(“OW OW OW NOT NORMAL.” / Photo by Esther Lin, MMAFighting)
UFC middleweight star Anderson Silva was rushed to a hospital yesterday evening after collapsing to the floor following a workout at XGym in Rio de Janeiro. Silva complained of severe back pain and temporarily could not feel his legs. Doctors confirmed that Silva had suffered a bout of lumbago, a relatively common low back pain disorder, and he was discharged this morning.
According to Brazilian MMA Athletic Commission medical director Dr. Márcio Tannure, Silva should make a quick recovery, and his UFC 183 fight against Nick Diaz is not in jeopardy:
“He felt a sharp pain because of contracture. It hurts a lot, really, but it will not change anything in terms of training. The problem he had justified the pain, but it will not result in a withdrawal or cancellation of the fight.”
Anderson Silva has yet to make a public statement about the matter, although three days ago he was hyping up something called The Spine Chair as “the best chair.” I hope you kept your receipt, dude.
(“OW OW OW NOT NORMAL.” / Photo by Esther Lin, MMAFighting)
UFC middleweight star Anderson Silva was rushed to a hospital yesterday evening after collapsing to the floor following a workout at XGym in Rio de Janeiro. Silva complained of severe back pain and temporarily could not feel his legs. Doctors confirmed that Silva had suffered a bout of lumbago, a relatively common low back pain disorder, and he was discharged this morning.
According to Brazilian MMA Athletic Commission medical director Dr. Márcio Tannure, Silva should make a quick recovery, and his UFC 183 fight against Nick Diaz is not in jeopardy:
“He felt a sharp pain because of contracture. It hurts a lot, really, but it will not change anything in terms of training. The problem he had justified the pain, but it will not result in a withdrawal or cancellation of the fight.”
Anderson Silva has yet to make a public statement about the matter, although three days ago he was hyping up something called The Spine Chair as “the best chair.” I hope you kept your receipt, dude.
Former longtime UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre thinks ex-Strikeforce champ Nick Diaz has dug his own grave by accepting to fight Anderson Silva at 185 pounds at UFC 183 in January.
Speaking on the You’re Welcome with Chael Sonnen pod…
Former longtime UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre thinks ex-Strikeforce champ Nick Diaz has dug his own grave by accepting to fight Anderson Silva at 185 pounds at UFC 183 in January.
Speaking on theYou’re Welcome with Chael Sonnen podcast, “Rush” said that the Stockton bad boy made a huge tactical error by making his first trip to middleweight against Silva (h/t MMA Fighting).
To tell you the truth, I would maybe favor Diaz if the fight had been at a catchweight. Because if it is a five-round fight, Diaz is a durable fighter. I have seen him in a lot of trouble and he is very, very hard to finish … Now it is different because it is in Anderson Silva’s weight class. I believe Diaz made a mistake in accepting that fight at 185 instead of, I think he should have made a catchweight, would have been more fair.
Coincidentally, Diaz hasn’t fought since a lopsided decision loss to St-Pierre at UFC 158 in March of last year.
Diaz indicated he would be hanging up the gloves after the bout, and for a good 16 months, he stuck to his guns.
However, at the end of July, he signed a new three-fight deal with the UFC—just days before the Silva bout was announced, per MMA Junkie.
In 36 professional fights, Diaz has only competed above the 170-pound welterweight limit twice (179- and 180-pound catchweight bouts that both took place in 2009).
After winning 11 straight fights, he lost back-to-back title fights to Carlos Condit (then-UFC interim welterweight titleholder) and St-Pierre before hanging up the gloves.
As for Silva, who has 39 MMA contests under his belt, the Brazilian legend actually competed as low as 168 pounds at one point—but that hasn’t happened in close to a decade.
A career middleweight, “The Spider” has competed at light heavyweight on three occasions since July 2008 and is said to weigh as heavy as 220 to 230 pounds in between fights.
Will Silva make short work of Diaz in his first fight back since a horrific leg break inside the Octagon last year, or will the Cesar Gracie Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt prove to be a formidable foe after all?
John Heinis is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA editor for eDraft.com.
By legendary CagePotato commenter/lurker “Old, Bald and Irish”
Of all of the upcoming matchups on the horizon for the UFC, one of them stands above the rest: Nick Diaz versus Anderson Silva at UFC 183.
Now, if this match happened two years ago, the hype would be off the charts. But today, the MMA community is looking at this event with curiosity rather than fevered passion. Sure. Eyeballs will be on this fight — mostly to see what Anderson Silva will look like in the ring following his horrific injury. But Nick Diaz as his opponent? Eh…maybe not so much.
What the hell happened?
It was just a short year-and-a-half ago when the MMA world was going wild for UFC 158: St-Pierre vs. Diaz (aka UFC 158: CANADA!…America’s Hat). This was MMA alchemy at its finest. Georges had defended his belt seven times and was clearly the king of his weight class. Nick was the trash talkin’, dope smokin’, Nashville brawlin’ fanboy favorite.
UFC 158 pulled in 950,000 pay-per-view buys. Not too shabby, especially compared to the buyrates the UFC has been pulling inlately. Both guys had hardcore MMA fan heat going in, but after St-Pierre dismantled Diaz, it proved what we pretty much knew going into the fight: Georges is a better wrestler, striker and tactician than Diaz. Period.
After beating up a past-his-prime BJ Penn, the “super fight” with St. Pierre did nothing to help Nick’s reputation. Quite the contrary, it damaged it even more and showed why Diaz isn’t on anyone’s Top 10 P4P list anymore. Now, after retiring “for realz” and spending nearly two years out of the cage (*COUGH* “ring rust” *COUGH*) Diaz is coming back to take on one of, if not the, greatest fighter in MMA history. What?
I’m looking for Nick’s silver lining, but short of a pot-fueled-double-middle-fingered-gogoplata or a pants-shitting-KO, I don’t see an upside for the scrappy pugilist from Stockton. Let’s take a few moments to be negative bastards and look at the probable and unfortunate near-future for the elder Diaz…
By legendary CagePotato commenter/lurker “Old, Bald and Irish”
Of all of the upcoming matchups on the horizon for the UFC, one of them stands above the rest: Nick Diaz versus Anderson Silva at UFC 183.
Now, if this match happened two years ago, the hype would be off the charts. But today, the MMA community is looking at this event with curiosity rather than fevered passion. Sure. Eyeballs will be on this fight — mostly to see what Anderson Silva will look like in the ring following his horrific injury. But Nick Diaz as his opponent? Eh…maybe not so much.
What the hell happened?
It was just a short year-and-a-half ago when the MMA world was going wild for UFC 158: St-Pierre vs. Diaz (aka UFC 158: CANADA!…America’s Hat). This was MMA alchemy at its finest. Georges had defended his belt seven times and was clearly the king of his weight class. Nick was the trash talkin’, dope smokin’, Nashville brawlin’ fanboy favorite.
UFC 158 pulled in 950,000 pay-per-view buys. Not too shabby, especially compared to the buyrates the UFC has been pulling inlately. Both guys had hardcore MMA fan heat going in, but after St-Pierre dismantled Diaz, it proved what we pretty much knew going into the fight: Georges is a better wrestler, striker and tactician than Diaz. Period.
After beating up a past-his-prime BJ Penn, the “super fight” with St. Pierre did nothing to help Nick’s reputation. Quite the contrary, it damaged it even more and showed why Diaz isn’t on anyone’s Top 10 P4P list anymore. Now, after retiring “for realz” and spending nearly two years out of the cage (*COUGH* “ring rust” *COUGH*) Diaz is coming back to take on one of, if not the, greatest fighter in MMA history. What?
I’m looking for Nick’s silver lining, but short of a pot-fueled-double-middle-fingered-gogoplata or a pants-shitting-KO, I don’t see an upside for the scrappy pugilist from Stockton. Let’s take a few moments to be negative bastards and look at the probable and unfortunate near-future for the elder Diaz…
Three is the Magic Number
If Diaz drops his fight with Silva, that will make him 1-3 in the UFC since 2011…with those three losses being consecutive. Three losses in a row. Historically speaking, that never sits too well with the UFC brass.
Now, if you’re an “entertaining fighter that always comes to bang” (see Dan Hardy) and you’re on Dana’s good side (assuming he has one?), you may get a pass. While Diaz is most certainly an entertaining fighter, Nick is closer to winning an elocution award than getting on Dana’s good side.
If the mood hit Dana White, cutting Diaz a la Shields/Okami/Fitch, would not be too much of a stretch.
Sayonara Superfights
Nick has stated that after 16 years of pro fighting, he’s “retired from ‘climbing ropes.’” Nick stated “I’m not doing anybody any favors and I’m not doing myself a favor by taking a fight I’m not happy with.” And true happiness, as Diaz sees it, is any fight where he’s getting paid $500,000 or more.
That’s all fine and dandy, but if Diaz gets his ass handed to him by Anderson Silva, he could find himself as the new past-his-prime BJ Penn.
Potentially, after three consecutive defeats to top UFC talent, how much heat will be left around for Diaz? At best, he’ll take on a gatekeeper status. At worst, he will appear as a joke calling out talent that is way above his perceived skill set.
I mean, do you think Dana White is gonna do anything to help boost Diaz’s status? Hell…the UFC can’t even push their champions properly. Do you think they’re gonna lift a finger for Nick unless there are biiiig dollar signs attached?
And who is going to want to fight Diaz? A fight with Nick won’t “move the needle”* like it used to. Your top 10 won’t be interested.
Nick’s literal pipe-dream of half-million dollar super fights? Kiss that shit good bye…
Anderson Silva
Nick Diaz getting his ass kicked by a fighter coming off of a two-fight losing streak and a year-long layoff from the cage thanks to one of the most devastating leg injuries in UFC history is a bad look, no matter who that fighter is. And what does Diaz prove if he actually does beat Silva? Everyone will scream that it was a fluke, that there is no way Anderson could have been 100% going into that fight, that Chris Weidman had already taken the Spider’s soul.
For Diaz, it’s truly a lose/lose situation.
It’s pretty clear: Nick took the fight for the paycheck. At the moment, that may have seemed like a good idea. But the impact on his legacy and further career advancement may eventually outweigh that decision.
PRIDE NEVAH DIE!
– O.B.I.
*I’m proposing a CagePotato ban on the term “moving the needle”.
The UFC hosted a press conference earlier today in Rio de Janeiro, in which former middleweight champion Anderson Silva and his coaches answered questions about the Spider’s return to fighting. Silva, who will take on Nick Diaz at UFC 183 in January, was very complimentary about Diaz’s skills in the cage. He also stated his desire to earn the UFC middleweight title again, and hopes that Vitor Belfort beats Chris Weidman in their upcoming fight so that the belt returns to Brazil. Also, a bunch of reporters ask Silva about the condition of his leg. It gets pretty repetitive in the beginning, so be prepared for that. Short version: It’s no problem, it will not break again.
Coincidentally, today is the eight-year anniversary of UFC 64, the event where Anderson Silva first became UFC middleweight champion by knocking out Rich Franklin. At 39 years old, can Silva remain a title threat in the year 2015?
The UFC hosted a press conference earlier today in Rio de Janeiro, in which former middleweight champion Anderson Silva and his coaches answered questions about the Spider’s return to fighting. Silva, who will take on Nick Diaz at UFC 183 in January, was very complimentary about Diaz’s skills in the cage. He also stated his desire to earn the UFC middleweight title again, and hopes that Vitor Belfort beats Chris Weidman in their upcoming fight so that the belt returns to Brazil. Also, a bunch of reporters ask Silva about the condition of his leg. It gets pretty repetitive in the beginning, so be prepared for that. Short version: It’s no problem, it will not break again.
Coincidentally, today is the eight-year anniversary of UFC 64, the event where Anderson Silva first became UFC middleweight champion by knocking out Rich Franklin. At 39 years old, can Silva remain a title threat in the year 2015?
There were few other fights that the UFC could pull together that would excite fans more than Anderson Silva vs. Nick Diaz did when the bout was first announced earlier this year.
In the blue corner you have the former Strikeforce welterweight ch…
There were few other fights that the UFC could pull together that would excite fans more than Anderson Silva vs. Nick Diaz did when the bout was first announced earlier this year.
In the blue corner you have the former Strikeforce welterweight champion making his return to the Octagon after what would have been a 22-month hiatus. In the red corner you have the former UFC middleweight champion making his return from a yearlong absence that came as a result of one of the most gruesome injuries most of us have ever seen.
Both men were poised to take the center of the Octagon and piece together what could have been one of the most fan-friendly striking matches anybody could ask for.
So when most of us heard that Diaz was arrested under suspicion of DUI, the concerns started to grow—who would Silva fight if the highly anticipated bout with Diaz fell through?
Like it or not, this was a fight that Silva was supposed to win. Diaz was supposed to do what he always does: move forward, throw strikes aplenty and collect his paycheck. Silva, being the counterstriker that he is, was supposed to bob, weave and pounce his way back into relevancy.
None of the following fighters would make for quite as an exciting fight, especially when you consider the amount of attention Diaz garners when he steps inside of a cage. That doesn’t mean this pay-per-view is already destined to fail, though.
Here are some alternative options:
GegardMousasi
No, he may not have the same rhetorical abilities that Diaz has developed over the years, but he certainly has a similar striking game that could make for an equally exciting fight. Akin to Diaz, GegardMousasi doesn’t always throw heavy, but he surely throws often.
Coming off of a one-sided loss to Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza earlier this month, Mousasi fell to the bottom of the already-crowded middleweight pool of title contenders. A victory against Silva—which could happen—would likely toss him ahead of a lot of the current crop of contenders.
A win for Silva here would likely provide a little more validation than he would receive in defeating Diaz, further convincing the public that he’s still worthy of the No. 1 spot in the UFC’s middleweight division.
Dan Henderson
Sure, Dan Henderson hasn’t necessarily looked impressive since he took part in a five-round war with Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in 2011. He also hasn’t fought at 185 pounds since he challenged for Jake Shields’ Strikeforce middleweight title back in 2010.
But after getting rag-dolled by Daniel Cormier, knocked out by VitorBelfort and split-decisioned by faster fighters in LyotoMachida and Rashad Evans, it’s obvious that Hendo needs to make some changes before he’ll start seeing any sort of success inside of the Octagon again.
Squaring off against Silva—in what would be the sequel to their 2008 title unification bout—could be the sort of motivation that Henderson needs to make the difficult weight cut at 44 years old.
Rashad Evans
With back-to-back victories against Henderson and ChaelSonnen, it’s not as if Rashad Evans needs to make the move down to middleweight. He sits firmly as the light heavyweight division’s No. 3 contender, likely only needing one or two more victories before he’ll find himself in a rematch against Jon Jones.
But that’s just it—it’ll be a rematch against the man who beat him in every feasible way for five whole rounds. And it’s not as if Jones suddenly plateaued upon defeating Evans—he’s gotten much, much better.
He’ll be looking to make his return to the Octagon in early 2015 after tearing his ACL in the weeks leading up to his bout against Cormier back in March. He did say he’d be willing to come back as early as February, per The MMA Hour, via Dana Becker of Fightline.com, but who’s to say he’d be opposed to the idea of pushing his ETA a month early to step up and fight the former pound-for-pound king?
Kristian Ibarra is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report. He also serves as the sports editor at San Diego State University’s student-run newspaper, The Daily Aztec. Follow him on Twitter at @Kristian_Ibarra for all things MMA.
Nick Diaz has done a lot in his career.
He’s fought for a UFC title on a couple of occasions.
He’s held welterweight gold in another.
He once found a way to distill violence on the scale of a global conflict into the most chaotic five minutes the sport…
Nick Diaz has done a lot in his career.
He’s fought for a UFC title on a couple of occasions.
For a guy who just turned 31, he’s really put together quite a run for himself.
And that’s why people love him. He’s a warrior, a crusader for anti-establishment integrity, a walking middle finger erected at The Man and any of the suits who would dare side with him.
It’s that attitude that made people take note when he was a kid in the UFC causing mayhem, that made people keep tabs on him long after he’d left and that made people wait with bated breath for his return from the exile he’d placed upon himself since early 2013.
Now he’s back.
Well, not now, but basically now.
The bout agreements are signed, the date is set and Diaz is coming back to an Octagon near you. He’s heading to middleweight to begin carving a new path for himself, and it starts when he’ll stand across the cage from the legendary Anderson Silva at UFC 183 in January.
The excitement that produced when it was announced earlier in the summer was palpable, and it’s only going to grow more fevered as the fight approaches.
The fascinating philosophies of Diaz, the notable quirks of Silva and the inevitable violence the two men will produce as opponents should send MMA into a frenzy by the time the cage door shuts that night.
But the question remains: Can Diaz ever be anything more than that? Can he ever transcend the label of cult hero and become a perennial contender, or even a UFC champion?
The fact of the matter is that Diaz largely talked his way into contention through 2012 and 2013, trashing Georges St-Pierre enough that the Canadian had to fight him or never hear the end of it. When that happened, Diaz was badly outclassed.
Previously he’d ridden the momentum of a title reign in Strikeforce and a battering of the diminishing BJ Penn to a crack at interim gold against Carlos Condit. Again he lost, though more contentiously, but he simply kept talking until the St-Pierre fight was booked anyway.
Now, wisely taking note of the total lack of stars or even remotely interesting personalities in the UFC, Diaz has parlayed his post-GSP retirement into a new contract, a bigger payday and the biggest non-title fight the UFC has put together in years.
Maybe ever.
With a win over Silva, Diaz will immediately be in the mix of contenders at middleweight and, truthfully, probably welterweight if he decides to drop back down to his natural class.
That said, he doesn’t seem interested in anything beyond, to borrow a phrase, “snappin’ necks and cashin‘ checks.” He’s not keen on committing to much besides getting that bread.
So what does that mean? Lots of stuff, honestly. If one were inclined, they could sit down and write a book on Diaz, his unique savvy and the successes and failures he’s wrought. He’s simply that compelling, both as an individual and an agent of chaos.
For the purposes of the present day, though? It means that, likely of his own volition, Diaz won’t be a title contender again. He won’t run roughshod over two divisions, he won’t hold gold in both at the same time or even independently.
He simply doesn’t care to, not unless stepping into contendership or title challenges runs parallel to his ultimate goal of getting paid.
It’s not about whether or not Diazcan be more than a cult hero; he obviously has the talent to elevate himself to the highest peaks.
It’s that he won’t be more than a cult hero, because he has his own agenda and his own ambitions, and they’ll take precedent over a shiny gold belt and a pat on the back from Dana White 100 times out of 100.
So expect no less, and love him for it. It’s that trueness to himself that put him in this position, and it’s that trueness that’s going to keep him there.
There were few other fights that the UFC could pull together that would excite fans more than 