You’ve read the title and are already writing your comments as to why I’m the biggest idiot writing for Bleacher Report. That’s fine. I can take it, but at least hear me out.
I’m not somebody who writes for shock value. In fact, I despise those that do. So don’t think that this is being published for that reason.
Think of all the UFC fights that have taken place. Not only this year, or last year, or the five years preceding that. I’m talking about every UFC fight that has taken place. Have you ever sensed as much build up for one fight as you do for Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen II?
Perhaps Chuck and Tito? GSP and Penn? What about Tito and Shamrock? There are plenty of fights that had a high level of anticipation for them, but nothing compares to what we are seeing in this rematch that will take place on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
What happens when the fight doesn’t live up to expectations? Is it even possible for Silva and Sonnen to put on a show that will warrant the level of attention it has received? I don’t think so.
Most fans anticipate the fight being as exciting as their first fight, if not more so. The first fight appeared to be exciting because Sonnen was not nearly as popular as he is today and the world was captured by the huge underdog dominating the champion in ways we’ve never seen before.
The fight itself consisted of one man dominating another for four-and-a-half rounds. It wasn’t a close fight by any stretch of the imagination. Of course, Silva threw up the Hail Mary in the final round and made Sonnen tap out.
Fast forward two years and there isn’t a huge underdog in the fight. Polls are almost split on who the fans expect to win and both fighters are a little older.
Sonnen looked good against Brian Stann last October, but followed that up with a very ugly and uninspiring win versus Michael Bisping. In fact, many believe he lost that fight.
Silva, on the other hand, still looks to be his dominant self. Since his first fight with Sonnen, Silva has convincing wins over Vitor Belfort and Yushin Okami.
Let’s face it, Sonnen caught Silva off-guard in their first fight. Silva is too good to let the same thing happen again. Especially with so much time in between fights to prepare.
This isn’t going to be a back and forth five-round slugfest like the media and other MMA fans have hyped it up to be. Silva has faced tougher challenges in his career and made quick work of those opponents.
I’d be very surprised if Sonnen gets beyond the second round. His only chance is to get Silva to the ground much like he did in their first fight. Silva will not allow that to happen this time around and I expect Sonnen to get caught with a knee or a kick on a takedown attempt.
I’m amped for this fight as much as you are, but the expectations for this fight need to be tempered a bit. Otherwise, we will all be disappointed.
Joe Chacon is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report and a staff writer for Operation Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @JoeChacon.
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