Bruno Silva Discusses Phone Call From Alex Pereira Urging Him to Continue

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship two-division champ Alex Pereira may have a future in the life coaching business.

UFC middleweight Bruno Silva had fallen on hard times towards the end of 2024, having lost four consecutive outings with the promotion. The Brazilian had started his tenure with the UFC off promisingly, knocking out Wellington Turman, Andrew Sanchez and Jordan Wright all within the confines of 2021. After that, he came to blows with Pereira, and although he remains one of the few to face “Poatan” without getting knocked out, he had hit a proverbial wall and things would mostly go downhill from there.

A call from Pereira after his fourth straight defeat may have changed the course of Silva’s career. Silva spoke to Sherdog in Montreal, Canada, ahead of his match with Marc-Andre Barriault at UFC 315 on Saturday, where he revealed the life-changing advice given to him by a man that two years before stood across from him in the Octagon.

“In addition to losing my last fight, I fought very badly,” an emotional Silva said to Sherdog. “The following week, I was very upset, already certain that I would be fired, thinking about what I was going to do from then on, when ‘Poatan’ sent me a two-minute audio message encouraging me to speak directly with [UFC matchmaker] Mick Maynard, reminding him of the great battles I had fought in the UFC, that I had never declined an opponent, never chosen a date. And that’s what I did, making it clear to him that I was sick and needed help, asking him for some time and one more fight. And ‘Poatan’ was right. Mick responded by saying that he would give me one more fight.”

Silva was concerned that he was suffering from undiagnosed health problems that impacted him in the cage, as he believed he was fighting significantly differently than the man who racked up 20 knockout victories over the years.

“I thought it was heart disease, because my father died of a heart attack, but after several tests, the psychiatrist diagnosed me with anxiety and panic attacks,” “Blindado” explained. “So, I focused 100% on my mind. This last camp was different from all the others. In addition to all the physical and technical training, I worked hard with my psychologist. Today I feel cured, ready to show my best version on Saturday.”

The former M-1 champion is not shy about his renewed state of mind, nor did he mince words on how he approached what could be the final appearance of his UFC career.

“Barriault likes to strike, he has a good takedown defense,” he analyzed. “There is nothing better for someone who likes to stand and bang. I could say that I will fight tactically, but the truth is that I only know how to fight looking for the knockout since the first second of the first round, and that is what I will do on Saturday.”

Together with training partner Brunno Ferreira and Brazilian TKO team leader Andre Amado in his corner next Saturday, Silva feels he has a new lease on life. Part of his camp involved working with new individuals he had never trained with before, including former champ Fabricio Werdum and vaunted coach Rafael Cordeiro. He also prepared alongside Wanderlei Silva, a man he holds dear.

“I had already done other camps with Wand, who has always been a reference for me. This time I was able to train with Werdum and Rafael Cordeiro, who, in addition to adding a lot of technical value, brought a unique energy to our day-to-day. I hope to show everything on Saturday, starting a new phase in my career,” the power-punching middleweight concluded.