Jean Silva gets new opponent for Noche UFC main event with Yair Rodriguez out

Jean Silva will now fight Jose Delgado in the main event of Noche UFC after Yair Rodriguez pulled out from the Sept. 12 card due to undisclosed reasons, multiple people with knowledge of the situation confirmed the news to MMA Fighting.

Noche UFC will take place at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.

Delgado (12-2) gets his first main event assignment in his native Arizona coming off a pair of wins over Andre Fili and Austin Bashi earlier this year, earning himself a spot on the new Meta UFC rankings. Delgado was victorious in four of UFC appearances, losing only to Nathaniel Wood in 2025.

Silva (17-3) will attempt to keep his momentum going after a decision victory over Arnold Allen in January, when he rebounded from a thrilling title eliminator loss to Diego Lopes. “Lord” currently holds a 6-1 UFC record with four bonuses cashed.

Rodriguez (20-5, 1 no contest) hasn’t fought since April 2025, when he beat Patricio Pitbull via decision at UFC 314. That was also the first appearance in over a year for the former interim champion, putting an end to his two-fight losing skid against Alexander Volkanovski and Brian Ortega.