Anderson Silva vs Chael Sonnen Results: What Went Right for Silva

Round 1 of UFC 148's main event between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen seemed like some serious deja vu.

But then Round 2 started, and Silva put the silly notion that Silva-Sonnen II would be a carbon copy of the first fight right out of our heads.

The result was, indeed, very dissimilar. But why? 

Why was Silva able to dominate Sonnen in a way that he had been previously unable to do in six rounds? 

Well, here are three ideas.

First, Silva was suffering from a rib injury the first time he combated Sonnen, which prevented him from fending off the American's takedown attempts.

I loathe to excuse fighters from performances on account of injuries, not because I don't believe they make a difference, but because they can be pointed to so often that they seem more like excuses than explanations.

But maybe fighting healthy this time around did make the difference for Silva. Only he really knows. It isn't as though we have any clear evidence. 

Sure, Silva fended off Sonnen's attacks in Round 2 of Saturday night's headliner, but he also succumbed to a double-leg shot in the opening seconds of the fight and was unable able to get up unaided by the sounding of the round's closing bell.

Regardless of the impact Silva's rib issue had on his performance last time around, he looked to be in fine form at UFC 148.

So health stands as one potential explanation for the discrepancy between fights one and two.

The second and perhaps most important thing that went right for Silva at UFC 148 was that he avoided taking damage early in the match.

Despite being taken down and held there for the first five minutes of the contest, Sonnen was unable to hurt Silva, which afforded the Brazilian the opportunity to begin the second round as fresh as a daisy.

It is easier to compete effectively when fresh and unhurt than it is when exhausted and damaged. Because Silva entered Round 2 as though it was a second Round 1, he was able to attack Sonnen with the type of ferocity that was withheld from him for most of the first fight.

Thirdly, an isolated event occurred in the Octagon at UFC 148 of which Silva was the beneficiary.

I speak, of course, of Sonnen failing to stick the landing of his single-axle attempt. It was this happening that permitted Silva to land the first strike in a series of a fight-ending barrage.

That is not to say that Silva got lucky. On the contrary, his opponent made a mistake and he capitalized. This defines many mixed martial arts matches.

Sonnen gift wrapped a free shot for Silva and the champion made no mistake of his own. This was another major reason for the Brazilian's success.

Ultimately, Silva was able to beat Sonnen in convincing fashion at UFC 148 because he entered the fight healthy, avoided taking early damage that would mitigate the effectiveness of his takedown defense throughout the fight and capitalized on a huge error made by his opponent.

A simpler explanation of what went right for Silva would be to state that he entered the bout as the better fighter, but there is so little margin for error in MMA that sometimes even superior competitors need things to go right to win.

And go right things did. At least the three that I've outlined here.

I suppose if everything had gone right, Silva probably wouldn't have been on his back for five minutes to kick off the contest.