Tag: UFC 153

Anderson Silva to Stay at Middleweight, Wants No Part of Jon Jones

Regardless of the outcome at UFC 153, there will be no future superfight between Anderson Silva and Jon Jones.For months, the two MMA stars have shrugged off the possibility of fighting one another.It’s all about respect for Jones, who says he doesn’t …

Regardless of the outcome at UFC 153, there will be no future superfight between Anderson Silva and Jon Jones.

For months, the two MMA stars have shrugged off the possibility of fighting one another.

It’s all about respect for Jones, who says he doesn’t want to be the man to defeat Silva. The two have developed a bond, and neither wants to deter the other’s success.

Silva put the final nail in the coffin of the proposed superfight during the media conference call for UFC 153.

MMA Fighting reported the story.

“There’s been a lot of talk about me moving up to 205. I know Dana [White] has talked about it a lot. All the fans have talked about me moving up and facing Jon Jones, but it’s something I’ve never wanted,” Silva said.

Silva continues:

I won’t be pretentious to say that I’d want to move up, especially because there are other guys in that weight class on our team like [Rafael] “Feijao” Cavalcante and [Antonio Rogerio] ”Minotauro” Nogueira. There are other guys who could potentially face Jon Jones in the future. What got me this far is I’m grounded. My weight class is 185. I’m 37 years old, and I feel I need to be honest and continue what I’ve built, which is to keep defending my belt at 185.

Back in February, Silva told UOL Esportes that he wasn’t interested in a bout with Jones and was done moving up in weight. According to Silva, Jones is a much younger fighter who would have significant physical advantages over him.

Silva is set to make his third light heavyweight appearance in the UFC against Stephan Bonnar on October 13, but admittedly, he is only going up in weight as a favor to the UFC.

The featherweight title fight between Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar was originally slated as the main event, but after Aldo pulled out of the fight with an injury, the UFC scrambled to prevent the cancellation of another pay-per-view card.

Silva, who knocked out Chael Sonnen three months ago, was ready and willing to lend a helping hand:

Definitely, I’ve got that responsibility on my back. I’m part of the UFC family, and I believe that everyone can do what they can do to help. It was the case where the event might have been canceled, and I was just doing my part. If I felt I couldn’t do that or everyone came together and said I wasn’t in condition to do that, I wouldn’t have done it. But in that situation, I felt like I could step up and save the show.

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UFC on FX 5 Results: Five Fights for Bigfoot Silva to Take Next

Bigfoot Silva may not have impressed in his UFC debut earlier this year, but he made up for it tonight with a 1st Round technical knockout victory over the undefeated Travis Browne.Sending Browne to the canvas with an enormous right hand, it only took …

Bigfoot Silva may not have impressed in his UFC debut earlier this year, but he made up for it tonight with a 1st Round technical knockout victory over the undefeated Travis Browne.

Sending Browne to the canvas with an enormous right hand, it only took a few enormous shots from the giant for referee Herb Dean to step in and call a stop to the action.

With only a few fighters anywhere near a title shot, there are lots of options for Silva in terms of future bookings. 

Here is a look at five fights for Bigfoot Silva to take next.

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Dana White: Stephan Bonnar Is a Dangerous Fight for Anderson Silva

UFC President Dana White has been around long enough to know not to underestimate Stephan Bonnar in his UFC 153 bout with Anderson Silva.One of the most alluring aspects of MMA is the unpredictable nature of the sport. With such small gloves, and many …

UFC President Dana White has been around long enough to know not to underestimate Stephan Bonnar in his UFC 153 bout with Anderson Silva.

One of the most alluring aspects of MMA is the unpredictable nature of the sport. With such small gloves, and many ways to finish your opponent, the margin for error is minimal.

Silva is the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world for a reason.

There has never been a fighter like him in the history of mixed martial arts. With a 15-0 UFC record, Silva has completely destroyed a multitude of world class names. The best term used to describe his skills: otherworldly.

Bonnar, on the other hand, has never stood out in any particular aspect of fighting. His strength lies in his indomitable spirit and ability to persevere.

The odds for the UFC 153 main event opened with Bonnar as a 13-to-1 underdog. White has taken criticism for even putting this fight together.

Silva is a world champion. Bonnar, who was retired before accepting the fight, has never even contended for a UFC title.

Why make this fight?

“There’s nothing wrong with fun fights, you can put on some fun fights sometimes,” White told ESPN.

“What people don’t realize is what a huge ‘Rocky’ story this is for Stephan. [He’s] been this guy that’s been right there. So many times he’s been so close. He’s on a four-fight win streak, and he felt like there were no big fights for him and then boom, this opportunity pops up.”

 

If Bonnar defeats Silva, it will be the biggest upset in UFC history. But the chances of that happening seem astronomical at best.

Still, longtime fans understand the danger of underestimating a fighter, especially one with a heart like Bonnar’s. As cliché as it sounds, anything can happen in MMA.

How many people picked Matt Serra to upset Georges St-Pierre at UFC 69? What about Gabriel Gonzaga knocking out Mirko “Cro Cop” at UFC 70?

This is a defining moment in Bonnar’s career. It may not be for a title, but he will have the rare opportunity to cement his place in history by knocking off quite possibly the greatest fighter in MMA history.

“I know Stephan Bonnar, and I know how much this means to him. He’s going after it. He’s going to try to win this fight. It’s the biggest fight of his life,” said White.

“He’s going to be so much bigger than Anderson in this fight it’s going to be crazy. Anderson has fought at 205 before. You saw what he did with Forrest [Griffin], but this is a completely different fight. This is a dangerous fight for Anderson.”

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Stephan Bonnar: "I Could Shock the World"

With his fight against Anderson Silva a little over a week away, Stephan Bonnar believes the stars are aligning for the biggest upset in UFC history.As a 13-to-1 underdog, it’s safe to say no one is giving Bonnar much of a chance. He will travel to Bra…

With his fight against Anderson Silva a little over a week away, Stephan Bonnar believes the stars are aligning for the biggest upset in UFC history.

As a 13-to-1 underdog, it’s safe to say no one is giving Bonnar much of a chance. He will travel to Brazil on October 13 to face arguably the greatest fighter in MMA history in his home country.

As a light heavyweight, Bonnar has always been a highly-respected middle-of-the-pack fighter, but he has never been considered an upper-echelon contender. Perhaps the most significant win of his entire career came against Keith Jardine in November 2006.

Unlike so many others, Bonnar has never cared much about the UFC title. His aspirations as a fighter have always been all about giving everything he has against whoever the UFC puts in front of him.

There aren’t any world-class names in Bonnar‘s win column, but he has gone the distance with some of the best fighters in the history of the sport.

UFC light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones named Bonnar as his toughest opponent during an appearance on Spike TV’s MMA Uncensored back in May.

Bonnar has never been a world champion or even a UFC title contender, but he has always felt that he has had a fulfilling career.

During the post-fight show for UFC on FUEL 4, Bonnar hinted at his retirement, after UFC President Dana White turned down proposed bouts with Forrest Griffin and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.

It came as a shocker for Bonnar when he was offered the bout against Silva, thanks to some great pitch work from his manager Wayne Harriman.

“There was no hesitation [when I got the phone call for this fight]. I honestly didn’t think my manager would be able to pull it off,” Bonnar told MMA Fight Corner, during an open workout on Wednesday in Las Vegas.

Bonnar continues:

[My manager] hit me up with a text like, “What about fighting Anderson?” I was like, “Yeah, come on. You can’t get a bigger name than Anderson Silva. Of course, I’d love that fight, but good luck trying to talk Dana into that one. I mean, I couldn’t get him to give me and Forrest the “TUF” coaching job, and now Anderson Silva? Yeah, come on.”

It’s Wayne Harriman, my manager, so give him some props. His nickname is Copperfield because I don’t know how in the hell he pulled that off.

The original UFC 153 headliner was supposed to be a featherweight title fight between Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar, but after Aldo pulled out of the bout with an injury, the UFC was forced to find a replacement main event.

Silva offered his services to save the fight card, and Bonnar was given the opportunity of a lifetime.

If Bonnar defeats Silva, it will be considered by many as the greatest upset in UFC history. As proven so many times over the years, it’s ludicrous to write off anyone in such an unpredictable sport like MMA.

Longtime fans have witnessed the impossible happen time and time again.

Bonnar will always be remembered for his epic battle with Griffin at the finale of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 1. Some call it the greatest fight in UFC history. Others credit it as being the fight that put MMA on the map.

At UFC 153, Bonnar has a rare opportunity to do something much greater. He has a chance to come out of retirement and defeat the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world in his home country.

Can it be done?

Bonnar weighs in:

This is a defining moment of my whole life, everything I’ve gone through, all the martial arts I’ve done, all the training, MMA fights, and boxing matches, and wrestling and grappling. This is like the culmination of it all.

Really, I think it’s all meant to be. It’s perfect, it really is. It feels like all the stars are aligning just like it did on that magical night for the UFC back when I fought Forrest the first time, and I feel like I could shock the world.

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UFC 153 Free Fight: Minotauro Nogueira vs. Tim Sylvia

Leading up to the enormous UFC 153 Pay-Per-View in Brazil, the UFC loves to give away free fights from top stars who are on the card. Today, we focus on Minotauro Nogueira.Minotauro Nogueira is a legend of mixed martial arts. With the PRIDE organizatio…

Leading up to the enormous UFC 153 Pay-Per-View in Brazil, the UFC loves to give away free fights from top stars who are on the card. Today, we focus on Minotauro Nogueira.

Minotauro Nogueira is a legend of mixed martial arts. With the PRIDE organization, he was the first man to win the heavyweight championship, and he also was a finalist in the 2004 heavyweight Grand Prix.

With incredible submission skills, Nogueira was able to defeat the cream of the crop, including Mirko Cro Cop, Heath Herring, Dan Henderson, Bob Sapp, Semmy Schilt and more. In addition, he would win decisions against top names like Fabricio Werdum, Sergei Kharitonov and Ricco Rodriguez. The only man he had faced and not defeated was none other than Fedor Emelianenko. 

When the UFC purchased PRIDE, Nogueira was a top star who was thrust into a bout for the interim UFC heavyweight championship in his second fight with the organization. The man standing across the cage from him was former-champion Tim Sylvia, who stands 6’8″ and boasts an incredible reach.

With Sylvia being submitted only twice in his 27 fights prior, would Nogueira be able to use the strongest tool in his game and become the only man in history to win championship gold for both the UFC and PRIDE organizations?

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Gabriel Gonzaga Loses His UFC 153 Dance Partner, As Geronimo dos Santos Withdraws on Short Notice

(Just some more surrealist video art via gonzagabjj)

Gabriel Gonzaga hasn’t just been affected by the UFC injury curse — he is the UFC injury curse, in all of its weird permutations. The decision-phobic heavyweight originally found his way back into the Octagon as an injury replacement against Edinaldo Oliveira in January. Then, he had to drop off the chaotic UFC 146 card due to an injury. And now, he’s lost his scheduled opponent at next weekend’s UFC 153 card in Rio, after UFC officials confirmed that Geronimo Dos Santos would be unable to compete. Was Geronimo’s withdrawal injury-related? I don’t know. You tell me.

UFC officials haven’t yet confirmed whether they’ll be finding a replacement opponent for Gonzaga on the “Silva vs. Bonnar” card. As MMAJunkie suggests, Gonzaga would theoretically be available to serve as the replacement opponent for Daniel Cormier at the Strikeforce event on November 3rd, which would be better than nothing, I guess. We’ll update you when we know more.


(Just some more surrealist video art via gonzagabjj)

Gabriel Gonzaga hasn’t just been affected by the UFC injury curse — he is the UFC injury curse, in all of its weird permutations. The decision-phobic heavyweight originally found his way back into the Octagon as an injury replacement against Edinaldo Oliveira in January. Then, he had to drop off the chaotic UFC 146 card due to an injury. And now, he’s lost his scheduled opponent at next weekend’s UFC 153 card in Rio, after UFC officials confirmed that Geronimo Dos Santos would be unable to compete. Was Geronimo’s withdrawal injury-related? I don’t know. You tell me.

UFC officials haven’t yet confirmed whether they’ll be finding a replacement opponent for Gonzaga on the “Silva vs. Bonnar” card. As MMAJunkie suggests, Gonzaga would theoretically be available to serve as the replacement opponent for Daniel Cormier at the Strikeforce event on November 3rd, which would be better than nothing, I guess. We’ll update you when we know more.