Velasquez vs. Silva 2 should be an epic rematch of their heavyweight fight in UFC 146. Cain Velasquez won that match easily, and Antonio Silva will be eager to seek revenge. In Saturday’s UFC 160 pay-per-view main event, we should see a pretty bloody fight.
Velasquez will be inclined to keep his heavyweight crown, while “Bigfoot” Silva, who beat Travis Browne and Alistair Overeem to get here, will do all he can to steal the title away.
However, Velasquez is just too good and Silva doesn’t really stand a chance.
Let’s remember that in UFC 146, Velasquez absolutely dominated. He scored a TKO victory at just 3 minutes and 36 seconds into the first round.
In addition, Velasquez is much better on the mat than Silva. Velasquez was a two-time All-American at Arizona State in wrestling. If this becomes a wrestling match, Silva will be at a huge disadvantage. Velasquez is simply quicker and more agile.
Velasquez has also improved his conditioning, something he showed off in his five-round victory against Junior Dos Santos. Silva, a big man at 6’4″ 263 pounds, can tire easily.
The longer this match goes on, the better chance Velasquez has. Silva has only gone past the first round seven times and has never gone five rounds in any fight in his career.
Silva does pack a pretty powerful punch, and he can win if he scores a knockout early. If he gets one big punch in, then we could see an upset.
However, Velasquez is too quick to get knocked out by one punch. His agility will make it hard for Silva to land a solid punch. Silva will have to be so overpowering that Velasquez has nowhere to go.
The blueprint for Velasquez to win is simple—get Silva tired and then use the mat to finish him. Velasquez doesn’t need to win early, although that would be welcome. In fact, Velasquez has a bigger advantage the longer the match goes on.
By forcing this match to be settled on the mat, Velasquez will dominate Silva. Of course, Silva will do what he can to get as many powerful punches in early on and knock Velasquez out before it can turn into a wrestling match.
That said, Velasquez has the upper hand. He’s the reigning champ and knows how to beat Silva. He’s very well-rounded and is solid, if not spectacular, in all aspects. He has the right skill set to beat Silva, and that’s why he will win this rematch.
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