After two straight losses to Daniel Cormier and Cain Velasquez, Antonio “Big Foot” Silva believes a win over Travis Browne will put him among the best in the UFC’s heavyweight division.
Silva, who faces Browne at UFC on FX 5 this Friday, was talking to MMAJunkie.com about his recent performances and desire to defeat Browne.
I think Travis Browne is a good fighter, but I don’t know if Travis is in the top 10 based off his last three opponents. But other than that, I believe that after this victory, I’ll be among the top five or six heavyweights in the UFC.
That’s a bold claim for a fighter with a chequered career like Silva.
It’s true, until the Brazilian met Cormier in the Strikeforce heavyweight tournament, he had been on a tear, winning three straight fights culminating in the defeat of MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko in 2011.
However, the memories of those feats have quickly vanished as first Cormier, and then AKA teammate Velasquez made short work of Silva, both finishing him in the first round.
Silva says that those defeats have fueled a fire in him.
“I’m coming into this fight with a lot of anger from the last few situations that I’ve been in,” he said. “But I’m very excited and motivated to get my first UFC win.”
Browne will have his own point to prove. The 6’7″ heavyweight has gone undefeated in a 14-fight MMA career, with only a draw to Cheick Kongo marring an otherwise unblemished record.
That run brings with it its own hype, and despite the fact that Browne is yet to defeat a top-ranked heavyweight, Silva clearly thinks a win over him would mean a win over a rising star.
UFC on FX 5 will go down at the Target Center in Minneapolis on Friday, Oct. 5.
Khurram Aziz is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @khurramaziz1981
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