Anderson Silva: Hard Work, Struggles and Dedication Have Brought Him To UFC 126

Having not tasted defeat in more than four years and currently riding a thirteen-fight win streak, UFC middleweight champion Anderson “The Spider” Silva (27-4) returns to defend his title at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV on February 5.

The superiority Silva has shown during his tenure in the sport’s premier organization has been nothing less than spectacular, with ten of his twelve wins coming by way of (T)KO or submission. Awe-inspiring finishes over the likes of Forrest Griffin, Rich Franklin (2x), Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen have placed “The Spider” as a pound-for-pound great.

Silva’s next foe will be fellow Brazilian Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort (19-8), who many expect to be the champion’s most dangerous opponent to date. With that being said, Silva without a doubt expects the hard-hitting Belfort to be dangerous and expects to put on a show for the fans.

“Vitor is a dangerous opponent, he was a young Champion and has been around the sport for a long time,” Silva said. “I think this is going to be a great fight for the fans around the world.”

With the desire to continue putting on electrifying fights and carry on his dominance atop the middleweight division, Silva split training between the tremendous gyms in his home country of Brazil and at Team Black House in California.

“I think it’s great to be able to challenge myself in training, and spending time in California gives me the opportunity to train with different guys,” Silva explained to Bleacher Report. “It’s a good balance between our camps in Brazil and California. You can expect to see a great fight, and months of hard work in the gym put into practice in the Octagon.”

The months of hard work and dedication that Silva has spent between Brazil and California in order to improve his craft will be left inside of the Octagon against Belfort, and according to Silva a victory at UFC 126 is another great opportunity to show the world his elite talent.

“I want to always fight the best and I believe the fans want to see the same thing. This fight is another challenge for me in the UFC, it’s another opportunity to show my work to the world and defend my title.”

No one in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship has defended a world championship (7x) more successfully or won more consecutive fights (12) than Silva, and according to the champion his success is a result of many things.

“It’s the result of many years of hard work and struggles, and the dedication I put into my training and of all those who helped shape the athlete I am today.”

The athlete he is today, happens to be the most successful fighter to ever step foot inside of the world famous Octagon, and in closing Silva had a message for his faction of fans.

“Thank you to all the fans, you guys are great, don’t miss the fight on February 5^th.”