The Five Biggest Potential UFC Fights

Knowing the styles of both of these fighters as well as I do, I'm certain that it would end up being a striking war akin to the Liddell fight against Wanderlei Silva in December of 2007, except for the fact that Anderson Silva is far more accurate with strikes than both Wanderlei or Liddell (or anyone else in the UFC, for that matter).

The Spider won't sit in the pocket and trade punches with Liddell like Wanderlei did. Both Liddell and Silva like to use the opening moments of a fight to measure distances and angles with their opponents, but after the first minute I think there would be a flurry of great strikes from both fighters, and they probably wouldn't stop until someone hits the mat.

A win over Chuck Liddell, especially by TKO or KO, would elevate Anderson Silva into that upper echelon of PPV draws. He's already a star, but he has yet to prove he can sell a PPV by himself. A victory over Liddell would go a long way towards doing just that, regardless of Liddell's recent record.

Likewise, a win over Silva would likely give Liddell enough credibility with mainstream fans that he could be given an immediate title shot. Knocking out the best fighter in the world will make fans quickly forget his dramatic knockout loss to Rashad Evans.

BROCK LESNAR VS. FRANK MIR

This one is highly speculative, because in order for this fight to truly sell, both Lesnar and Mir would have to emerge victorious in their respective fights with Randy Couture and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. The odds of that happening are low, but we're mostly dealing in fantasy here anyway. This is the only rematch on the list, but it's definitely one of those rare cases where the sequel would be bigger and better than the original.

Lesnar putting his UFC Heavyweight Championship on the line against the man who handed him his only defeat in the octagon would do monster business, especially of Mir can beat Nogueira for the interim belt and make this fight a title unification bout.

There would be many intriguing stories surrounding Lesnar/Mir 2. Has Lesnar learned from the rookie mistakes he made in that first fight, and will he finish Frank Mir in the manner he came so close to doing in the first meeting? Has he learned enough submission defense in the time since the first meeting to avoid submission attempts from one of the best jiu-jitsu players in the heavyweight division?

Can Mir catch the monster in another submission hold? Better yet, can he avoid the Lesnar strikes and take downs that put him on the mat in the first fight? Will he be able to somehow do what no other Lesnar opponent has been able to do and avoid being controlled by the Minnesota native's wrestling skill and power?

There are so many ways to sell this fight, so many angles to choose from, and all of them would be received very well by UFC fans. Even if Lesnar and Mir both lose their respective title fights in November and December, there's still some appeal to putting this fight together towards the middle or end of 2009. 

FORREST GRIFFIN VS. WANDERLEI SILVA

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