The first feeling I had when I learned that Mauricio Rua was scheduled to fight Thiago Silva was pure excitement, because of both of their vicious striking abilities and their willingness to use them (via Yahoo Sports).
But on second thought, it occurred to me that Silva is not on the same level as Rua at this point in time.
Although Rua is 2-3 in his last five fights, he’s been competing with some of the best fighters in the league. Lyoto Machida, Jon Jones, Forrest Griffin and Dan Henderson aren’t opponents that can be overlooked.
In fact, they are all former UFC champions.
Silva, on the other hand, has only fought twice in the last two years, the most recent being a loss to Gustafsson and the other a no contest for submitting nonhuman urine (via MMA Junkie) for his UFC 125 post-fight drug test. Both of these fights were against mid-level talent and followed his loss to Rashad Evans in 2010. Before that, he was knocked out by Machida, the man that Rua arguably beat twice.
Yes, Gustafsson is now a credible opponent, but he has just recently broken into the top ten for the first time in his career.
It’s possible that this fight was scheduled because of a lack in top ten athletes currently available. Rua and Quinton Jackson were expected to rematch this year but Jackson’s need for knee surgery takes him out of competition possibly for the rest of the year (via MMA Junkie).
Although I don’t believe this fight to be right for Shogun, it may be the only reasonable possibility. It’s also a very lucky and advantageous opportunity for Silva if he happens to defeat his fellow Brazilian.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com