Tag: UFC 153

UFC 153: Which Fighter Has the Most to Gain?

This may be one of the easiest questions to answer heading into UFC 153. The card has been salvaged due to injury concerns and now features a colossal mismatch in the main event. Without a question the fighter with the most to gain is Stephan Bonn…

This may be one of the easiest questions to answer heading into UFC 153. The card has been salvaged due to injury concerns and now features a colossal mismatch in the main event.

Without a question the fighter with the most to gain is Stephan Bonnar. Nobody, not even Bonnar‘s own mother believes he will walk away from this without some serious battle scars. He is after all facing one of, if not the greatest fighter of all time.

A fighter will often fight to the best of their abilities when they have nothing to lose. Such is the case for “The American Psycho” on Saturday night at UFC 153.

Bonnar created a career for himself with one fight, the finale to the first season of The Ultimate Fighter. His bout with Forrest Griffin is universally accepted as being the match to kickstart MMA into the popular entity it has become.

He will have another chance to define his career with a single fight at UFC 153.

Silva has reigned over the UFC middleweight division since joining the company. He’s either destroyed or toyed with every opponent put in his path sans Chael Sonnen. Silva has made mincemeat of his opponents when jumping up to 205 lbs.

Silva’s victory over Griffin was awe inspiring of what a talented fighter he is.

Bonnar will have the chance to stain or possibly even erase all that at UFC 153. He enters the contest on a three-fight win streak but none of those men will have prepared Bonnar for what awaits him against Silva.

For a man whose career has been pedestrian at best, the fight against Silva could be a godsend. It gives Bonnar that chance to walk away from the sport he helped grow with the ultimate trump card, a victory over “The Spider.”

It’s an honor very few men have in life and for Bonnar, it would be a miraculous end to a career.

If Bonnar walks out of the Octagon with his head still on his shoulders it will be viewed as a moral victory at the least. Bonnar has absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain against Silva. It’s Silva’s legacy on the line at UFC 153.

Will Bonnar seize the moment and pull off the biggest upset in MMA history?

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 153: Which Fighter Has the Most to Gain?

This may be one of the easiest questions to answer heading into UFC 153. The card has been salvaged due to injury concerns and now features a colossal mismatch in the main event. Without a question the fighter with the most to gain is Stephan Bonn…

This may be one of the easiest questions to answer heading into UFC 153. The card has been salvaged due to injury concerns and now features a colossal mismatch in the main event.

Without a question the fighter with the most to gain is Stephan Bonnar. Nobody, not even Bonnar‘s own mother believes he will walk away from this without some serious battle scars. He is after all facing one of, if not the greatest fighter of all time.

A fighter will often fight to the best of their abilities when they have nothing to lose. Such is the case for “The American Psycho” on Saturday night at UFC 153.

Bonnar created a career for himself with one fight, the finale to the first season of The Ultimate Fighter. His bout with Forrest Griffin is universally accepted as being the match to kickstart MMA into the popular entity it has become.

He will have another chance to define his career with a single fight at UFC 153.

Silva has reigned over the UFC middleweight division since joining the company. He’s either destroyed or toyed with every opponent put in his path sans Chael Sonnen. Silva has made mincemeat of his opponents when jumping up to 205 lbs.

Silva’s victory over Griffin was awe inspiring of what a talented fighter he is.

Bonnar will have the chance to stain or possibly even erase all that at UFC 153. He enters the contest on a three-fight win streak but none of those men will have prepared Bonnar for what awaits him against Silva.

For a man whose career has been pedestrian at best, the fight against Silva could be a godsend. It gives Bonnar that chance to walk away from the sport he helped grow with the ultimate trump card, a victory over “The Spider.”

It’s an honor very few men have in life and for Bonnar, it would be a miraculous end to a career.

If Bonnar walks out of the Octagon with his head still on his shoulders it will be viewed as a moral victory at the least. Bonnar has absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain against Silva. It’s Silva’s legacy on the line at UFC 153.

Will Bonnar seize the moment and pull off the biggest upset in MMA history?

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 153: Erick Silva’s Keys to Victory

Erick Silva will face a big step up in competition when he goes up against Jon Fitch at UFC 153. It is sure to be his most difficult test to date and should he emerge victorious, he will be vaulted up the welterweight ladder.Let’s explore some of the k…

Erick Silva will face a big step up in competition when he goes up against Jon Fitch at UFC 153. It is sure to be his most difficult test to date and should he emerge victorious, he will be vaulted up the welterweight ladder.

Let’s explore some of the key points that Silva will need to follow in order to win this fight.

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UFC 153: Rick Story and 5 Fighters Who Have Had Their Hype Trains Derailed

It happens to all of us. A fighter takes the MMA scene by storm, and everyone rushes to predict greatness. Unfortunately in the cutthroat world of MMA, those predictions tend to fall short more often than not. An example of a prediction falling through…

It happens to all of us. A fighter takes the MMA scene by storm, and everyone rushes to predict greatness. Unfortunately in the cutthroat world of MMA, those predictions tend to fall short more often than not.

An example of a prediction falling through is Rick Story. He lost his UFC debut at UFC 99 but won six straight bouts including wins over BJJ whiz Dustin Hazelett, wrestling champion Johny Hendricks and Muay Thai striker Thiago Alves.

Unfortunately for Story, his momentum has stopped dead in its tracks recently—just like the fighters on this list. They all had a number of passengers aboard their hype train but have seen it run off the tracks as of late. 2012 hasn’t been kind to a number of “can’t-miss” fighters, leaving many to head back to the drawing board for 2013.

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UFC 153: Which Fighter Has the Most to Lose?

Losing is never the most healthy thing for an MMA career, but not all losses are created equal and very few losses are as devastating as the one Anderson Silva could potentially suffer at UFC 153.Yes, he’ll probably win. But bear with me for …

Losing is never the most healthy thing for an MMA career, but not all losses are created equal and very few losses are as devastating as the one Anderson Silva could potentially suffer at UFC 153.

Yes, he’ll probably win. But bear with me for a moment.

Silva’s reputation—his legacy—is built on a foundation of excellence, dominance and indeed, perfection. He isn’t such an awe-inspiring figure because he wins fights, it’s how he wins them. It’s one thing to beat Vitor Belfort and quite another to knock him out with a front-kick to the face.

Silva’s string of ungodly UFC performances has made him into a deity of sorts and rarely in mythology does one of divine stature receive a threat from a mere mortal. And no one is going to mistake Stephan Bonnar for a legend, or hero or anything, but flesh and blood.

Certainly, Bonnar has proven himself a warrior over the years, fighting his heart out in defeat as often as victory, but there’s no real awe about him—he’s just a tough guy. As ordinarily talented as middle-rung UFC fighters get.

There in lies the problem for Silva. When someone of his stature falls, they fall hard. And if they fall at the behest of someone barely approaching the base of their own personal mountain, they fall really hard.

That is why a loss is devastating to Silva here. He’ll still be remembered as an amazing fighter. He’ll probably even retain his reputation as the best fighter to have ever graced the Octagon, but a loss to Stephan Bonnar erases the perfection he’s maintained over his UFC tenure.

And considering what Bonnar‘s role as a UFC fighter represents, that rarest of distinctions would dissipate very unashamedly.

 

And beyond the emergence of an unjustifiable speck on Silva’s person, the absence of perfection invites questions.

Now that he is a man again, no longer combative perfection personified, was he ever really so different from the rest?

Maybe he’s not the greatest of all time? Maybe he’s not the best right now? Is he over the hill? Are Michael Bisping, or Chris Weidman or Alan Belcher going to expose him?

If Stephan Bonnar could kill the legend, how real could it ever have been?

No, a loss to Bonnar does not erase what Silva has done, but it does stop what he is doing—and that is building a UFC resume that eliminates room for debate, building a legend never rivaled and cementing his legacy as the embodiment of perfection as a UFC champion.

With a loss, Silva still retains his elite status, middleweight title and probably even his moniker as the greatest of all time. And those are meaningful accolades. 

But still, ending up there, with the other pillars of the sport, is not something you aspire to when you’ve flown high above them for years.

And that’s where a loss at UFC 153 puts Silva—with the best, sure, but with others all the same.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 153: Erick Silva and the 10 Best Brazilian Prospects in MMA

At UFC 153 Erick Silva will be facing his toughest test in former welterweight title contender Jon Fitch. The move represents a huge step up for Silva and could propel the 28-year-old into stardom. He’s already regarded as one of the best prospects in …

At UFC 153 Erick Silva will be facing his toughest test in former welterweight title contender Jon Fitch. The move represents a huge step up for Silva and could propel the 28-year-old into stardom.

He’s already regarded as one of the best prospects in the UFC. Despite his age, Silva has only competed in 17 professional bouts since stepping into the cage back in 2005. He’s gone undefeated in the UFC bar a disqualification against Caro Prater—a fight many consider a win for Silva.

Silva is just one of many Brazilian prospects who are beginning to make their way through the rankings. With legends like Anderson Silva and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira entering the twilight of their careers, it will be up to the young prospects to lead the way for Brazilian MMA in the future.

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