% recovered and already training with no restriction.”

When pointing to the self-described “disappointing” way he fought Meerschaert, Blindado revealed an interesting habit he developed due in part to his hectic fight schedule.

“I love MMA so much that I accepted five fights in 13 months, but the fact is that a fighter is not a machine and we have to learn to respect our mind signs,” the middleweight admitted. “Somehow, I started to get a very strange feeling whenever I entered the fighter locker room and smelled [the] Vaseline and hand adhesive tape. I didn’t know if it was adrenaline, anger, panic, fear or everything together. [To counter that feeling,] I immediately started to use Vaseline and hand [wraps during] my daily training routine and, somehow, that anxiety was over.”

Many fighters freely admit that combat sports are not just physical but mental as well, and that a competitor can easily get in his or her own head to offer roadblocks. In an effort to alleviate his concerns, like countryman Gilbert Burns, Silva sought out a sports psychologist.

“Today, I have two psychologists working with me,” Silva shared. “I have one guy working professionally with me since 2017 and, after my loss to Meerschaert, I hired another professional to work with my personal anxiety. Actually, treating the family man Bruno, the father, husband, friend, son, not ‘Blindado.’ The fact is that when Bruno is fine, not anxious, ‘Blindado’ naturally takes off.”

Feeling fully recovered from the accident and with his anxiety issues under control, Silva eagerly anticipates receiving a call from the UFC.

“I told them that March would be perfect for me, but April will be fine too. The most important [thing] is that I’m fully recovered and already training hard to bring my best version next year.”

Before getting tapped by Meerschaert, “Blindado” encountered future champion Alex Pereira. He remains the lone competitor to go the distance with Pereira inside of a cage, although he did lose the decision in March. After the fight, Silva watched Pereira’s meteoric rise, and he gives his fellow countryman all the credit in the world.

“With all respect to [Alex] Volkanovski and [Islam] Makhachev, what ‘Poatan’ did this year was much more impressive. He was the No. 1 [fighter] in 2022,” Silva said.

After their fight, Silva and Pereira developed a slight kinship. When Silva suffered his submission defeat to Meerschaert, Pereira was among those that reached out in support.

“[Pereira] faced my best version and he recognized that something happened to me. I told him that I committed the worst mistake a fighter can do, unlike I did with him: I underestimated Gerald and paid for that. No excuses, all merits to Gerald, but it was a hell of a lesson that will help me to bring my best version in 2023,” Silva concluded.