Anderson Silva - The Spider
For the world over, when it comes to MMA, almost everybody has the name, Anderson Silva on their lips. Standing at 6 feet 2 inches and weighing in around 84kgs, this is someone you do not want standing against you in the ring. Nicknamed ‘the Spider’, this Brazilian fighter has trained under multiple disciplines and is a black prajied in Muay Thai, a black-belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, a black-belt in Judo, 5th dan black-belt in Taekwondo and a yellow rope in capoeira. He holds an impressive record of 33 wins and 6 losses and also holds the record for the longest title defense streak in the UFC which ended only last year in 2013.
Silva began his career, fighting in his native country of Brazil in the welterweight division. In August, 2001, he was pitted against the Shooto Champion Hayato Sakurai in Japan. He became the first one to defeat Sakurai who was undefeated for 20 fights and became the new Shooto Middleweight Champion. In 2002, he started fighting in Pride and by 2004, he moved to Cage Rage. He also did a brief stint in Hawaii’s Rumble on the Rock, before finally signing up with UFC on April, 2006.
Though not as well known on American soil, Silva made an emphatic debut in the UFC when he knocked out his opponent, Chris Leben with a flurry of pinpoint strikes, followed by a final knee strike at 49 seconds into the first round. Silva's striking accuracy was 85%. His next match was with the UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin. Silva fought Franklin at UFC 64 on October 14, 2006, and defeated him by TKO at 2:59 in the first round. Silva hit Franklin with knees to the body from the Muay Thai-clinch, then badly broke Franklin's nose with a knee to the face. Unable to continue, the referee called off the match and declared, Anderson Silva as the new UFC Middleweight Champion.
Although, a well-rounded fighter, he is primarily known for his phenomenal Muay Thai striking ability and his freakish speed. He has taken down fighters with a single strike of his leg and in another fight, calmly danced and dodged a flurry of strikes, even managing to taunt his opponent while doing it. In some matches though, Silva has been criticized for not engaging, avoiding and stretching the match.
His outstanding title defense streak finally ended last year in July when he lost to the breakthrough fighter of the year, Chris Weidman. Anderson Silva was knocked out in that bout by the younger fighter. The following months saw a rematch take place between the two fighters, which ended disastrously for the spider. He lost the match, having suffered a broken leg, when his left leg snapped in two as Weidman blocked his strike. Silva fell to the mat in agony and the referee called off the match, declaring Weidman as the winner. Fortunately, Anderson ‘Spider’ Silva has recovered from this accident and is back in the cage again, waiting for what comes next.