Matt Brown and Erick Silva met in an instant classic in the main event of UFC Fight Night 40 on Saturday.
Silva hurt Brown with an early body shot, but Brown survived long enough to recover. Once he was back to his feet he began to put it on Silva. The crowd cheered loudly as the first round closed.
The second round was just as good.
Brown eventually got the stoppage in the third round after battering Silva on the ground. Referee Herb Dean stepped in to give Brown his seventh consecutive win inside the Octagon. It was an incredible fight—and performance—from both men.
This is what we learned from the main event.
What We’ll Remember About This Fight
Erick Silva’s body shot. Matt Brown’s pressure.
The first round.
The second round.
The finish.
Oh my, this was a fantastic fight, and there is no one thing to remember. The entire fight was an instant classic. It even was started with an intense staredown between the two combatants. It was an all-out war inside the Octagon.
Wow. That may be the only word to describe that fight.
What We Learned About Erick Silva
After being torched by Dong-Hyun Kim, Silva’s chin was questioned. Those concerns should be put to rest.
Anyone can get caught on the button and be put out. Silva hung tough in the cage against Brown. He took a great deal of punishment from the No. 7-ranked welterweight until the fight was stopped.
He should his toughness in this fight. Silva came up short, but answered a lot of his critics in the process.
What We Learned About Matt Brown
We learned that he may be one of the UFC’s best at utilizing his mic time.
Listen, we knew how tough Brown was. That was not a shock. However, in today’s UFC we are seeing apathetic fighters who refuse to call out their opponents. Brown was given a live microphone, and he used it to lobby for a championship fight.
Exactly what a fighter on a seven-fight win streak should do.
What’s Next for Erick Silva
Silva was stretchered out of the cage, and as of this writing we do not know the extent of his injuries. With that said we can look ahead in the hopes that the injuries are nothing too serious.
Silva got a shot at a top-10 fighter on Saturday, and after losing the UFC should go the same route they did post-Kim. Put Silva in the cage with a lower-level fighter. Perhaps Nate Loughran, who was signed to fight Silva back on UFC Fight Night 36.
Loughran had to drop out of that bout due to injury, but now Silva is back in the same spot he was on that night.
What’s Next for Matt Brown
The UFC has options. Brown has a justifiable claim to being the next contender at 170 pounds, but the UFC could easily put him in a top-five ranked fight to make him earn the shot in a title eliminator.
Personally, I think he should get a title shot. If I put on my fantasy matchmaker hat, I have a different opinion.
The UFC should bring Nick Diaz back for a title eliminator fight against Matt Brown.
First, it gives the fans an amazing fight. Secondly, it will make the winner a legitimate title contender. It kills two birds with one stone, and it’s the best option on the table. There is a UFC on Fox card coming up in July that needs a main event.
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