Anderson Silva is back on top of HeavyMMA.com’s pound-for-pound rankings for February 2011.
1. Anderson Silva
Jeremy Botter: Can there be any doubt? Silva’s lightning-quick destruction of Vitor Belfort cements his place as the greatest fighter walking the planet today, and perhaps the greatest fighter of all time. A proposed dream match with Georges St. Pierre is nearly a reality, with only Jake Shields standing in the way.
Jeff Cain: With his UFC 126 knockout of Vitor Belfort, Anderson ends the debate over who is the pound for pound best in the world. He’s on a 14 fight win streak, undefeated in the UFC and has cleared out the middleweight division. We are witnessing the greatest fighter of all time in Silva.
Matt Brown: I’ll be the first to admit, I was on the Aldo bandwagon. Take nothing away from the fast-rising prospect, but Anderson Silva is in a class by himself. In my opinion, he’s three or four more wins away from going down as the greatest fighter that has ever lived – in any combat sport.
After UFC president Dana White announced at the UFC 126 post-fight press conference, if welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre defeats Jake Shields at UFC 128, that a super bout between he and middleweight titleholder Anderson Silva will happen later this year, people, fans and media alike, have been focused on that epic match up.
St. Pierre isn’t foolish enough to look ahead of what is in front of him, however.
“I don’t even think about it right now. I never thought about it. I always live in the present moment. My biggest problem is Jake Shields, and it would be foolish for me to look past Jake Shields,” said St. Pierre during a special press conference on Tuesday.
When the critics come for Anderson Silva next, and they will come, the UFC middleweight champion should invoke Maximus Decimus Meridius. What more does a man have to do to silence his naysayers?
Saturday night, Silva collected his 13th consecutive victory inside the Octagon and successfully defended his middleweight title for the eighth time. He finished Vitor Belfort with a beautiful and never-before-seen front kick to the face, courtesy of Steven Seagal no less.
The victory solidifies Silva as the best fighter on the planet, at least in my eyes, and further cements his place as one of the all-time greats in this sport. It also locks him in for what could be the biggest fight in MMA history, a meeting with UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, provided the reigning 170-pound king defeats Jake Shields in April.
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UFC 126 takes place tonight from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas and this card is stacked from top to bottom with intriguing and exciting bouts. Here are my picks for tonight’s main card.
UFC Middleweight Championship: Anderson Silva (27-4) vs. Vitor Belfort (19-8) – This is the first time Silva will be facing a striker that may have equal or greater hand speed than him, so this could be his toughest test to date. However, Silva is much more of a complete fighter, as he mixes in kicks, knees, elbows, and has a black belt in jiu-jitsu. While Belfort has one-punch KO power, I think Silva finds a way to get past him and puts on another impressive performance.
Light Heavyweight Bout: Forrest Griffin (17-6) vs. Rich Franklin (28-5) – Both of these guys are former champions in the UFC and both are trying to stay relevant within the organization. This should be a good scrap as both fighters always bring the fight. Franklin should have the edge in striking with his awkward style and angles, but Griffin has a big size advantage and I expect him to use that to smother Franklin and score takedowns, which will earn him a decision victory.UFC Light Heavyweight Bout: Jon Jones (11-1) vs. Ryan Bader (12-0) – This is a fight of the top two young up-and-comers in the division and the winner will be thrust into the top 5 of the division. Jones is such a unique fighter in terms of style and length while Bader is a great wrestler with good power in his hands. I think Jones has more ways to win this fight and will be able to stay off his back against Bader. I see Jones landing a big knee when Bader comes in for a shot, which sets up a TKO finish in round two.
UFC Bantamweight Bout: Miguel Torres (37-3) vs. Antonio Banuelos (19-6): Torres is one of the top bantamweights in the world and he has changed up his training in hopes to becoming a more complete and patient fighter. I see him picking apart Banuelos, who will look to grapple. I see Torres landing a nice combination in the second round before dropping Banuelos and jumping on him to secure a choke for a submission victory.
UFC Welterweight Bout: Jake Ellenberger (23-5) vs. Carlos Rocha (9-0) – Rocha is a very dangerous and slick submission fighter, but I see him struggling with Ellenberger’s wrestling. I look for Ellenberger to land takedowns and ground strikes while avoiding submission attempts to earn a decision victory over Rocha and continue to move up the welterweight ranks.
UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva puts his belt on the line in the main event of UFC 126 against Vitor Belfort on Feb. 5 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, and he’s not feeling any added pressure.
“I just checked my blood pressure and it’s normal,” said Silva. “I don’t feel any extra pressure.”
Silva is coming off a dramatic come-from-behind submission win over Chael Sonnen at UFC 117 in August. Sonnen was able to land punches and secure takedowns for most of the twenty three minutes that the fight lasted. With less than two minutes remaining, Silva locked on a triangle/arm bar and forced Sonnen to tap.
The Brazilian titleholder made some slight changes since that fight, but for the most part has trained for Belfort like he has all of his twelve UFC wins.
“I made a few adjustments, but pretty much I’ve been on the same track maintaining the thing that I always does. It’s a very intense training camp,” he said. “Of course I’m always working to improve, but I’ve just kept the intensity throughout, and I’m just going to go out there and do my job and do what I’m trained to do.”
Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin broke down the UFC 126 main event between Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort for HeavyMMA.com.
No one may be more qualified to discuss the UFC 126 main event between UFC middleweight titleholder Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort than Rich Franklin.
The former UFC middleweight champion has fought and lost to both Silva and Belfort and has studied them in preparation for those fights. Franklin would be considered an expert if called into court to testify about the match up.
“They’re similar because they’re both Brazilian and they’re both southpaws and both have a win over me,” jokingly said Franklin. “They’re both effective strikers. They’re both fast and use good footwork and all of that kind of stuff.”
While both primarily strikers who possess ground games, Silva and Belfort are different kinds of strikers. Silva employs kicks from the outside and needs distance to execute his craft. Belfort is more effective in the pocket unleashing combinations with his hands.
“Stylistically, on their feet, they’re different fighters. They’re both effective in their own rights,” said Franklin via conference call on Thursday. “It’s going to be interesting to see who’s going to come into the ring if this ends up being a stand up fight how this is going to play out stylistically.”
The card is set to be headlined by UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva and top contender Vitor Belfort, while a light heavyweight clash between Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin will serve as the co-main event. Also on the card, fast-rising light heavyweight contenders Jon Jones and Ryan Bader will face off to determine who continues to rise in the competitive division.
Also on the pay-per-view portion of the event, former longtime WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Torres makes his UFC debut against Antonio Banuelos, while lightweight sluggers Paul Kelly and Sam Stout will face off in the first bout on the main card.
While several preliminary bouts have been rumored, including a lightweight tilt between Gabe Ruediger and Paul Taylor, as well as a welterweight contest between Jake Ellenberger and Carlos Eduardo Rocha, none have been made official as of yet.
Vitor Belfort is expected to face UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, likely in the headlining bout of UFC 125 on New Year’s Day in Las Vegas.
The change was confirmed today by UFC President Dana White.
Belfort was scheduled to face Yushin Okami in the main event of UFC 122 in November, but the Brazilian was pulled from the bout and replaced with Nate Marquardt. The winner of the Okami/Marquardt bout will get the next crack at the winner of the Silva/Belfort championship match.
Belfort takes the place of Chael Sonnen, who was scheduled to score an immediate rematch following a near-victory over Silva in August. But Sonnen tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs after the event and is currently facing a one-year suspension and $2,500 fine from the California State Athletic Commission. Sonnen is scheduled to appeal the decision on Dec. 2, but the UFC is moving forward with Belfort as the challenger.
Chael Sonnen’s efforts at UFC 117 may not have earned him the belt, but they have earned him an immediate rematch with middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
UFC President Dana White delivered news of the rematch on ESPN earlier this morning.
In what is a certain “Comeback of the Year” candidate, Silva took a beating for four and one-half rounds, with Sonnen earning takedowns in each and every round and utilizing ground and pound throughout the contest. However, Silva locked on a triangle choke from his back at the end of the fifth, forcing his underdog opponent to submit.
1. Anderson Silva
