A hat trick could be in the cards for Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, as he looks to shock the world for a third consecutive time. This time, against Cain Velasquez at UFC 160.
The heavyweight title bout was officially announced by Ariel Helwani on FUEL TV’s UFC Tonight Tuesday night: “UFC President Dana White confirmed to me earlier today that UFC 160 on May 25 in Las Vegas, the MGM Grand Garden Arena, it will host Cain Velasquez vs. Bigfoot Silva II.”
The announcement likely comes as a surprise to some who were hoping to see Fabricio Werdum, Stefan Struve and Mark Hunt in the mix for a potential heavyweight title shot.
Silva’s monumental upset victories over Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne threw a major wrench in the UFC’s plans for the heavyweight title picture. So it’s tough to fault the UFC for going this route, seeing as how there really isn’t a definitive No. 1 contender in the heavyweight division.
Unfortunately, it’ll be tough generating interest for a rematch of a one-sided bout that took place less than a year ago.
At UFC 146, Velasquez handed Silva one of the most brutal beatdowns of 2012. Alex Smith, Silva’s manager, complained afterward about the fight being stopped too soon, but there was nothing about Silva’s performance that night to indicate a rematch would be in the cards so soon.
It’s amazing how quickly things change in the fight business. Less than a year ago, Silva was coming off back-to-back first-round knockout losses. Now, he’ll be contending for a world title after knocking out two of the top heavyweights in the world.
Will lightning strike a third time for Silva, or will his unexpected title run come to an abrupt end?
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