Dave Meltzer from The Wrestling Observer is one of the best inside information guys in the business and his latest tidbit is a doozy. Meltzer is reporting that Wand Silva was given a choice of two opponents for his next match-up. Thiago Silva or Lyoto Machida were the two opponents that Wand had to choose from, and his choice was supposedly Thiago Silva.
Thiago Silva is one of the premier young talents the UFC has at Light Heavyweight. He is 13-0 and is on a four fight win streak in the UFC. He has ripped off wins against James Irvin, Tomasz Drwal, Houston Alexander, and Antonio Mendes.
Ten of his thirteen wins have come by KO/TKO, he has two submission victories, and has gone the distance only once. To top it all off, he trains with one of the best camps in the world, American Top Team.
If a fight with Wand Silva is next for Thiago, it will certainly be the biggest in his relatively young career. A win over Wanderlei puts him right in the thick of the title hunt. If he wants to see a title shot in the next two years he needs to beat Wandy, which of course is easier said than done.
The man who may be in the way of Thiago's title run is one of the greatest of all time. Wand Silva is coming off of an absolutely brutal knock out of Keith Jardine.
Ten seconds after Jardine hit the canvas, I received a text message from one of my best friends and fellow MMA enthusiast.
It simply read "WAND JUST KILLED JARDINE"
While I never want to see a athlete hurt, I felt excited for Wand. The"Ax- Murderer" was back.
Wand Silva has always been one of my favorite fighters. Out of the ring he is a good guy and a family man, inside he is a scary dude.
I was afraid with several losses the UFC would let Wand go, or bury him in undercard mediocrity like what happened with Arlovski. But he proved that he was still one of the best in the biz, and now he may face the future of the Light Heavyweight division.
Now the two Silva's are at a crossroads: one will win and be a step ot two away from the title. The other will have to start over in a talent-rich Light Heavyweight division.
I hope this fight happens, because this is one of those fights that you can show to someone that doesn't follow the sport and they will be amazed at what these two men can do.
It's a chance for a talented youngster to catapult himself to a "meteoric rise," while a legend has a chance to see if he has one more title run left in him.
Please Joe Silva, make Thiago Silva vs. Wanderlei Silva happen.
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3 months ago
Can't blame Wand for choosing Thiago instead of Machida. Thiago is a really good fighter, however, his fight with Drwal was less than spectacular. He gassed early in that one, but Drwal was even more gassed. And his match with Irvin was inconclusive. I want to see what Thiago is really made out of, and what his chin and heart is like when he gets tested (though he bounced back nicely from that kick by Mendes).
A fight with Wand would be a great way to really evaluate Thiago's potential as a top fighter, and the winner will be in the hunt for a title shot. I favor Wand in this match-up, but Thiago has power and is great on the ground. He cannot be underestimated. This fight should be a barn-burner.
3 months ago
im so glad wandy knew nobody wanted to see him lose an embarrassing decision to machida. I dont think he would beat machida anyways but thiago..........that is a different story.
3 months ago
I'll go on record as saying that may be one of the better fights of the year. I've already gone on to say that this time next year, Thiago Silva will be wearing the UFC gold, and I stick by it. Good fight matchup though. I agree, please Joe Silva make this happen!
3 months ago
This will definitely happen and I see no way how Thiago escapes the fate shared by Jardine. Some people will pose a problem to Wanderlei but Thiago Silva is not one of them. If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and talks like a duck, it probably IS a glass jaw. The only difference I could possibly see between the two aforementioned fates is that Thiago would try to take him down immediately instead of Jardine's plan of a kickboxing match. Even then, we're looking at a clinch matchup involving Wanderlei Silva; the guy's strong as hell, probably as strong if not stronger than Thiago, and the height disadvantage is perhaps 1-2 inches where Chuck was 3 inches and fought in such a manner where that number becomes relevant. Your reach is of little consequence when you're fighting in a phone booth. Thiago's got power but he's been knocked down by guys with half the boom Wanderlei's got. I think it's also clear that should this fight even get out of the first half of the first round, one looked average against Tomasz Drwal and gassed badly. The other is a conditioning machine.
I can understand why it's interesting; an undefeated kid with a great pedigree and two dope G-'n-P victories in a row on the main card against a superstar, a knockout king who's now on the very short list of UFC poster boys. But stylistically I just see Thiago Silva as a dude tailor-made to be executed by the Axe Murderer.
3 months ago
When do you think this fight will happen? Any ideas?
3 months ago
if you'll notice they usually rotate the weight classes they'll feature on a particular show, and 84 was the big 205 show. neither was obviously any worse for the wear and with 88 being pretty empty for the time being, it's either due for a lot of middleweights or light heavyweights (i'm not trying to be some elitist i-have-the-inside-angle douche, i just keep a spreadsheet of all this stuff). Henderson/Palhares was just added so that could mean maybe both? Either way I see it happening at 88 because adding Wand to that show makes it a no-brainer to buy for those pissed at Chuck not fighting somebody else. And Henderson too? Those two fights added turn that 'meh' main event into 'the last fight on a monster card'.
3 months ago
I have heard October, but Wandy didn't want to fight until December. If Steve is right and we get Hendo vs. Palhares, Chuck vs. Rashard and Wand vs. Thiago thats amazing. I'm getting a MMA 50% chubby just thinking about it. Karo is supposed to be on the card to right?
from 3 months ago
you and steve are both right ... hendo vs palhares and karo vs yoshiyuki yoshida
from 3 months ago
It looks like Silva vs. Silva will be in October in England as well as Bisping vs. Leben at UFC 89.
3 months ago
wand could be the one to finally force machida to fight a real fight and not just goto a decision there is no way wand would let him back up the entire fight and if he did back up wand would make him pay for that.
from 3 months ago
what makes you think wand would be able to dictate a fight with machida? sokoudjou is as aggressive as they come as a striker and he couldn't dictate the pace in their fight. wand plays right into the hands of counter strikers like machida and liddell.
3 months ago
I am with David. Would Machida be forced to change his game plan and could he save himself from becoming a wrestling dummy like Jardine was when he took so many punches after going inert?
3 months ago
Machida would beat Wand. Watch Cro Cop vs Wand to see how a fight against Machida would look like. Machida devours aggressive strikers, and they are in fact the best match-up for his countering style. And Jardine is nowhere close to Machida in terms of skill, so there is no point in comparing the two. Plus, Wand is susceptible to straight punches, and Lyoto has a solid left hand.
Why do you guys think Wand chose Thiago over Machida? Because A) he doesn't want a fourth loss in five fights, and B) he prefers fighting guys who will stand and trade with him, because he likes to put on exciting fights for the fans. Machida would make Wand look bad, real bad. And Wand doesn't need that right now.
Nobody wants to fight Machida. Nobody. Chuck, Forrest, and now Wand avoided a fight with him. Not because they are physically scared of Machida, but because they don't want to lose in a "less than exciting" manner, and look helpless in the process. Machida will samurai his way to the belt.
3 months ago
Hahaha. Samurai his way to the belt. That' funny. Anyways, I think that Machida poses problems for alot of people. But that's besides the point. Honestly, I know many would take Wand over Thiago in this one (and I understand why) but to kind of counter what Jad said, Thiago wouldn't stay banging with Wand for too long. He'd maybe try a go of it, and if it fails he'll work in a little bit of the ground game. But don't tell me that Thiago's not a good contender. Houston Alexander (though he's looked like absolute crap in his last two fights) was demolished by Silva, in what was supposed to be Alexanders' stepping stone to a #1 contender spot. Thiago can win against Wand, and if this fight goes down, I'll be the first one to take the bets. And to comment on the UFC 89 card, I think Bisping's fight is a joke. This will be his third "warm up" fight since dropping weight. How bout feeding him a Jason MacDonald, or a Rich Franklin? Jeez, Bisping's been baby'd ever since his controversial win to Matt Hamill (Hamill won in my opinion by far). Looks like good cards in the near future.
from 3 months ago
Of course Thiago has a good shot at beating Wand, but I meant that it would be an easier match for Wand stylistically than having to face Machida. And you're right. Thiago will stand for a bit, but he'll probably want to take Wand down and work some ground and pound.
But when Thiago had to fight a second round against Drwal, he looked terrible. Wand will test him and show us what he's really made of. If he beats Wand, he's in the title shot mix. However, I will have to go with Wand k.o. in this one, though Thiago has heavy hands and is well-rounded. I wonder what the betting odds will be?
from 3 months ago
Leben is not a "warm up" opponent for Bisping. Bisping hasn't faced someone with the power, chin, and experience of Leben. Leben is the middleweight gatekeeper, and I have a hard time seeing Bisping taking the keys from him.
Anderson Silva vs Yushin Okami is also rumored for UFC 89 in England. So I guess the winner of Cote vs Almeida will have to wait for a title shot. I wonder how long it will take Silva to get the k.o. this time? Last time it took two and a half minutes (I know it was an illegal upkick, but still).
3 months ago
The annual ufc writers pick em is up http://bleacherreport.com/articles/33155-1st-annual-writers-competition-ufc-86-jackson-vs-griffin
2 months ago
wanderlei all the way. the only way yo can beat him is by throwing straight punches and Thiago doesnt do that.
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