Anderson “The Spider” Silva may not regain his UFC middleweight title from All-American Chris Weidman, but you can bet he won’t get caught clowning in the Octagon again.
According to Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, the rematch is now set for Dec. 28 as the main event of UFC 168 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
At UFC 162, Silva robbed himself, Weidman and MMA fans of a clean contest and result by employing cinematic dodging tactics that were more about presentation than substance.
Silva’s manager, Ed Soares, spoke to Iole about Silva’s current mindset. “He knows he made a mistake and he’s ready to go out there and get his title back,” he said.
When a fighter pulls these things off without peril, it adds to their overall appeal. When they get caught, they awake to an arena filled with noise and doctors checking their vital signs.
Unless you’ve been completely unplugged from the MMA matrix over the last few weeks, you know that Silva faced the latter result when Weidman caught him with a left hand that ended the legend’s 16-fight win streak and championship reign.
Despite the ill-advised tactics he employed at UFC 162, Silva is a smart man.
He knew Weidman would be a stiff challenge and also knows that, at 38 years old, there is no room for more games. Perhaps he should have taken to that last concept before being knocked into reality, but no one is perfect.
Silva will go into the rematch more prepared mentally, physically and strategically. Silva has notoriously been readier for tough opponents the second time around.
He dispatched Chael Sonnen more easily in their second meeting. The Spider left no doubt or controversy when he stopped Yushin Okami in their rematch after being disqualified for an illegal upkick in the first meeting. Silva toyed with and destroyed Rich Franklin a second time after dropping him in the first round of their initial bout.
Most of those fights happened when Silva was a much younger man and none of those opponents were Weidman. For the first time in a long while, Silva has something to prove to himself, an opponent and fans.
Can he do it? That remains to be seen, but you can bet he’ll be all business this time around.
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