08-04-2025
UFC 314 Fight Card Odds And Predictions: Bryce Mitchell Vs. Jean Silva
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 07: (L-R) Opponents Bryce Mitchell and Jean Silva face off during the UFC ... More 314 press conference at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 07, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
This weekend's UFC 314 fight card is stacked. At the top of the pay-per-view event is a featherweight battle between former champion Alexander Volkanovski and the fast-rising Diego Lopes. The winner of that contest takes home the vacant UFC featherweight title. Meanwhile, in the co-main event of UFC 314, Michael Chandler and Paddy Pimblett face off in a pivotal lightweight matchup. Before the headlining bouts is an important 145-pound meeting between Bryce Mitchell and Jean Silva. UFC 314 takes place on Saturday, April 12, at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. Below, we look at the picks, predictions, and betting odds for the UFC 314 fight card Mitchell vs. Silva matchup.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 07: Bryce Mitchell is seen on stage during the UFC 314 press conference at ... More Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 07, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
Bryce Mitchell (17-2) was 9-0 and coming off a defense of the V3 Fights featherweight title when Mitchell appeared on The Ultimate Fighter reality show. Mitchell defeated Jay Cucciniello in the opening round of that competition, but Brad Katona submitted Mitchell in the semifinals. Despite that (exhibition) loss, the UFC signed Mitchell to a contract.
Mitchell opened his UFC career with six wins, including a December 2019 twister submission victory over Matt Sayles. Mitchell broke into the official UFC rankings during that winning streak with a decision win over Charles Rosa on the UFC 249 early prelims. That victory put him at No. 15 in the UFC's featherweight division.
Mitchell climbed to No. 9 in those rankings with decision triumphs over Andre Fili and Edson Barboza. He held that ranking and a perfect 15-0 record when he stepped into the Octagon in December 2022 to face the No. 14 ranked Ilia Topuria, who was 4-0 in the UFC at the time. Topuria put the first blemish on Mitchell's record, submitting him at 3:10 of the first round.
Following the loss to Topuria, Mitchell bounced back with a September 2023 decision over Dan Ige. Mitchell returned to the loss column in his next outing. In that contest, Josh Emmett scored a nasty first-round knockout win over Mitchell, which left Mitchell out cold for an unsettling amount of time.
Following the loss to Emmett, Mitchell wisely took off for almost a full calendar year. When he returned to action in December 2024, he scored a knockout win over Kron Gracie at UFC 310, the same card when Topuria defended the UFC featherweight title.
Heading into UFC 314, Mitchell might be best known for claiming on his podcast, '…I honestly think Hitler was a good guy based upon my own research, not my public education indoctrination.'
Mitchell was booed during the UFC 314 pre-fight press conference. His first public appearance since making that statement.
Today, Mitchell is the No. 13 ranked UFC featherweight.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 07: Jean Silva is seen on stage during the UFC 314 press conference at ... More Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 07, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
A member of The Fighting Nerds team out of Brazil, Jean Silva (15-2) joined the UFC in September 2023 when he scored a UFC contract thanks to a decision win over Kevin Vallejos on a Dana White's Contender Series card. Silva extended his winning streak to eight straight with his win over Vallejos.
Vallejos, who signed with the UFC following a 2024 DWCS win, is the last fighter to go the distance with Silva. Since his DWCS win, Silva has picked up four knockout victories and two fight-night bonus awards.
Silva is coming off a February first-round knockout win over Melsik Baghdasaryan. Before that, he defeated UFC veteran Drew Dober at lightweight.
I wrote of that win, "Jean Silva took a chance. After knocking out Charles Jourdain in late June, the 27-year-old moved up to lightweight to face hard-hitting Drew Dober on the main card of UFC Denver. That chance paid off when Silva picked up a third-round TKO win over Dober.
"Silva might not have had the power of his opponent, but he had a speed advantage and the ability to counter Dober well. Silva's spinning techniques and elbows did a lot of damage, leaving Dober with a massive gash over his right eyebrow, which led to the fight being stopped late in the third stanza.
'Silva is 3-0 since he joined the UFC with all his wins coming by knockout. Each of those victories has come in 2024.'
During the UFC 314 press conference, Silva seemed to get under Mitchell's skin, first by bringing a globe to the event to poke fun at Mitchell's flat earth beliefs and then by leading a profane chant against his opponent.
Silva does not appear in the UFC rankings. A win over Mitchell at UFC 314 will change that.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 07: (L-R) Opponents Bryce Mitchell and Jean Silva face off during the UFC ... More 314 press conference at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 07, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
When the opening odds were announced for this UFC 314 contest, Silva opened as a -450 betting favorite over the +350 Mitchell. Today, Silva is listed at -240, while Mitchell is a +205 betting underdog.
*Odds via BetOnline
UFC Fight Card Schedule For April 2025: Including UFC 314
Age: 30
Height: 5' 10'
Reach: 70'
Stance: Southpaw
Age: 28
Height: 5' 7'
Reach: 69'
Stance: Orthodox
UFC 314 Fight Card: Date, Time, Location, How To Watch Or Stream
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 07: Jean Silva is seen on stage during the UFC 314 press conference at ... More Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 07, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
The easy thing to do with this fight would be to look at how Josh Emmett destroyed Bryce Mitchell. The problem with that is that it discounts Emmett's wrestling skills. In that loss, Mitchell did not attempt a takedown for the first time in his career. One reason for that might have been that the fight lasted under two minutes. Another reason might have been because Emmett is a good wrestler and Mitchell respected his wrestling and his power. Don't expect Mitchell to worry about Silva's takedown defense.
With that being said, Silva has stopping power in his strikes. If Mitchell gets sloppy or gives Silva an opening, he will land damaging blows. Let's not forget that each of his UFC fights have ended via knockout.
Silva needs to be aware of Mitchell's takedown attempts and superb ground skills, while looking to exploit Mitchell's not great striking game. If he can do that, Silva should have success, and with each round starting on the feet, Silva will have the opportunity to do damage.
The betting pick is Silva to win via knockout, but there is betting value in picking Mitchell to win via submission.
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We will have more on UFC 314 Mitchell vs. Silva scrap as fight night nears, as well as live results, reactions, highlights and more for the UFC 314 pay-per-view card on fight night.
