Tag: Anderson Silva

Israel Adesanya labelled greatest middleweight of all time, surpasses UFC great Anderson Silva

Israel Adesanya best middleweight of all time over Anderson Silva with UFC 287 win Jon AnikIsrael Adesanya has firmly passed former undisputed middleweight champion, Anderson Silva as the greatest middleweight fighter of all time according to UFC play-by-play lead, Jon Anik – who claims the strength of schedule and second round KO win over Alex Pereira solidify his claims. Taking main event honors at UFC 287 over the course of […]

Israel Adesanya best middleweight of all time over Anderson Silva with UFC 287 win Jon Anik

Israel Adesanya has firmly passed former undisputed middleweight champion, Anderson Silva as the greatest middleweight fighter of all time according to UFC play-by-play lead, Jon Anik – who claims the strength of schedule and second round KO win over Alex Pereira solidify his claims.

Taking main event honors at UFC 287 over the course of last weekend, Adesanya managed to reclaim the undisputed middleweight title with a stunning second round knockout win over defending champion, Pereira.

Forced to return to the middleweight limit for the first time in his professional mixed martial arts career, the Nigerian-Kiwi had dropped his crown to Pereira back in November of last year at UFC 281, suffering a fifth round TKO loss at the Octagon fence.

Rallying and surviving a striking onslaught from Pereira at UFC 287 over the weekend, Israel Adesanya countered at the fence, stopping the Brazilian with a massive right hook counter, sending him to the Octagon canvas.

Heralded for his victory – namely by UFC welterweight Matt Brown following his knockout win, Adesanya, who has been touted as one of the top-5 greatest of all time, has now eclipsed the above-mentioned, Silva as the best middleweight to ever grace the sport.

“In my humble opinion, [the UFC 287 win] cements Israel Adesanya as the greatest [middleweight] of all time,” Jon Anik said on ESPN First Take. “There are people who can still argue Anderson Silva is the greatest middleweight champion of all time, and in terms of the title defenses, that is okay.”

“But, I sit here in 2023, and not just argue for Adesanya’s case as one of the best pound-for-pound guys right now,” Anik explained. “I think he’s the greatest middleweight champion of all time on his strength of schedule, and based on this win.” 

Israel Adesanya landed a win over Anderson Silva back in 2019

Sharing the Octagon with former middleweight champion, Silva back in February 2019 in the main event of UFC 234, City Kickboxing staple, Adesanya managed to land a unanimous decision triumph against the former pound-for-pound number one. 

Anthony Pettis says he was close to fighting Anderson Silva in his last UFC outing

Anthony Pettis, Anderson Silva, UFCFormer UFC lightweight title holder Anthony Pettis claims he almost fought Anderson Silva in Oct. 2020.  In an interview with RedCorner MMA, Pettis (25-14 in MMA) revealed that nearly became the last mixed martial arts opponent for Silva. Instead, Uriah Hall, who defeated Silva by TKO at UFC Vegas 12, retired the former long-time middleweight […]

Anthony Pettis, Anderson Silva, UFC

Former UFC lightweight title holder Anthony Pettis claims he almost fought Anderson Silva in Oct. 2020. 

In an interview with RedCorner MMA, Pettis (25-14 in MMA) revealed that nearly became the last mixed martial arts opponent for Silva. Instead, Uriah Hall, who defeated Silva by TKO at UFC Vegas 12, retired the former long-time middleweight champion. 

“That’s one I was supposed to get in the UFC right before he retired. He got Uriah Hall, actually,” Pettis said. “That was discussed. I called him out. He accepted. UFC didn’t allow it at that time. They wanted him to fight Uriah Hall.” (h/t mmamania)

Anthony Pettis vs. Anderson Silva is Still Possible in Boxing

A potential fight between Pettis and Silva could still happen. Silva, who will be inducted in the 2023 UFC Hall of Fame, is now competing in the world of boxing.  

“The Spider” has a 3-2 professional boxing record. He came up short in his latest fight with Jake Paul in Oct. 2022. 

Silva, who held the 185-pound UFC title for seven years, defended it for a record 15 times. 

Pettis, who is a former 155-pound UFC champion, is coming off a successful boxing debut this past weekend over multi-time champion Roy Jones Jr. 

The 36-year-old, Milwaukee, Wisconsin native is committed to a MMA return with a plan to move back up to the welterweight division. 

The former WEC lightweight champion spent a majority of his career in the UFC, where he competed for nine years. Pettis’s resume includes wins over Charles Oliveira, Benson Henderson, Gilbert Melendez and Donald Cerrone, to name a select few. 

After his UFC stint, Pettis signed with the PFL going 1-4 in his last five fights. The current free agent’s last win came at PFL 3, where he defeated Myles Price by first-round submission.

Ex-Middleweight champion Anderson Silva to be inducted into UFC Hall of Fame during summer ceremony

Anderson Silva inducted UFC Hall of Fame UFC 286Former undisputed UFC middleweight champion, Anderson Silva, will officially be inducted into the promotion’s Hall of Fame as part of their Pioneer Wing – ahead of a summer ceremony held by the organization in Las Vegas, Nevada. As per the broadcast during UFC 286 in London, England – Silva, a former undisputed middleweight champion under […]

Anderson Silva inducted UFC Hall of Fame UFC 286

Former undisputed UFC middleweight champion, Anderson Silva, will officially be inducted into the promotion’s Hall of Fame as part of their Pioneer Wing – ahead of a summer ceremony held by the organization in Las Vegas, Nevada.

As per the broadcast during UFC 286 in London, England – Silva, a former undisputed middleweight champion under the promotion’s banner, will receive his induction into the UFC Hall of Fame during a ceremony later this summer during International Fight Week in July.

Anderson Silva receives UFC Hall of Fame induction

“If you have a Mount Rushmore of UFC fighters… @SpiderAnderson (Anderson Silva) is probably on it!” UFC tweeted on this official Twitter account. 

Debuting in the UFC back in June 2006 with a first round knockout win over Chris Leben, Silva would then clinch the undisputed middleweight crown in his next Octagon walk – taking out Rich Franklin with a another first round KO in October of that year.

Kickstarting one of the most heralded and iconic championship reigns in promotional and sport antiquity, Silva, a native of Curitiba, would land a 10 consecutive successful title defenses – in a reign which spanned a whopping 2,457 days. Silva also holds the longest winning spree in UFC history – notching a stunning 16 consecutive victories under the Dana White-led banner.

Following his championship-clinching win over Franklin, Silva would then defend the title against Nate Marquardt, Franklin in a title rematch, Dan Henderson, Patrick Cote, Thales Leites, Demian Maia, Chael Sonnen twice, Vitor Belfort, and Yushin Okami. 

Ending his Octagon tenure back in October 2020 in a knockout loss against the since-retired, Uriah Hall, Silva boasts a 34-11(1) professional record – with his most recent professional win coming in the form of a unanimous decision victory over Derek Brunson at UFC 208 in February 2017. 

Chael Sonnen reveals he made more than $8,000,000 for Anderson Silva rematch back in 2012

Chael Sonnen, Anderson SilvaUFC legend Chael Sonnen claims he made over $8 million for his second fight against Anderson Silva at UFC 148.  In their first bout at UFC 117, Silva secured a late fifth-round submission win over Sonnen to retain the middleweight title. Two years later, Sonnen suffered a second-round TKO loss to Silva.  Chael Sonnen Says […]

Chael Sonnen, Anderson Silva

UFC legend Chael Sonnen claims he made over $8 million for his second fight against Anderson Silva at UFC 148. 

In their first bout at UFC 117, Silva secured a late fifth-round submission win over Sonnen to retain the middleweight title. Two years later, Sonnen suffered a second-round TKO loss to Silva. 

Chael Sonnen Says He Earned His Largest Purse at UFC 148

Despite the loss in 2012, Sonnen alleges that he made a large amount of money in his title rematch against Silva. 

“The most I made was 8.8 [million] in one night. I made 8.8 the second time I fought Anderson,” Chael Sonnen said on the FLAGRANT podcast. “This was in 2012, and I will tell you, the numbers are bigger than people think they are. I’ve always wondered what [Anderson] got, he had to get more. He had to, he had to.”

“I heard rumors he was 3.2 million or 3.1 million and I’ve tried to confirm that. But then he told me a number that he thought we did on pay-per-view and it wasn’t the number we did on pay-per-views. So I don’t know how this whole thing sat, there was just a time I stopped [searching].” (Transcribed by BJPenn.com)

According to BetMGM, Anderson Silva is the fifth-highest paid UFC fighter in history. Sonnen was not listed in the top-20. In 2012, it was reported that Sonnen made a total of $50,000 while Silva made $200,000 at UFC 148. 

Chael Sonnen reveals he made more than $8,000,000 for Anderson Silva rematch back in 2012

Chael Sonnen, Anderson SilvaUFC legend Chael Sonnen claims he made over $8 million for his second fight against Anderson Silva at UFC 148.  In their first bout at UFC 117, Silva secured a late fifth-round submission win over Sonnen to retain the middleweight title. Two years later, Sonnen suffered a second-round TKO loss to Silva.  Chael Sonnen Says […]

Chael Sonnen, Anderson Silva

UFC legend Chael Sonnen claims he made over $8 million for his second fight against Anderson Silva at UFC 148. 

In their first bout at UFC 117, Silva secured a late fifth-round submission win over Sonnen to retain the middleweight title. Two years later, Sonnen suffered a second-round TKO loss to Silva. 

Chael Sonnen Says He Earned His Largest Purse at UFC 148

Despite the loss in 2012, Sonnen alleges that he made a large amount of money in his title rematch against Silva. 

“The most I made was 8.8 [million] in one night. I made 8.8 the second time I fought Anderson,” Chael Sonnen said on the FLAGRANT podcast. “This was in 2012, and I will tell you, the numbers are bigger than people think they are. I’ve always wondered what [Anderson] got, he had to get more. He had to, he had to.”

“I heard rumors he was 3.2 million or 3.1 million and I’ve tried to confirm that. But then he told me a number that he thought we did on pay-per-view and it wasn’t the number we did on pay-per-views. So I don’t know how this whole thing sat, there was just a time I stopped [searching].” (Transcribed by BJPenn.com)

According to BetMGM, Anderson Silva is the fifth-highest paid UFC fighter in history. Sonnen was not listed in the top-20. In 2012, it was reported that Sonnen made a total of $50,000 while Silva made $200,000 at UFC 148.