UFC 110: Wanderlei Silva - “The Reinvention of the Axe Murderer”
Wanderlei Silva to face Michael Bisping at UFC 110 in a key Middleweight bout
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Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva has been in a funk since returning to the UFC in late 2007. He has lost three of his four UFC fights and if you include his final two bouts in the PRIDE organization, he has dropped five of his last six overall.
All of those aforementioned bouts have taken place above the 185-pound weight limit. Five of the six fights were within the 205-pound limit, and his most recent bout took place at a 195-pound catch-weight.
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Not having fought in over eight months, Silva is hoping the time off as well as the drop to 185 will work to recharge his batteries. His UFC 110 co-main event battle with Brit Michael Bisping can go one of two directions.
First, if Silva is able to use the weight cut to his advantage and transform it into extra quickness, we should see Silva as quick as he has been in recent years. If that proves to be true, his bigger and stronger frame and reenergized speed could also mean some dangerous knockout power similar to what we all saw when he reigned supreme as PRIDE champion.
A victory would do wonders for Wanderlei’s career. His fresh start at 185 probably has at least given him two more fights, however if he produces a highlight reel KO, he could be right in the thick of things in the middleweight division. At the very least, a victory over a top-5 middleweight such as Bisping sets Silva up for a possible matchup to become the number one contender.
If Silva’s reduction in weight backfires, it could send him falling even lower on the UFC totem pole. In his last fight with Rich Franklin, he looked somewhat dehydrated and struggling for energy late in the fight. That wasn’t even 185 pounds, it was ten pounds heavier – at a 195 pound catch-weight.
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It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what a loss to Bisping means. Especially if the loss is in KO fashion, that may bring the end of “The Axe Murderer” as we know him. If that were to happen, there just really isn’t that much left for Silva to do. I don’t think many people will get too excited about Wanderlei fighting a top flight opponent while carrying a 1-4 UFC record over the last three years.
The build up to Silva vs. Bisping has been fantastic. Bisping believes Silva owes him much due respect, however Silva doesn’t have any plans on giving him any. With all the talk about Silva’s new look at 185-pounds, it’s hard not to look forward to this bout and hope a reinvented Silva will bring flashes of “The Axe Murderer” from the past.
By Nick Russell
ProFighting-fans.com Senior MMA Staff Writer