Chris Leben knows a thing or two about Anderson Silva. After all, it was Leben who welcomed Silva to the promotion back in June 2006. Leben talked a good game before that fight, saying during his pre-fight interview, “After he gets in there with …
Chris Leben knows a thing or two about Anderson Silva. After all, it was Leben who welcomed Silva to the promotion back in June 2006.
Leben talked a good game before that fight, saying during his pre-fight interview, “After he gets in there with me and I knock him out, he may want to go back to Japan or somewhere where the competition is a little easier.”
Forty-nine seconds after the fight began, Silva had his first win in the UFC and has never looked back. Including the victory over Leben, Silva has run off a UFC record 16 consecutive wins in the UFC. Ten of those victories have been UFC middleweight title defenses, another promotional record.
Leben and Silva will both compete at UFC 162. Leben will face Andrew Craig on the preliminary card portion of the show. Silva will put his crown on the line against Chris Weidman in the main event.
Leben recently took some time to discuss the headlining bout on the July 6 card, and it appears that he was not one of the fighters UFC president Dana White spoke to about the fight between Silva and Weidman.
White recently proclaimed, via Mike Bohn of MMAMania.com, “All the pros, when you talk to all the fighters – every fighter out there that I’ve talked too that we’ve interviewed thinks Weidman is going to beat him [Silva]. Georges St. Pierre thinks he’s going to win so much that he didn’t even want to plan to fight Anderson.”
UFC 162 will take place on July 6 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev.
Following his second consecutive NBA championship, the UFC has invited NBA Finals MVP LeBron James to watch Anderson Silva defend his middleweight strap at UFC 162.
Congrats @miamiheat! How about your champ @kingjames come and watch our champ @Sp…
Following his second consecutive NBA championship, the UFC has invited NBA Finals MVP LeBron James to watch Anderson Silva defend his middleweight strap at UFC 162.
Prior to his second title reign, James’ name was a hot topic among all sports fans after three-time UFC title challenger ChaelSonnen called out the basketball superstar in an interview with Bleacher Report’s own Jeremy Botter.
“The American Gangster” really raised some eyebrows when he was asked how a potential fight with James inside the cage would go down:
“He’d run away faster than his hairline. His hair went North, his talents went South and his mother went West … No challenge. It’s happening. Next time I see him, he will shake that little boy’s hand, even if I have to break his arm off and take it to the boy.”
Sonnen is referring to a rumor that James’ former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Delonte West slept with his mother, Gloria James, during the 2010 playoffs, a rumor that West later denied (via Global Grind).
In the same interview, Sonnen also alleges that James snubbed a handicapped fan the opportunity for a photo when he was approached in the crowd at UFC 148.
Right after the fight, James tweeted “Congrats from one Champ to another!” and posted some photos of the two meeting backstage, including this one:
Silva was, of course, one of Sonnen‘s biggest rivals since 2010, though after his second loss to the dominant middleweight titleholder, “Uncle Chael” let the feud die.
James has not responded to any of Sonnen‘s remarks, though that is unlikely to deter whatever the Team Quest standout wants to say next.
UFC 162 takes place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 6, headlined by Silva defending his belt against undefeated prospect Chris Weidman.
JohnHeinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com and contributes MMA videos to The Young Turks Sports Show.
Repeat something enough and those words will eventually be viewed as the truth. For quite some time, UFC middleweight contender Chris Weidman has been telling all who will listen that he is a bad matchup for longtime UFC middleweight champion Anderson …
Repeat something enough and those words will eventually be viewed as the truth.
For quite some time, UFC middleweight contender Chris Weidman has been telling all who will listen that he is a bad matchup for longtime UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Not only does Weidman feel he is a bad matchup for Silva but he feels that he has what it takes to become the middleweight champion and cost the UFC a lot of money in the process.
According to UFC president Dana White, “(Weidman) looked me right in the eye and said ‘I’m telling you, I apologize, but I’m going to f**k up all your superfights, but I’m going to win this fight. I’m going to f**k up all your superfights and be your next champion.’” Weidman then added that he would give Silva an immediate rematch at Madison Square Garden.
Well, we know the rematch at MSG is out after New York, once again, refused to take the legalization of MMA in that state to vote.
The other part, the part about “f’ing up the superfights between Silva and UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre,” how realistic are those claims? After watching all nine of Weidman’s fights, I just don’t see him having what it takes to dethrone Silva, at least not at this point in his career.
Sure, White has claimed that (via Mike Bohn of MMAMania.com), “All the pros, when you talk to all the fighters—every fighter out there that I’ve talked to whom we’ve interviewed thinks Weidman is going to beat him [Silva]. Georges St. Pierre thinks he’s going to win so much that he didn’t even want to plan to fight Anderson.”
That’s a nice quote—one that will accomplish White’s goal of driving up interest in the upcoming pay-per-view. The quip will get the fans talking about the fight, but St-Pierre is not every fighter.
St-Pierre has trained with Weidman in the past. He’s also a fighter whom the UFC is trying to book to face the larger and dangerous Silva. If you don’t think St-Pierre has reasons to push Weidman as a huge threat to Silva, well, you’re being naïve.
As far as the promo clip the UFC released around the fight, that’s the same deal. It’s trying to convince you to buy the UFC’s product, stringing together a few one-liners to make Weidman into a king killer.
Don’t believe what the UFC is selling you on this fight.
Silva has held the UFC middleweight title since October 14, 2006. He has defended that crown 10 times in a row and remains unbeaten in his last 17 fights, 16 of which have been with the UFC.
Weidman is 9-0 in his career—a career that began nearly three years after Silva defeated Rich Franklin for the middleweight title at UFC 64. If you don’t think that experience is going to play a huge part in this fight, you couldn’t be more wrong.
Silva has seen it all, he’s done it all, and he’s won it all. Weidman has a nice run going, but his two last wins were against an injured Mark Munoz and Demian Maia. The Demian Maia who thought he was a striker, not the Demian Maia who knows he is one of the best submission artists in the sport.
Yes, Weidman’s knockout over Munoz made for great television. It was perfect timing on Weidman’s part, but there’s no way Silva leaves himself open for that type of elbow to the head. He’s not stepping in and swinging wildly like Munoz did; it’s not going to happen.
Weidman’s plan is easy to figure out. He works from distance and uses strikes to set up the takedown. Once he is on the ground, he transitions to side control and looks for submissions, patiently looks for submissions.
The problem for Weidman is not the ground game. If Weidman can get Silva to the mat, he will give the champion problems on the ground.
The problem is his striking to set up the takedown. If Weidman works from distance and fires looping punches, something he has done in almost all of his previous bouts, he will leave himself open to a counter from Silva. If you’ve watched any Anderson Silva fight you know that all it takes is one mistake, one opening, one bad position and the fight is over.
Talk is cheap, and there has been a lot of it around this fight. Most of that talk has come from the challenger and those looking to build up his chances in the July 6 contest against Silva. That’s a smart move from Weidman, and it’s a smart move from the UFC. That talk will build up interest, and it will build up ticket sales, but don’t expect it to turn into reality.
Chris Weidman’s time may come, and it may come in the not too distant future. I just wouldn’t count on that time being July 6 in the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
UFC 162, set for July 6, will be headlined by a middleweight title fight between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva. While Silva will enter the match as the decided favorite, there is a sense that Weidman poses a realistic threat to “The Spider’s” r…
While Silva will enter the match as the decided favorite, there is a sense that Weidman poses a realistic threat to “The Spider’s” reign and that the challenger may just give the champion the stiffest test he has faced in quite some time.
Weidman himself believes so, asserting that his own set of skills will prove problematic for Silva.
“He’s a great champion for a reason,” Weidman explained during a pre-fight interview. “But he knows that I’m a really bad matchup, and I’m a tougher opponent than some people might understand.”
With NCAA Division All-American honors, experience competing in an ADCC grappling tournament and a striking arsenal that has visibly grown each time he’s fought, Weidman keys on something important in his assessment.
Silva has fought good grapplers before and beat them. He’s fought good wrestlers and beat them. And he’s fought good strikers and beat them.
But with capable stand-up, power wrestling that is difficult to stop and the submission skills to make his opponent pay for every takedown, Weidman may just prove to be the foil no other fighter has been.
Then again, how many competitors have claimed to be Silva’s kryptonite, only to be quickly dispatched inside the Octagon?
Weidman is confident that won’t happen to him, though, and he plans to prove himself on July 6.
“He’d be a fool not to respect me as a fighter,” Weidman warned. “On July 6, when we step in that cage, he’s going to respect me.”
Anderson Silva made his UFC debut with a 43-second shellacking of Chris Leben at UFC Ultimate Fight Night 5. A few months later, he walked out of the Octagon in Las Vegas, Nev. as the UFC middleweight champion. Silva had a professional record of 18-4 w…
Anderson Silva made his UFC debut with a 43-second shellacking of Chris Leben at UFC Ultimate Fight Night 5. A few months later, he walked out of the Octagon in Las Vegas, Nev. as the UFC middleweight champion.
Silva had a professional record of 18-4 when he faced UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin at UFC 77 in October 2006. Franklin had won the title when he defeated Evan Tanner in June 2005. His fight against Silva was his third attempted defense of the title. Franklin had previously defended the title by defeating Nate Quarry and David Loiseau.
Franklin was 22-1-0-1 when he entered the Octagon to face Silva. Franklin was, without a doubt, the crowd favorite entering the arena that night in Vegas. He was also favored in the eyes of the oddsmakers, via MMAmania.com, as he entered at minus-185 to Silva’s plus-165.
When the fight began, Silva was fluid in his motions and wasted very little time working knees to the body from the clinch. The strikes were very effective, and in short order Silva had Franklin lowering his hands to his reddening torso to block the blows.
As soon as Franklin dropped his hands, Silva went upstairs and delivered a knee to the chin of his opponent. That gave Franklin something to think about, should he protect his midsection or protect his head?
Franklin didn’t have much time to ponder that question. Shortly after planting that seed in Franklin’s head Silva planted a knee directly on his nose. He followed that with a kick to the head and another knee to the head, and that was the end of the night for Franklin.
Just 2:59 after the fight began, the UFC had a new middleweight champion and Franklin had a new angle to his nose. After Franklin was back to his feet, Bruce Buffer announced “and now the new UFC middleweight champion of the world, Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva.”
Since that night, Buffer has only announced the finish of Silva’s middleweight bouts with the phrase “and still UFC middleweight champion of the world.” That announcement has been made a UFC record 10 consecutive times.
Will Silva make it 11 at UFC 162 or will we finally hear the words “and new UFC middleweight champion of the world” again? We’ll find out on July 6 when Silva attempts to defend his title against top-ranked Chris Weidman.
Recently signed UFC fighter Robert Drysdale is one of the most accomplished Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts in the business, so he knows a talented grappler when he sees one. Talking with MMA Fight Corner, the 32-year-old broke down the UFC 162 mi…
Recently signed UFC fighter Robert Drysdale is one of the most accomplished Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts in the business, so he knows a talented grappler when he sees one.
I think that Weidman, to an extent, is is a better version of ChaelSonnen. I think he’ll be smarter. I think he’ll put more time into his jiu jitsu. I think he’s a better wrestler, better striker. I think overall, he’s a better version of ChaelSonnen. … It’s an interesting fight. I think if Weidman can get on top of Anderson, I think Anderson could be in trouble. I think if you really pressed me, I’d still put my money on Anderson, but I’d really like Weidman to win this fight.
During his incredible 16-fight unbeaten streak in the UFC, the only challenger that has provided “The Spider” with a real test inside the cage is none other than “The American Gangster.”
Sonnen came within inches of defeating Silva at UFC 117 nearly three years ago, controlling the action with his takedowns and ground-and-pound.
However, the Brazilian managed to throw up a miracle submission in the waning moments of the fight, forcing the former two-time All-American wrestler to tap out.
In their rematch at UFC 148 this past July, Sonnen took down Silva right off the bat and secured top position for the majority of the opening frame.
The second round went much differently though, as Sonnen‘s attempts to drag the fight to the mat were thwarted and, after an ill-advised spinning backfist attempt, Silva battered his long-time rival until the referee stepped in to stop the fight.
Weidman received his brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu earlier this month and was a two-time All-American wrestler at Hofstra University.
While “The All-American” is best known for his grappling credentials, he has scored three knockouts and notched three submissions in his nine wins as a professional mixed martial artist.
Drysdale is currently 6-0 on the MMA scene, with each win coming by submission in the first round. His UFC debut comes against EdnaldoOliveira at UFC 163, set to take place on August 3.
Will Weidman be able to live up to all the hype his fellow fighters have bestowed upon him, or will he be just another victim to the already lengthy Anderson Silva highlight reel?
JohnHeinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com and contributes MMA videos to The Young Turks Sports Show.
Following his second consecutive NBA championship, the UFC has invited NBA Finals MVP