Ariane da Silva welcomes enemy territory energy at UFC Edmonton

Fighting in enemy territory will be nothing new to Ariane da Silva, who enters the cage Saturday night to battle Canada’s own Jasmine Jasudavicius at UFC Edmonton.

Da Silva reigned as the KSW flyweight champion before joining the UFC, and that included multiple trips to Poland to face European opponents. With nearly 30 MMA bouts under her belt, “Queen of Violence” welcomes the adversarial energy from the arena.

“I’ve had that experience before,” da Silva said in an interview with MMA Fighting, referring to her second-round knockout win over Katarzyna Lubonska in 2015. “My first international fight for KSW was against a Polish fighter in Poland. I really think Canadian fans will side with [Jasudavicius], but this is a fight. When the cage closes, it’s just the two of us and the referee in there. They can scream, but that won’t interfere the gameplan or what we do in there.”

“But what I really love is to fight in front of an audience,” she continued. “I think that’s what brings out the best of my game, way more than the APEX, for example, with a small and cold crowd. I think this is good for our strategy, to make the fight more exciting.”

Two of da Silva’s past four fights took place inside the UFC APEX, a 1-1 run with wins over JJ Aldrich and a recent defeat to Karine Siva, both via decision. When competing in front of nearly 20,000 fans at T-Mobile Arena during UFC 296, the Brazilian forced Casey O’Neill to tap in the second round with an armbar.

Da Silva scored 10 of her 17 MMA wins via finish, six of those by knockout, and said “I know my opponents fear my striking.”

“I know I have a high-level striking,” da Silva said. “My coach Renato trained at Chute Boxe in Curitiba with Rafael Cordeiro and they have a huge tradition in MMA, and I bring that in my DNA as an athlete. And I’m strong, too.”

Da Silva revealed she expected Jasudavicius to be her next opponent even before the UFC called with the offer, and she loves the match-up due to Jasudavicius’ aggressive style. The Canadian talent has never been finished as a professional, winning five of seven since joining the UFC, but “Queen of Violence” expects to change that this weekend.

“Casey O’Neill had never been submitted before aldo and I’m a striker, but I submitted her,” da Silva said. “I don’t limit myself. This is MMA and anything can happen. I’m aggressive, I have heavy hands, I have the technique, and I’m a finisher. I can end fights on the feet and on the ground, and that’s what I’m after. I’ll try to end this fight from the first round, but I’m also ready to go the distance if I have to.”