UFC 162 delivered on Saturday night, that’s for sure. The night featured one of the greatest upsets in UFC history, as well as a stunning comeback story.UFC 162 also reminded us that nobody is big enough to walk (and talk) his way through a fight. If y…
UFC 162 delivered on Saturday night, that’s for sure. The night featured one of the greatest upsets in UFC history, as well as a stunning comeback story.
UFC 162 also reminded us that nobody is big enough to walk (and talk) his way through a fight. If you don’t take an opponent seriously, especially a very talented one, you are in danger of falling hard and fast.
Here’s a look at the underdogs who proved their worth at UFC 162.
Chris Weidman
Chris Weidman stunned Anderson Silva on Saturday at UFC 162, scoring a knockout in the second round.
Silva was extremely cocky from the start, shouting at Weidman to fight and keeping his hands at his waist, even after Weidman‘s early takedown in the first round.
Weidman did not take kindly to that. He said after the knockout, via Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole, “It pisses me off when someone does that to me and I knew sooner or later, I’d get him.”
Silva looked like the Silva we know up until the knockout actually. Several of Weidman‘s punches hit nothing but air. But all it took was one left hook to land cleanly and he was out.
Weidman became the first new UFC middleweight champion since Silva stopped Rich Franklin in October 2006. Silva had the belt for a ridiculous 2,458 days.
After a knockout loss to Weidman in July 2012, Mark Munoz rebounded in tremendous fashion on Saturday night, putting forth one of the best performances in his MMA career.
Munoz, who went into depression and began eating lots of food as comfort after his loss to Weidman, defeated Tim Boetsch via unanimous decision.
“I am living proof of what you can do with determination, will and desire,” Munoz said after the fight, via Yahoo! Sports’ Iole.
At UFC 162, Chris Weidman stunned the MMA world with a single left hand. That is all it took to send the elusive Anderson Silva plummeting to the canvas like a sack of potatoes and capture the UFC middleweight championship.Immediately following the mat…
At UFC 162, Chris Weidman stunned the MMA world with a single left hand. That is all it took to send the elusive Anderson Silva plummeting to the canvas like a sack of potatoes and capture the UFC middleweight championship.
Immediately following the matchup, Anderson met with Joe Rogan inside the Octagon. That is where the former champion made a shocking announcement: Despite not being ready to retire from the sport, Anderson Silva is not interested in a rematch.
Silva isn’t ready to stop competing but isn’t looking to meet Weidman in his return bout. That raises an important question: If not Weidman, then who?
In this article, we will take a look at four of the best and most entertaining possibilities for Silva’s opponent when he returns to the cage.
After witnessing Chris Weidman knock out Anderson Silva and become the new UFC middleweight champion at UFC 162 on Saturday night, Michael Bisping wasted no time in asking for the first crack at the new champion. He took to Twitter immediately aft…
After witnessing Chris Weidman knock out Anderson Silva and become the new UFC middleweight champion at UFC 162 on Saturday night, Michael Bisping wasted no time in asking for the first crack at the new champion.
He took to Twitter immediately after the conclusion of the UFC 162 main event:
Bisping is referring to the UFC’s planned return to Manchester on October 26. That will be the first fight card in the city since UFC 105 in 2009, when Randy Couture won a controversial decision over Brandon Vera in the headliner.
“The Count” is currently ranked No. 4 among the UFC middleweights. When the rankings come out this week, he will most likely remain in the same spot.
Bisping offered a compliment to Weidman in his tweet. Usually the quick-witted Brit is throwing out insults or barbs at potential or future opponents. He referred to his last opponent, Alan “The Talent” Belcher, as “Talentless.”
He defeated Belcher by unanimous technical decision at UFC 159 after an inadvertent eye poke halted the bout in the last minute of the third round. It was a solid rebound victory for Bisping, after losing to the No. 2-ranked middleweight VitorBelfort back in January on the UFC on FX 7 card.
Bisping has fought both times the UFC put a fight card in Manchester, defeating Elvis Sinosic at UFC 70 and Dennis Kang at UFC 105. He won both fights by TKO and earned a “Fight of the Night” bonus each time.
In fact, the English fighter has won all six of his fights across the pond under the UFC banner. Combine that with the 10-straight victories from the start of his fighting career in Cage Warriors, Cage Rage and other England MMA promotions, and he is undefeated at 16-0 inside his native country.
Bisping will almost assuredly be on the third-ever fight card to take place in his native city. It’s just not likely it will be against Weidman for the title. He will most likely be waiting behind Silva—if there is a rematch against Weidman—and VitorBelfort.
With the No. 3-ranked YushinOkami expected to face JacareSouza at UFC on FOX Sports 1 2 in September, it’s more likely that “The Count” will face Costa Phillipou, Mark Munoz or Luke Rockhold next.
Michael Stets is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report
Unless you live under a rock, you have by now heard the story of how Anderson Silva danced his way out of the UFC middleweight championship at UFC 162. The always-elusive striker used his Matrix-inspired evasion a bit too often, and Weidman made him pa…
Unless you live under a rock, you have by now heard the story of how Anderson Silva danced his way out of the UFC middleweight championship at UFC 162. The always-elusive striker used his Matrix-inspired evasion a bit too often, and Weidman made him pay for it with a nasty left hand.
Oddsmakers suggested that Weidman stood a better chance of dethroning the champion than some of his recent foes. However, that doesn’t make his knockout victory any less shocking to the viewing audience.
This victory has many repercussions for the Ultimate Fighting Championship as a whole. Here is a look at what Weidman‘s win means to the UFC.
Anderson Silva is widely considered the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. His fans affectionately call him the G.O.A.T., short for “Greatest of All Time.” What will become of his legacy after losing the UFC middleweight title to Ch…
Anderson Silva is widely considered the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. His fans affectionately call him the G.O.A.T., short for “Greatest of All Time.” What will become of his legacy after losing the UFC middleweight title to Chris Weidman at UFC 162?
For starters, his previous UFC record of 16-0 will now say 16-1. Other than that, he still has to be considered among the immortals in the pantheon of the sport. One can argue that his antics ruined his UFC unbeaten streak, but that shouldn’t tarnish all that he has accomplished in MMA.
He has lost four other times in his career, all outside of the UFC. Since defeating Rich Franklin for the middleweight strap at UFC 64, and leading up to last night, Silva has defended his belt 10 straight times and added 11 more post-fight bonuses. 14 out of his 16 victories in the UFC were finishes, a remarkable feat that will probably never be matched.
Silva came into his own in his UFC debut at UFC Ultimate Fight Night 5, when he disposed of Chris Leben in 49 seconds. Since then, the MMA world watched every one of his fights with baited breath to see what would happen next.
In three of his biggest fights early on, he finished Rich Franklin by TKO and submitted Dan Henderson. A couple of highlights after that included finishing James Irvin and Forrest Griffin, both outside his weight class at light heavyweight.
The discussion of Silva being the greatest ever really picked up steam after his come-from-behind triangle-choke victory over ChaelSonnen at UFC 117. After losing for the entire fight, he somehow found a way to win.
What could top that victory? How about a front-kick-to-the-face knockout over VitorBelfort at UFC 126? Or a devastating knee to the chest and a TKO finish over Sonnen in their rematch at UFC 148?
Silva was a master of the uncanny. His unorthodox style and deadly accuracy proved too much for any of his opponents to handle, until Chris Weidman ended his streak at UFC 162.
Some of the greatest fighters of all time have lost. FedorEmelianenko was considered unbeatable and hadn’t lost in 29 straight fights until Fabricio Werdum submitted him in 2010. George St-Pierre was a huge favorite when Matt Serra knocked him out at UFC 69. Some of the all-time greats in boxing, like Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson, have suffered defeats.
You can dispute some of the level of Silva’s competition at times and if he really is the greatest to ever put on the gloves, but you can’t dispute what he has accomplished in the sport. His statistics don’t lie, and they will be there forever. They will stand the test of time and will be chased after by fighters of different generations to come.
The loss to Weidmanshouldn’t tarnish his reputation of being one of the greatest and most exciting fighters the sport has ever seen. After all, if he wins in a rematch against Weidman, he may very well end the discussion on being the best ever.
Although, in the post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, Silva said he didn’t want a rematch.
“No, no, I have 10 more fights,” he said. “But I don’t fight anymore for the belt. I’m tired. I’ve fought for a long time. My plan for the belt is finished tonight. Chris is the new champion.”
Whatever Silva decides to do—rematch or not—he will still go down as one of the greatest of all time. His legacy will remain—he just wasn’t unbeatable. What he was able to achieve during his reign as middleweight champion is almost untouchable.
Michael Stets is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report
UFC 162 featured some pretty dominating performances in the main card. Whether it was Chris Weidman defiantly beating Anderson Silva or Cub Swanson showing what good conditioning can do, it was an entertaining main card.We’ll break down the main card b…
UFC 162 featured some pretty dominating performances in the main card. Whether it was Chris Weidman defiantly beating Anderson Silva or Cub Swanson showing what good conditioning can do, it was an entertaining main card.
We’ll break down the main card bouts and analyze why the winners won below.
Cub Swanson vs. Dennis Siver
Despite losing the first round, Cub Swanson dominated this match, showing better endurance and conditioning than Dennis Siver.
Siver was able to get Swanson on the mat in the first round, where he took care of business pretty easily.
But that was about the only highlight for Siver. He missed on three other attempts on takedowns. Swanson was simply faster, and his right uppercut was working nicely, as he hit on 47 of his strikes. Siver‘s lack of conditioning really showed, as he deteriorated pretty quickly as the match went on.
Silver got worse as the match went on. After hitting on 26 percent of his strikes in the first round, he hit just 16 percent in the second round and only 12 percent in the third and final round.
Swanson’s speed was the key here, and it made for a relatively easy win, even after losing the first round.
Mark Munoz vs. Tim Boetsch
Mark Munoz has dealt with injuries, but he was really impressive in his win over Tim Boetsch.
Using his ground-and-pound game, Munoz simply tired out Boetsch, who ran out of steam by the end.
Munoz made Boetsch his punching bag, and after the first set, Boetsch really had no chance.
Munoz hit on 132 strikes, while Boetsch only hit on 50. Munoz was also dominant in takedowns, with five compared to just one for Boetsch.
All things considered, it was an easy match for Munoz, who once again proved the value of conditioning and aggressiveness.
Tim Kennedy vs. Roger Gracie
Tim Kennedy dominated Roger Gracie in his unanimous-decision win. Kennedy fought out of a choke hold in the first round, which marked the beginning of the end for Gracie.
In fact, the choke hold, albeit unsuccessful, was Gracie’s best moment. Kennedy was faster, had better conditioning and was more effective on the mat.
Gracie couldn’t take advantage of his glorious opportunity in the first round. After that, he was really overmatched in the stand-up part and really struggled on the mat.
Kennedy hit on a remarkable 101 strikes, while Gracie hit on just 14. Gracie was only able to attempt 31 strikes.
Kennedy was solid in all facets, making this a pretty easy win for him.
Frankie Edgar vs. Charles Oliveira
Frankie Edgar gave up some size but used plenty of savvy to beat Charles Oliveira.
Oliveira put up a good fight. He matched Edgar’s conditioning and held his own on the wall.
Still, Edgar was just better than Oliveira, using his speed, footwork and strong takedowns to win. He connected on 55 percent of his strikes, and Oliveira was unable to complete a takedown. Edgar converted two-of-five takedowns.
There’s a bright future of Oliveira, but Edgar was just too much in this match.
Chris Weidman vs. Anderson Silva
What was supposed to be the match of the night turned into a bit of a dud.
Weidman beat Silva by knockout just over one minute into the second round.
Silva was taunting Weidman, dancing in and out of Weidman‘s fist, but eventually Weidman connected and the match was over.
Silva may have been overconfident or maybe just ignorant of Weidman‘s talent.
But Weidman was very smart, winning the opening round on points, where he earned a takedown, one of two for Weidman for the match. Silva, by comparison, did not have any takedowns.
It seems like Weidman finally figured Silva out. He didn’t buy Silva’s head games and proved that it’s pretty easy to beat Silva.
Weidman also hit on six more strikes that Silva, including the one that ended the match. Weidman was allowed 55 strikes, and while he only hit on 26, the amount of strikes indicates how much Silva was goading Wediman into hitting him.
This turned out to be a bad strategy, as Weidman finally hit hard enough to lead to a knockout.
Weidman could become the next UFC star, as he wins with both skill and intelligence.
UFC 162 delivered on Saturday night, that’s for sure. The night featured one of the greatest upsets in UFC history, as well as a stunning comeback story.