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November - 2014
SCRAPP! FIGHT MAGAZINE
12
CAN ANDERSON SILVA COMPLETE
HIS NEW 15-FIGHT CONTRACT?
Article By: Dale de Souza
Esther Lin/MMAFighting)
Athletes renewing their con-
tracts with certain organiza-
tions holds more significance
than some might think. In the
particular case of athletes that
some place among the greatest
of all time, the ability to sign
them to appear for any num-
ber of appearances allows fans
the opportunity to enjoy that
athlete’s talents for just a little
while longer, even if that ath-
lete has slowed down greatly
over time.
For seven years, everyone
asked the question of wheth-
er Anderson “The Spider”
Silva could be defeated inside
the Octagon. After defeat-
ing Rich Franklin for the UFC
middleweight belt, Silva de-
veloped an aura of invincibility
by defeating the likes of Nate
Marquardt, Dan Henderson,
Yushin Okami, and Chael Son-
nen, among others. That aura
got shattered, however, with
one left hook from undefeated
middleweight, Chris Weidman,
who now reigns atop the UFC
middleweight division as its
champion after beating Silva
twice last year. Silva lost the
rematch due to a broken leg,
which he suffered in round two
after Weidman handily took
the first round.
Fast forward one year, and not
only does Silva await a bout at
UFC 183 on Super Bowl week-
end with Nick Diaz, but he has
signed a new 15-fight deal
with the UFC. Silva’s spirit is
certainly willing to fight on for
as long as possible, but even
if Silva’s superhuman recovery
has allowed him to look like he
can fight beyond his upcom-
ing bout with Diaz, is it realistic
to think that one of the great-
est mixed martial artists of this
generation can fight beyond
his next assignment?
Had this question been asked
a few months ago ago, fans
would label someone “crazy”
for even thinking that Silva
would return to the Octagon,
let alone thinking that he would
sign on for a 15-fight deal. The
more the question gets asked,
though, the less crazy it sounds
when someone says Silva actu-
ally can complete the deal.
Silva knows his body very well,
and so he knows more about
how far he has really come
along in his recovery than does
the public. For all of the fun he
likes to have before and during
fights, he still is smart enough
to know that he only has so
much left in the tank, and only
time will tell exactly how much,
but if any man could prove that
he had a lot more left than
what others believed, “The
Spider” could.