“Anderson Silva, you absolutely suck, Super Bowl weekend, the biggest rematch in the history of the business. I’m calling you out Silva, but we’re upping the stakes. I beat you, you leave the division. You beat me, I will leave the UFC forever.” These were the words of Chael Sonnen in a post-fight interview after his UFC 136 victory over Brian Stann.
He didn’t have the date right, he has since backed off the “loser leaves town” premise and obviously Anderson Silva by no means “sucks,” but Sonnen did get one thing right—Anderson Silva vs Chael Sonnen will be the biggest rematch in the history of the UFC.
Rather than meeting on Super Bowl weekend, it appears the rematch will be a summer blockbuster. According to UFC.com the date and venue have now been set and we will finally see the rematch we’ve been waiting for on June 23 at Joao Havelange Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The massive soccer stadium seats approximately 47,000 but the live attendance record set by UFC 129 of over 55,000 is expected to be eclipsed by the landmark bout. According to Dana White we can expect this to be the event of the year:
“This will be the biggest sporting event of the year. Bigger than the NFL, the NBA, you name it – UFC 147 will be the biggest. The whole world wants to see this fight between Silva and Sonnen. We are broadcast in over 150 countries in 22 languages in half a billion homes. Wherever those fans are, they are going to be watching this fight.”
Let’s take a look at this match up that is now almost two years in the making and why it will be the biggest rematch in the history of the business.