Thiago Silva makes his long-awaited return at UFC on Fuel 2: Gustafsson vs. Silva this Saturday in Sweden after serving a year suspension for PED usage in his fight with Brandon Vera.
At one point in his career, he was widely considered one of the top young fighters in the light heavyweight division; however, a new wave of young fighters have entered the UFC and have taken Silva’s spot at the top of the division.
Silva will face the toughest test of his career when he squares off against Alexander Gustafsson, who will be fighting in front of a hometown crowd. As with every fight, there will always questions about a certain fighter and the main event is no different, so let’s take a look at what I believe are the biggest questions surrounding Silva’s return to the cage.
How Much Ring Rust Will He Have Following a Year Away from the Sport?
It has been over a year since Silva has stepped foot into the UFC cage. In that time, a lot has changed in the light heavyweight division with Jon Jones sitting at the top of the division as champion and several fighters dropping out of the top 10.
We know that ring rust is real, so it’s not a question of “does he have ring rust?” It’s “how much ring rust does he have?” If he’s been training the entire year at American Top Team, then it is very possible that a year away will have been extremely beneficial as he’ll have made vast improvements in all of his skills.
A bigger question is: Is he the same explosive striker or has he lost a step? If he’s lost his timing then it should be expected that Gustafsson will end his night swiftly.
How Will He Fare Against a Young and Surging Opponent?
Essentially a follow-up to the first question regarding ring rust, but how will Silva react when he faces a young and hungry opponent with momentum on his side? The last time Silva won a fight was in 2009 during the short-lived Lyoto Machida era. Since then the entire light heavyweight landscape has changed.
His opponent Gustafsson is in a similar place in his fight career as Silva when he faced Machida. The key difference is that Machida was also a young and surging opponent while Silva hasn’t won a fight since 2009 when he knocked out Keith Jardine.
Did Silva’s time away from the cage allow him to become a better fighter or will it prove to be his undoing as his contemporaries continue to improve?
How Will He Handle Gustafsson’s Range?
Silva is a fighter who is at his best when fighting inside. Between his punching power and knees from the clinch, he’s one of the most dangerous fighters in the light heavyweight division after closing the distance.
Unfortunately for Silva, his opponent Gustafsson is not only one of the rangiest fighters in the division, but also one of the hardest hitting. A huge concern is that the time away will have affected Silva’s ability to time punches and limit damage as he closes the distance.
If he can get inside he can make the fight interesting as Gustafsson has never faced someone with such a violent clinch game. If he cannot, then it’s very likely he won’t have a successful showing in his return to the Octagon.
Is There a Chance He’s Hiding Another Injury Entering This Fight?
Silva has been extremely injury-prone during his career. It became most apparent following his fight with Rashad Evans at UFC 108 where he entered the fight with a slew of injuries and spoke about them openly afterwards.
The assumption is that a year away from fighting would be only beneficial to his body. It will allow him to heal up any nagging injuries and essentially fight close to 100 percent. Unfortunately, a year away from fighting also means a year away from earning and when a fighter needs to provide for their family they can make rash and irresponsible decisions.
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