The sequel looked a lot like the original, only a little bit longer.
Rich Franklin once again defeated Wanderlei Silva by decision in another exciting fight to headline UFC 147 in Brazil on Saturday, but this fight went five rounds instead of three.
Each fighter had their moment in the contest, with Silva nearly finishing Franklin to end the second round following a flurry, but “Ace” survived and went on to dictate the rest of the fight with his crisp, technical striking.
The win was impressive for the former middleweight champion, as he took this bout on short notice and fought in Silva’s raucous home country.
Now, the question is, what is next for both men?
Franklin is still one of the best, but he isn’t quite enough any more to challenge for a title. Silva is clearly far from what he was in the PRIDE days, but still entertaining. He has become somewhat of a gate keeper in the middleweight division.
In the co-main event of Saturday’s card, Fabricio Werdum improved to 2-0 in his return to the octagon, as he ran through Mike Russow.
Werdum continued to show his improved striking, as he quickly overwhelmed the inexperienced Russow with an array of strikes. Once Werdum rocked Russow, he quickly finished up on the ground and earned the TKO stoppage midway through the first.
Werdum is making a strong case to be considered a top 5 UFC heavyweight with his two impressive showings since coming back to the UFC. Perhaps a battle with the likes of Frank Mir could be next in the cards.
For complete results from UFC 147, check out the jump
If you weren’t paying attention, you may not realize that UFC 147 is taking place this Saturday.
Part of the reason you may not realize this is because the UFC isn’t really going overboard trying to promote it.
The injury bug played a role in this card as the original main event was set to be Vitor Belfort vs. Wanderlei Silva. The event is taking place in Brazil and these two coached the inaugural season of “The Ultimate Fighter Brazil.”
While that fight lacks star power in the U.S., it was still a major fight in Brazil and had some meaning as Belfort was working his way back to a title shot.
However, Belfort broke his hand, and now the main event is Rich Franklin vs. Wanderlei Silva 2, a rematch of their UFC 99 main event back in June of 2009.
While the fight itself could be very entertaining, it could be one of the worst main events in UFC history in regards to what the fight actually means.
Neither fighter is anywhere near a title shot and both are on the tail end of their careers. Their UFC 99 main event was somewhat of a stretch as it was, and it has even less meaning now.
Again, I want to state that when I say “worst main event” I am not referring to the actual entertainment value of the fight. To me, main events should be left for title fights or elite top contender matchups. This main event at UFC 147 is neither.
Sure, there have been some shaky main events before like Chris Leben vs. Mark Munoz or Yushin Okami vs. Nate Marquardt, but those took place in events that aired on live television. This is actually a PPV that costs $45 to watch ($55 if you want HD).
You could even compare it to the likes of UFC 119, which had Frank Mir vs. Mirko Cro Cop as the main event, but Frank Mir was much closer to a title fight then than Franklin or Silva are now.
Really the closest fight by comparison is the main event at UFC 115 when Franklin faced Chuck Liddell. But, even that featured Liddell in a “retirement fight” that garnered some extra interest.
Hopefully the fight is explosive and gives people a reason to watch that pay their money. But, given the talented roster the UFC has these days, these types of main events should be closer and closer to extinction.
Just a few weeks after Vitor Belfort announced he would be taking on Cung Le at UFC 139, he has now had to announce he will not be fighting after all.
According to MMAFighting.com, Belfort suffered an injury that will force him out of the fight. But, the UFC was quick to find a replacement, as Wanderlei Silva will step in to take on Le at UFC 139.
Wanderlei Silva will make his return to the Octagon on November 19 in San Jose, when he takes on former Strikeforce middleweight champion Cung Le at UFC 139.
UFC President Dana White announced today that Vitor Belfort had to pull out of his fight with Le because of an injury, and as a result Silva will step in and take it.
Belfort vs. Le had the makings of a great fight because of the speed and quickness both have in their striking.
However, Le vs. Silva should be just as good, if not better, because Silva is relentless and is willing to be knocked out in order to put on a show. Belfort is more hesitant in his striking. With Silva now in, expect fireworks and an explosive knockout when he and Cung Le face off.
A while back I posted an interesting interview where Ariel Helwani interviewed Chael Sonnen upon his return back into the UFC.
The original video was funny enough as Sonnen dropped insult after insult on the likes of Wanderlei Silva, Anderson Silva, and anyone associated with Team Blackhouse.
Well, someone took the time to take that interview and provided animated background to it. It definitely adds a little punch to it. Here it is for your viewing pleasure.
Admit it, it was worth the seven minutes of your life.
Chael Sonnen is free to fight, and it looks like he wants to fight everyone, especially anyone from Brazil.
Sonnen sat down with MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani prior to UFC 132 and he was in classic form. The full 19-minute interview is below.
Sonnen throws bombs at nearly everyone from Brazil, especially Anderson Silva and Wanderlei Silva. Despite his attacks toward Team Blackhouse, it appears that Sonnen will make his return to the UFC against rising middleweight, Brian Stann.
I don’t know that Sonnen will be able to insult an American hero and make people laugh, but we will have to wait and see.