UFC 140: Claude Patrick Will Prove Brian Ebersole Is Not "TWAS"

Claude Patrick never said anything of the sort in an interview, but through his performance at UFC 140, he will (want to) prove that, contrary to the hype, Brian Ebersole is not "The White Anderson Silva."

No, seriously, you know the "TWAS" nickname Ebersole has?

It really does stand for "The White Anderson Silva"...and yet Ebersole's had more fights than Silva.

Anyway, Ebersole is a lot of things, and just for his striking alone, one can say that he's a different animal than Silva, but Ebersole clearly had to have been given that nickname for comic relief.

Skill-wise, he's good, but even Silva has weaknesses.

Naturally, Ebersole does not have a grizzly Chael Sonnen in Jon Fitch to deal with, but just because Ebersole has drawn Patrick does not mean Patrick can't be Ebersole's foil.

Ebersole is experienced in the game but has not faced a guy that can break him down everywhere like Patrick can, and through some solid technical striking that can gradually turn aggressive at any minute, Patrick will expose this.

As for Ebersole's wrestling, Patrick will have proven to have taken note of what Ebersole can do on the ground, and regardless of whether it takes him 15 seconds or 15 minutes, he will find a way to turn a supposed ground disadvantage into a clear advantage in front of his home crowd.

Need we remind you that ever since his fight bout underneath the Zuffa banner, Patrick has gone 2-0 in his home country with wins over Ricardo Funch and Daniel Roberts?

Patrick is, very simply, a man who turns it up when he's on home turf, and he will let Ebersole find that out the hard way when they meet tonight.

Be sure to stay tuned to Bleacher Report for all things UFC 140. B/R is your home for complete coverage of the December 10 fight card, from pre-fight predictions to in-fight coverage, results and post-fight analysis.