More than four years after Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva outlasted Andrei Arlovski in their first bout, the 35-year-old Belarusian exacted his revenge in the Octagon in Bigfoot’s home country of Brazil on Saturday.
Arlovski needed just two minutes, 59 seconds to dispose of the hulking Brazilian with a brutal knockout in the main event of UFC Fight Night 51 at Ginasio Nilson Nelson in Brasilia.
Arlovski more than made up for a lackluster performance in his last bout, a controversial split-decision win over Brendan Schaub at UFC 174.
Bigfoot, on the contrary, hasn’t scored a win since TKO’ing the now-fading Alistair Overeem at UFC 156 in early 2013.
Here’s a look at what we learned from this heavyweight rematch.
What We’ll Remember About This Fight
Unlike his fight with Schaub, Arlovski ensured that fans would have something positive to talk about following his rematch with Bigfoot the instant he landed a venomous right straight that put the KO into motion.
Bigfoot absorbed the right straight midway through the first round and crashed to the canvas before absorbing a barrage of hammerfists from Arlovski that rendered him unconscious.
The bout’s referee, Jerin Valel, had seen enough and intervened to save Bigfoot from any further punishment.
What We Learned About Antonio Silva
Although Silva may have advantages over many UFC heavyweights in the strength and size departments, the 35-year-old former title challenger struggles greatly with speedier and more technically sound heavyweights.
Silva has lost via KO/TKO in four of his last seven bouts, and the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt has notched just two wins since joining the UFC in the spring of 2012.
After showing that he couldn’t keep up with the wrestling of champion Cain Velasquez, Bigfoot has now been exposed as an average boxer.
What We Learned About Andrei Arlovski
With his future in doubt, the 14th-ranked Arlovski answered his critics and earned one of the most pivotal wins of his career, doing so in highlight-reel fashion against the fourth-ranked Silva.
Arlovski clearly showed that he still has the speed and striking skills that helped him win the UFC heavyweight belt in 2005.
At 35, he obviously still has enough power, speed and killer instinct to hang with the best heavyweights in the world.
What’s Next For Silva
Bigfoot dropped to 2-3-1 in the UFC, and coming off a nine-month suspension for a failed drug test, it’s safe to say that the hulking Brazilian has found himself on the hot seat.
Thankfully for Bigfoot, the heavyweight division appears in utter disarray at the moment. So for the time being, Silva can consider his job with the UFC safe.
However, with losses in two of his last three fights, he will certainly have his work cut out for him on his road back to the top.
A bout with the ninth-ranked Ben Rothwell would suit Bigfoot just fine once he gets cleared to fight again.
What’s Next For Arlovski
In his second stint with the UFC, Arlovski ran his winning streak to four with his KO of Silva, which was his first pure KO since putting away journeyman Travis Fulton in 2011.
Because he was so underwhelming in his win over Schaub, Arlovski still needs several wins before becoming a bona fide title contender.
That doesn’t mean UFC matchmaker Joe Silva won’t pit Arlovski with one of the division’s studs, like the fifth-ranked Stipe Miocic or the sixth-ranked Josh Barnett.
Arlovski would certainly be tabbed an underdog against either Miocic or Barnett, but a win would catapult him into the heavyweight title picture.
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