UFC 148 Results: Anderson Silva, Chael Sonnen and the Trilogy That Could've Been

The smoke has cleared, the feud is over and Anderson Silva has finally put Chael Sonnen in his place.

After arguably the biggest event in UFC history, MMA fans all over the world are left with one question.

What's next?

Outside of a rematch with Vitor Belfort, there aren't any marquee fights left for Silva in the middleweight division and super fights with Georges St-Pierre and Jon Jones are highly unlikely at this point.

Seeing the hype surrounding UFC 148, it's a bit disappointing a third bout won't be needed. There has never been anything like the Silva-Sonnen rivalry in MMA history and the anticipation surrounding their rematch proved it.

The atmosphere at the weigh-ins alone resembled a pay-per-view event. According to UFC President Dana White (via MMAjunkie.com) at the post-fight press conference, the event drew an attendance of 15,016 and raked in a live gate of $7 million, which is a new UFC record in the United States.

For some, the conclusion of the Silva-Sonnen feud brought about a sigh of relief. It meant the end of Sonnen bashing the UFC champ and the country of Brazil.

Looking at things strictly from a business perspective, Sonnen's mouth was one of the best things to ever happen to the UFC. There has never been such a vast amount of coverage surrounding one UFC event.

Burger King reportedly paid Silva $250,000 for a logo spot on his fight shorts.

UFC 148 felt like the UFC's version of WrestleMania. There are plenty of other big fights on the horizon for the UFC, but it could be a long time before fans ever see anything even close to the level of Silva vs. Sonnen.

Until then, fans will always wonder about the trilogy that could've been.