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At UFC 134, UFC middleweight champion Anderson “the Spider” Silva will be making his return to Brazil as he takes on Japan’s Yushin Okami. Okami was the last person to defeat Silva, albeit by a controversial disqualification…
At UFC 134, UFC middleweight champion Anderson “the Spider” Silva will be making his return to Brazil as he takes on Japan’s Yushin Okami.
Okami was the last person to defeat Silva, albeit by a controversial disqualification.
Silva was disqualified because he threw an illegal up kick while Okami was on the ground.
Anything can happen in MMA, and on any given night, any fighter can be defeated. But I believe Silva will win this bout and remain champion.
Here are some reasons why.
Anderson Silva, love him or hate him, is one of the best fighters to ever set foot in the Octagon.To some, he is in the top two pound-for-pound best. To others, he is the best fighter in the sport today. It seems like ancient history when trying …
Anderson Silva, love him or hate him, is one of the best fighters to ever set foot in the Octagon.
To some, he is in the top two pound-for-pound best. To others, he is the best fighter in the sport today.
It seems like ancient history when trying to remember the last time Anderson Silva was standing in the BLUE corner. He has dominated the UFC Middleweight division like none other has in any weight class. With each win, Silva sets records and builds his legacy of being one of the greatest of all time.
One glance at him, and you do not see a fighter. You see a skinny Brazilian man, with little to no scar tissue, who does not have the typical cauliflower ears many BJJ and wrestling fighters tend to have. But once in a cage, he turns into a phenomenal combatant.
His championship reign, winning streak, and record setting will be on the line once again come UFC RIO. He will be facing the strong contender, Yushin Okami. Okami is the last man to have a win over “The Spider”, but came at the disqualification of Silva when he knocked out Okami with an illegal upkick.
This is redemption time for Silva, and the stage is set for him. He will be fighting in his home country of Brazil, looking to avenge the blemish that his fight with Okami has left. But one must look at factors that affect a fighter’s situation during the fight.
By being in front of his home country, the pressure may be on Silva to perform. This may very well get him out of his element and cause openings for Okami to capitalize on. Also, his records are on the line, not to mention his belt.
Silva wants to build his legacy and remain undefeated, but each fight he wins is also an addition to the risk and what he can lose. A fighter who wins the belt after two fights and then loses it right after, does not hurt their legacy too significantly. If Silva loses to Okami, he will take a dramatic hit to his reputation.
Anderson is at a point where fans want to see him lose just because he is doing so well. It may be out of jealously, the fact he dominated well-liked fighters like Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin, or because they have given in to Chael Sonnen’s jokes.
Whatever reason, the greater he becomes, the more people hate him. Yushin will look to shock the Middleweight division and be the one to end Silva’s reign.
The pressure is on Yushin Okami as well. He is on a three-fight winning streak, and it is finally his shot at the belt. He was in title contention against Rich Franklin in 2007, riding on a six-fight winning streak, but lost the decision. He followed with three wins before being stopped by Sonnen, and then gained three more wins. He has been clamoring for his shot, and due to Sonnen and Vitor Belfort, his shot has been pushed and postponed.
With the pressure of his first UFC title shot, he will try to prove to the world that he is the best Japanese fighter, as Dana White has stated. He will also be on Silva’s home turf, which can psychologically hinder a fighter.
His advantage will be his wrestling and the fact he has been training with Chael Sonnen, the only man to give a beating to the Champion and come the closest to taking his title.
The question is, will Yushin be fast enough to get Silva on the ground? Every fight starts standing, and this is where Silva is the most dangerous. If Yushin pushes the pace, he could eliminate the time Silva takes to figure out his opponent, setting himself up for a takedown. But once on the ground, will Yushin stay busy like Sonnen? Or will he take more risks in going for submissions?
Yushin is not one to recently go for submissions, but rather get TKOs or decision wins. This could be the problem for Okami since his normal striking will not work the same way.
Silva is only human, and makes mistakes, but one cannot deny that you cannot fully understand fighting Silva until you actually do. Okami has faced Silva before, but not the Silva we know today. The situational advantage that Okami has is that most of the pressure is on Anderson.
Also, if Okami loses, it just makes Silva look better, whereas if Anderson loses, he looks worse, and Okami looks incredible. The situation will be similar to when Fabricio Werdum fought Fedor Emelianenko.
One other factor is that Anderson is getting older. He may not show it a lot, but at 36, his MMA career is starting to come to an end. He may or may not be at his peak, or he may be on the down slope. But for a fighter like Silva, his descent will be more gradual.
Dana White said it well that Silva is fighting for his legacy, and Okami is fighting for respect. Okami, like the rest of the Middleweights, are fantastic fighters. The problem is that Anderson has been so dominant for so long, the rest of the division looks weak. If you were to remove Silva from the division tomorrow, the Middleweights would all look a lot better.
This is Silva’s legacy. By shutting down Yushin Okami, he will continue his march toward greatness, and stay on top of the rankings. If he loses and Georges St.Pierre wins his fight against Diaz, he may very well be bumped to second place. Whether this is justified or not, it will inevitably happen.
Regardless, you will see history be made at UFC RIO. Either Silva will once again expand his reign, or Okami will dethrone him and make “The Spider” keep his hand at his side.
Give us your thoughts on the UFC Rio card below! Predict Main and Co-Main (Winner, Method, Round). Winner(s) will be mentioned in a future article.
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In the last 18 months, we’ve seen Fedor Emelianenko’s mystique vanish and Georges St-Pierre has bored us for the fourth fight in a row.Brock Lesnar has been exposed as an emperor with no clothes, and B.J. Penn was punched into gatekeeper status.It’s be…
In the last 18 months, we’ve seen Fedor Emelianenko‘s mystique vanish and Georges St-Pierre has bored us for the fourth fight in a row.
Brock Lesnar has been exposed as an emperor with no clothes, and B.J. Penn was punched into gatekeeper status.
It’s been open “dethrone royalty” season for every fan favourite in the sport… well, almost.
Anderson “The Spider” Silva has continued to fight the best challengers and he keeps dropping our jaws—and nearly breaking Vitor Belfort’s.
On most analysts’ charts, Silva is currently the pound-for-pound best MMA fighter in history. And it is nearly impossible to argue otherwise.
Recently, he turned the lights out on the frighteningly resurrected career of Belfort. Before that, he embarrassed Forrest Griffin. And let us not forget the facial reconstruction on Rich Franklin.
Silva has dominated every single opponent since entering the Octagon—except one.
Chael Sonnen gave Silva the biggest workout and scare of his UFC career—by a long shot.
Although, post-fight, Sonnen’s face was the bumpier of the two, Silva was well behind on all four-and-a-half rounds before a “lucky” choke saved his belt.
Up until that moment, Sonnen came at Silva relentlessly. He ate a lot, but he fed Silva more.
Silva could get no comfortable rhythm and never dictated either the pace, ring space or style of the match.
It was the only fight in his UFC run where he looked like he was in a fight.
No one has ever managed to make Silva look uncomfortable and reactionary.
No one.
Ever.
There is no greater fighter in UFC or MMA history than Silva. And there has been no single fight in Silva’s career in which he was dominated for four-plus rounds.
Name me a better fight than Sonnen vs. Silva 2.
That’s right.
There is none.
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When the UFC goes to Rio de Janeiro for UFC 134, it will not only be bringing the pound-for-pound king of MMA, but one of the most exciting and dynamic fighters in the world in Anderson “The Spider” Silva.Nobody knows what to expect from the …
When the UFC goes to Rio de Janeiro for UFC 134, it will not only be bringing the pound-for-pound king of MMA, but one of the most exciting and dynamic fighters in the world in Anderson “The Spider” Silva.
Nobody knows what to expect from the UFC Middleweight Champion, but they do know he is capable of ending his fight with Yushin Okami with one shot. Last time out, he knocked out Vitor Belfort with the first ever front-kick to the face in the UFC.
It’s these types of exciting moments that UFC fans tune into the fights for, and they know what to expect when the following fighters fight.
These are the 10 most exciting middleweights to watch in MMA right now.
UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva is the greatest mixed martial artist on planet Earth today, and quite possibly of all-time. Of this I have no doubt. And I’m honestly not convinced there’s anyone in the world today who could beat hi…
UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva is the greatest mixed martial artist on planet Earth today, and quite possibly of all-time. Of this I have no doubt. And I’m honestly not convinced there’s anyone in the world today who could beat him.
So why, then, am I writing an article about guys who have the tools to dethrone The Spider?
Well, for one, no one is unbeatable. Anyone who follows MMA (or sports in general) knows that anything can happen. Two, while I wouldn’t put money on anyone defeating Silva, there are some guys who because of their physical talents or fighting styles do measure up favorably against The Spider.
Here are those five guys. A couple ground rules: I only considered middleweights, light heavyweights and welterweights who could move up to middleweight (guess who that is!), because those are the three categories of fighter who could actually meet Silva in a cage. In addition, given the fluid world of MMA promotions and the drawing power of the UFC, I considered guys from across the sport, not just those currently working in the Octagon.
In one week the UFC will return to Brazil for the first time in 13 years to host UFC 134. The main card will feature a pair of rematches between Anderson Silva and Yushin Okami, as well as Forrest Griffin versus Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. The eve…
In one week the UFC will return to Brazil for the first time in 13 years to host UFC 134.
The main card will feature a pair of rematches between Anderson Silva and Yushin Okami, as well as Forrest Griffin versus Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
The event will also mark the return of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, who is prepared to face heavyweight prospect Brendan Schaub.
UFC president Dana White and UFC color commentator Joe Rogan preview the main card with in-depth interviews, analysis and opinion. The event, dubbed “UFC Rio,” is expected to draw a lot of attraction and media coverage throughout Brazil prior to next weekend.
UFC 134 is scheduled for August 27, live from the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro.
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