UFC 117: Anderson Silva - “Back to Basics”
Anderson "The Spider" Silva to face Chael Sonnen in UFC 117's main event
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After his sixth title defense four months ago at UFC 112, middleweight champion Anderson Silva received more criticism that ever before. Anymore, it looks as if winning is just not enough, you must do it in convincing fashion as well. That is something Silva found out first hand after he danced around the octagon for the last two rounds against Demian Maia at UFC 112. Now, although he will go down as one of the most dominant champions in history, Silva will have to step up his game and take it to the next level.
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Wherever that next level is, Silva is going to have to figure it out, that is as long as he wants to get by Chael Sonnen at the upcoming UFC 117 main event. In my opinion, I don’t believe that Silva has to discover any new tricks of the trade; instead I think he needs to go back to basics and use the skills that got him to this point in his career.
Some say that he was bored, others say he was tired, whatever the problem was against Maia, it has to be fixed. Sonnen is fundamentally sound mentally and physically and will be in top-notch condition come August 7 th. Silva will not be able to run away from Sonnen and work the clock as he did with Maia; that will not get him very far.
If Silva concentrates on his takedown defense, submission skills, and world-class muay-thai, he will be just fine. If Sonnen is unable to get Silva to the ground, he has virtually no chance of winning. On their feet, Silva is in another class, even though Sonnen has improved his stand-up, it just wouldn’t be a fair fight. If, and only if, Sonnen is able to get Silva to the ground, he must watch his slick submission skills. Silva has submitted top-notch wrestlers before including Dan Henderson at the March 2008 UFC 82. If he gets back to basics and plays it smart, he will walk out with his seventh title defense.
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Which Anderson Silva will show up for UFC 117, it’s hard to say? If it is the Silva that sticks to his strengths, then we are in for a good title fight. If it is the cocky, over-confident Silva that was in confusing brawls with Thales Leites and Maia, I’m not sure what will happen. As talented as Silva is, the burden of staying champion may be just too much for him. Will he rise up and step his game up against Sonnen? Just like his most recent fight, it’s anyone’s guess.
By Nick Russell
ProFighting-fans.com Senior MMA Staff Writer