UFC 147: Rich Franklin Proves He Is Still Worthy of Run at Middleweight Title

Rich Franklin survived a second-round onslaught from Wanderlei Silva to win a five-round unanimous decision at UFC 147. And along the way, the 37-year-old proved he still has some good fighting left in him.

Good enough for a middleweight title shot? Not just yet. But I would hesitate to bet against him in a run to the title, which is what he said he wanted after the fight (via Franklin McNeil of ESPN):

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The performance displayed Franklin's continued growth as a fighter, and why his talk of making a serious run at the middleweight belt can't be dismissed.

"I will talk to Dana (White), but the idea was to move back down to 185 and make another title run before I retire," said Franklin, who improved to 29-6 with one no contest. "I'm getting up there in years."

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Now, the middleweight division isn't exactly comprised of chopped liver. There is Anderson Silva at the top with his choke hold on the belt. Chael Sonnen will have his rematch with Silva at UFC 148, while fighters like Mark Munoz and Vitor Belfort are dangerous.

And no one is saying Franklin earned himself a title shot with this win. You need to be a bit better than 3-3 in your past six fights, or beat someone better than Silva, who is now 2-4 in his past six.

But Franklin did show that he still has technical savvy and can stand against the big swingers and hold his own. In every conceivable way, he was the better fighter than Silva.

He took Silva's biggest hits and kept fighting, he was more consistent throughout and still had enough left in the tank to drop "The Axe Murderer" to a knee with his final punch. Silva may not be top competition any longer, but he's still a force to be reckoned with, and Franklin left little doubt as to who was better on Saturday night.

Could we eventually see an Anderson Silvan and Franklin rematch? Might it be Sonnen holding the belt by the time Franklin proves he is worthy—if he proves he is worthy—of a title shot?

It's possible, but I also know this: Franklin will need to be damn impressive from here on out to earn a shot. He's 37 and his name doesn't carry the same weight it once did. For Ace to be given a title shot, he'll need to generate a significant amount of buzz around his fights one last time.

He's capable of doing it, as he showed against Wanderlei Silva. One more run for the title isn't out of the question for Rich Franklin.

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