Wanderlei Silva‘s career is currently on life support
After coming off a knockout loss to Chris Leben, the former Chute Boxe fighter will be competing against Cung Le in the co-main event. And although UFC 139 centers around two former PRIDE stars, fans will be hoping to see a vintage performance out of Silva, as he will be the most intriguing storyline coming out of the main card.
Unfortunately, the Brazilian’s career has declined considerably and he has not incorporated nearly much of his aggressive fighting style since transitioning to the UFC in 2007. Silva has evolved his skills to adapt to the Octagon, but he has remained much more hesitant to engage than before due to his age and suspect chin.
As confident as he is in skills, Silva isn’t favoured to defeat Le, who presents a much more dynamic offense to “The Axe Murderer” than any of his previous opponents. Le’s Sanshou style has allowed him to pick up seven victories by KO/TKO.
Silva has suffered four knockouts in his last six losses, which doesn’t benefit his chances when facing an unorthodox striker of Le’s caliber.
A win for Silva might keep him around with the company temporarily, however it is a better option for him to retire from the sport regardless of the outcome of his upcoming bout.
It is safe to assume that Silva is one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all-time, and that he no longer has to prove anything else to prolong his legacy, but it is unnecessary to add more exposure than he already needs.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com