When fighters say that fans are going to see a new version, it is usually followed by the term “improved.”
Fans will see the new and improved *insert fighter’s name* when he steps into the cage against *insert opponent’s name*.
It is something that is not only old hat to MMA, but boxing as well.
Fighters say it when fans have written them off and when they are in the twilight of their career. Some say it to try and convince those who once cheered them to do so again. Most do it to psych themselves up.
At UFC 142, Brazilian fans won’t want to see a “new” Vitor. They’ll want to see the “old” Vitor. The one who resembles the young man who was so impressive in the cage that it earned him the nickname “the Phenom”.
He walked into UFC 12 at only 20 years old and with only one fight under his belt, and won the heavyweight tournament. He went on to lose to Randy Couture, but bounced back with a quick knockout win over a still very young and dominant Wanderlei Silva.
He then went on to beat Randy Couture in a rematch at UFC 46 to win the UFC light heavyweight championship. He lost by TKO to Couture in an immediate rematch.
Those were the bright spots in Vitor’s career for many years as every time out after that, he would either get beaten by top talent or dazzle fans by beating a lesser fighter in ways that impressed most fans.
For all the talent Vitor possessed, it seemed like he just couldn’t marshal it when he stepped up to the bright lights of the biggest stage. It looked like he was doomed forever to be a “could have been” fans would debate about after his career ended.Then something funny happened that gave him a second chance.
Vitor was fighting for Affliction, a t-shirt company that decided to promote MMA events and failed quickly in this endeavor. However, he had won both fights while competing for them and when they collapsed, he found himself back in the UFC.
He is currently 1-2 and the same symptoms are showing. He was able to knock out both former champion Rich Franklin and a gamey Yoshihiro Akiyama, but lost by brutal knockout to Anderson Silva. It seems that Vitor still hasn’t been able to get over whatever it is that has kept him back all these years.
And time is running out.
Vitor is 34 and even though he is still a great fighter, age works against every man.
The good news is that he is facing Anthony Johnson, who is a decent fighter but is making his debut at middleweight. Johnson was an enormous welterweight and it helped him win his fights. At middleweight, he won’t have as much of a size advantage and that might adversely affect him.
But in the end, it boils down to Vitor’s performance. If the “new” Vitor shows up, Johnson just may have enough strength and youth to beat him. If the “old” Vitor shows up, then he could swarm Johnson and win another crushing victory.
So come fight night, fans will have to see if the “old” Vitor shows up or if it turns out to just be an old Vitor.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com