Bleacher Report lead mixed martial arts writers Jonathan Snowden and Jeremy Botter have banded together—much like a modern-day version of Wham!—to take on the most important questions facing the MMA world. Welcome to The Question.
In his last two fights, the once-great Anderson Silva was knocked unconscious and had his leg snapped into pieces. It seemed like an ignominious end to an amazing career.
But rather than go gently into that good night, the 39-year-old Silva decided to carry on. He main events UFC 183 this weekend, taking on former welterweight challenger Nick Diaz.
Does Silva still have what it takes to compete with the world’s best? Let’s discuss.
Jonathan: Anderson Silva is the greatest MMA fighter of all time. At his peak, he was better than anyone who’s ever stepped into the cage not named Jon Jones. More than that, Silva is an artist without compare. He doesn’t just bludgeon people into submissions. Silva creates art.
Anderson Silva is also my age. And that is very old. Too old, perhaps, to maintain your status as one of the world’s top prizefighters. I worry about him, Jeremy. Am I right to?
Jeremy: You are correct. You are very old. I know that is not the question you asked me, but I wanted to make sure you knew where we stood on that front.
As to the real question: I think it’s only natural to worry about folks who are getting older, especially when they get punched in the face for a living. I always worried about Randy Couture, for example. I still cringe when I think of Lyoto Machida killing him dead to finish his career. It’s like, “that’s an old man! Why would you do that to an old man? Pick on someone your own age, you brute!”
But then, this is what they do, and it is what they know. And with Silva, I feel like it’s different. I know it’s silly, but I still view his two losses to Chris Weidman as fluke-ish. I just can’t help myself. And so I’m hopeful that when Silva gets back in the Octagon on Saturday night, what we’ll see is a lot of what we used to see back when he was dishing out his patented Silva hurt.
Especially with his new bionic leg.
Jonathan: UFC was smart here. That’s not always the case these days, in a world where global expansion has forced them into fights that are perhaps a bit premature or ill-considered. But here matchmaker Joe Silva knocked it out of the park.
In Nick Diaz they’ve found the perfect opponent for Anderson.
Diaz is everything Anderson isn’t. He’s temperamental. He’s action-oriented. Most importantly? He comes forward. Whether things or going well or poorly, he’s in constant forward motion.
That plays perfectly into Silva’s game plan. He’s a counterpuncher by trade. He thrives on someone being foolish enough to chase him. Diaz will chase him. Diaz will get merked. It’s a tale as old as time.
Whether we believe Silva is washed up or just waiting for a chance at redemption, we won’t get definitive answers Saturday. This was a fight he was born to win.
Jeremy: We’re in agreement here. Remember the last time that happened? Oh, wait: That was on Saturday night, when we agreed Rumble the Unmerciful would beat Alexander Gustafsson by punching him in the face with violence.
In a way, I foresee the exact same thing happening to Diaz. For all of the reasons you stated and more, this is just a terrible matchup for Diaz. That’s unfortunate, because there is so much to like about Diaz, and after the beating he takes from Silva on Saturday night, I’m pretty sure we’ll see him decide to walk away from the sport again.
And then my new Diaz Brothers Neighborhood Watch shirt will be mostly useless.
Jonathan: Diaz missed a big opportunity by not packaging that shirt with a pair of nunchucks. It was a perfect branding opportunity. I guess he didn’t go to school for that.
Everyone knows I love Diaz with all of my heart. He’s my favorite fighter. I know we aren’t supposed to play favorites. But Diaz represents everything I want to be. Pure id. He’s a glorious prizefighter.
But, and I know you could sense the “but” coming, he’s hopelessly outmatched. His best career win came against Takanori Gomi at 155 pounds. That was almost eight years and 30 pounds ago.
Diaz, even if the fight goes to plan, will be up against the cage with the Spider, trying to work him over with body shots. Talk to Rich Franklin to find out how well that works. Just try not to look at the crooked nose that resulted.
Jeremy: So we’re in agreement, I think, which is always a scary thing. But I see this one the same way as you. This is just an awful matchup for Diaz, while also still being a totally appealing fight. Most of that is because Diaz is awesome for all of the things he does outside the cage, and also for the spirit he brings to a fight. He’s a wild man.
But being a wild man isn’t enough. He’s facing either the greatest or the second-greatest fighter in the history of the world. An aging, depleted Anderson Silva is probably still more than a match for Silva simply because of the style differences, and I think we’ll see that play out on Saturday night.
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