Filed under: UFC, FanHouse Exclusive
LAS VEGAS — For the first time in his UFC career, Anderson Silva showed real vulnerability during his fifth-round submission victory over Chael Sonnen last August. For four-and-a-half rounds, Sonnen controlled the action with takedowns and groundwork. Given his wrestling pedigree, that development wasn’t necessarily a stunner. What was more surprising was the fact that Sonnen was able to use his standup so effectively, even hurting Silva with a solid left at one point in the first round.
For the longest time, it seemed that trading firepower with Silva was a sure way to seal defeat. No one’s ever outstruck him during his record 12-fight octagon win streak, and the man has always had an iron chin, but given the developments of Silva’s last fight as well as his advancing age (he’s three months shy of his 36th birthday), you have to wonder if it was a simple aberration or the beginning of a trend.
The man tasked with testing those possibilities at UFC 126 is Vitor Belfort, a 33-year-old Brazilian who is coming off a lengthy layoff from shoulder surgery following a first-round knockout of Rich Franklin. That win came way back in Sept. 2009, meaning Belfort will have to find a way to fight off ring rust and regain his past form in order to beat the longest-reigning champ in UFC history.