Wanderlei Silva vs. Rich Franklin: Each Fighter's Defining MMA Moment

Without a doubt, both Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin are both legends of mixed martial arts. Between them, they have won the Pride Middleweight championship, Pride Grand Prix and the UFC Middleweight championship.

Tonight, they will meet at 190 pounds in a rematch of their war at UFC 99. The roads that led to their path crossing were long and not without bumps. What were their career defining moments, though?

Wanderlei Silva Knocks out Rampage Jackson Twice to Stay King of Pride

I suppose this isn't just one career defining moment, but Silva's defining remembrance will be his two vicious knockouts of archrival Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

Jackson and Silva have one of the most famous feuds in MMA history. Before Jackson would eventually extract revenge Silva in the UFC, Silva embarrassed Jackson twice with two vicious knockouts.

The first would come in late 2003, when Silva met Jackson in the Pride 2003 Middleweight Grand Prix Final. Jackson was one of the hottest fighters in the world at the time, while Silva was considered the best fighter in Japan.

Just over six minutes in, "The Axe Murderer" got Jackson in the Muay Thai clinch and unleashed a barrage of knees that would have crippled a mastodon. Several shots to the head later, Silva was declared the winner by knockout.

The two would meet again almost a year later, this time for the Pride Middleweight championship. By this time, the two had developed a very heated rivalry through words, shoving and disrespect.

This fight would be a lot closer than the first. Jackson incorporated his wrestling better, but it would not save him from a highlight-reel finish. Silva caught Jackson in the clinch again, this time knocking him out with knees and sending him through the ropes.

These two wins were the defining moments of Silva's career, even more so than his winning of the Pride title. 

Call the Doctor, Rich Franklin is the New Champion

The year was 2005, and Rich Franklin was one of the most promising fighters in the UFC. Coming off of the best win of his career over Ken Shamrock, Franklin has all sort of momentum coming into his title shot against Evan Tanner.

Tanner and Franklin had already met once prior to this fight, which saw Franklin absolutely demolish the now-deceased Tanner.

The second fight was much longer than the first, as Tanner put on a better performance than his first performance. Eventually, Franklin would batter Tanner so badly that the doctors had to put a stop to the fight. In that moment, Franklin had achieved his dream to become a champion.

Franklin went on to become a legend of the sport, eventually losing his title to Anderson Silva. "Ace" was an important person in the building of the UFC at that time, and his reign as champion would prove to be his defining moment.