· Anderson Silva - A Historical Perspective
There may not be a greater misconception among casual MMA fans today than the notion that Anderson “The Spider” Silva is boring. In a world where “What have you done lately” is almost all anyone can think about, Silva entered the cage against Chael Sonnen last summer with a lot to prove. His earlier shutout decision title defense against Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert Demian Maia had left many wishing that Silva had pressed more for the finish.
In the Sonnen fight, Silva demonstrated vulnerability for the first time since he had reached his prime as a fighter. His comeback for the win in that defense is now the stuff of legend and, although “The Spider” is now past his prime, MMA fans the world over anxiously anticipated his defense earlier this month against Vitor Belfort. They were not disappointed. The ending to that fight (like so many others) came suddenly and violently. Still, in the days after that display by the nearly 36-year-old middleweight (an especially advanced age for that weight class), many fans continued to preface discussion of the champion with a comment indicating that they’re "not really a fan of his."
For avid fans of both MMA and boxing, it is interesting to break down the numbers and compare Silva’s run against a boxing title reign that fans typically glorify: the heavyweight reign of Mike Tyson. Mind you, Tyson was arguably not as great as some of his peers. In fact, several American boxers in the past 25 years have significantly better resumes. Still, there is an enchantment about Tyson, for whatever reason. He seemed particularly menacing and was an iconic figure in pop culture for quite awhile. Even non-boxing fans were in awe of his concussive punching power. So, what do the numbers say? Here’s a quick comparison:
From the time Mike Tyson won his world championship to the time he lost it he was 10-1: eight finishes (80 percent); two finishes in the first round (20 percent); four finishes in the first two rounds (40 percent).
From the time Anderson Silva won his world championship until present his record is 12-0: 10 finishes (83 percent); (five finishes in the first round (42 percent); eight finishes in the first two rounds (67 percent).
The question as to why Silva isn’t admired more by MMA fans remains valid. Admittedly, in his only two UFC fights to go the distance, he did himself no favors in the eyes of fans by not taking risks and failing to push for a finish (especially considering how much more talented he was than his opponents). However, those two shutout performances should be overshadowed by an incredible body of work that saw him both dominate and finish the heavy majority of his opponents.
Could his lack of popularity be due to the fact that Silva isn’t fluent in English? For many, that could be part of the reason for their reluctance to list him among their favorite fighters. If Tyson could be described as expressing his ferocity as a scowl, Anderson Silva has expressed his as a confident smirk. Perhaps he came across as too nonchalant for audiences. Whatever the reason, he has never enjoyed the popularity in his own sport that one would expect from such a dominant figure.
In a time when professional sports is often plagued by scandal, here is a guy that has not gotten into trouble outside of the cage and has far more often than not exhibited a fan friendly style of fighting within it. He has a diverse skill set with significant accomplishments in multiple disciplines. He has won by shutout decisions, first round domination and come from behind submissions. Like all things, one day his reign will come to an end. Occasional boring decision or not—English speaking or not—I, for one, have greatly admired and enjoyed watching Silva's run. Besides, a knockout front kick to the throat sounds the same in any language.
