Jeff Molina expected to KO Daniel Da Silva, open to fighting anyone but interested in facing Francisco Figueiredo next

Jeff Molina was confident he would be able to finish Daniel Da Silva at UFC Vegas 41.

Molina was coming off his successful UFC debut and early on against Da Silva it was a back-and-forth fight. Da Silva was searching for submissions but didn’t get one and when the fight went into the second round, Molina knew his opponent was gassed.

“I felt like he gave everything in those submissions and was super fatigued after the first round,” Molina said to BJPENN.com. “When I got to the corner, James even told me to look at him because he was exhausted. Our saying in the gym is 5:01 because anyone can look good in five minutes, but after five minutes is when you can really start to take over in fights.”

When the second round began, Molina immediately pressed Da Silva and dropped him. He then ground and pounded him out for a TKO win.

After looking back on it, Molina is pleased with his performance as he got the finish he wanted.

“This sport is so crazy like the margin for error is so small because anything can happen in four-ounce gloves. It’s the performance I wanted, as I got the finish, and not taking any damage,” Molina said. “I knew the fight wasn’t going the distance as I figured one of us would get slept because of our styles. It was the fight that I wanted and kind of expected.”

Although Jeff Molina got a spectacular KO win, he didn’t get the Performance of the Night bonus which he was disappointed about. He wants to be known as a fan-friendly fighter and having two bonuses in two fights would do just that.

“I’m finally just now getting over it. I was pretty disappointed I didn’t get the bonus,” Molina explained. “I really thought I did enough to get it and after the card, I was pretty certain I would’ve got it. Then, I also thought I would get it so the UFC could market me as a fan-friendly fighter with two bonuses in two fights.”

Bonus or not, Molina is still 2-0 in the UFC and is now hoping to return sometime in early 2022. He isn’t sure who will be next for him but is interested in fighting Francisco Figueiredo.

“I did come into this fight a little banged up with an ankle injury. I’m also taking my folks out to Hawaii on December 1 so anytime in the new year, I’m game to fight anyone. I’m honestly not sure who is next, I’m down to fight anyone. Figgy’s brother (Francisco Figueiredo), would be a fun fight and likely would get me a bonus. Really, it’s whoever the UFC gives me though.”

Who would you like to see Jeff Molina fight next?