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The Spider, who is so aptly named, has decimated so many top fighters that if you were to count them you would need all of your fingers and toes, as well as some action figures for extra digits. From Dan Henderson to Vitor Belfort to Chael Sonnen, nobody has been able to defeat this man in years; even the losses he does have come off as flukes on an otherwise spotless record. Okami was a DQ so it was the least legitimate form of loss in the sport, and Ryo Chonan pulled off a once in a lifetime submission attempt to defeat him. The most legitimate defeat of his career came at Pride 26 when he fell victim to a triangle choke from Daiju Takase, but other than that it was flukes all around. Is there anyone left who can possibly beat this man; and for that matter, after Chael Sonnen, can anyone even present a challenge?
GSP is likely the super fight we will get to see from Silva, as Dana White and Silva are both interested, as long as GSP defeats Carlos Condit in November. After that, when these two amazing champions collide, I have no doubt in my mind that Silva will absolutely clown GSP and take home another fantastic win for his legacy to be furthered upon. So if GSP can't do it, who's left? I will tell you this; the true super fight that the fans want and deserve is Jon Jones and Anderson Silva, because Jones is truly the only fighter left who can actually take the fight to Silva. Jones and Silva would be beyond a super fight, it would be a war to determine who the best fighter on this planet is, and perhaps who the best ever will turn out to be.
Sure, Jones has to keep that belt around his waist and continue to dominate opponents until the time comes where the fight could even possibly happen, and Silva has to agree to ever take the fight. If the stars align we could get the true fight that is deserved and needed to determine who the best is. Silva vs. Jones would unquestionably be the biggest fight in the history of our sport, overshadowing all others before it in a big way, with the two best going head to head. I am unsure of who would win such a fight if it were to happen, but it would still be a fantastic bout with hair thin betting lines in Vegas. It would be the promotional icon that would help the UFC repent for the UFC 151 failures and show us the true power they hold with the unquestionable two best fighters in the world facing off for once. We've seen many fights advertised or tagged as the biggest in history, but this would blow them out of the water like no other could ever begin to imagine.
Still, as long as Silva is hell bent on fighting at middleweight there's nobody there to fight right now, Chris Weidman has an argument for a shot, but let's face facts he would get smashed. Beyond that there's nobody, Vitor Belfort could be an option given that he actually came the closest anyone has to beating Jon Jones but he's had his shot and it turned out poorly. Dan Henderson could theoretically drop back down to middleweight and give Silva another test, but he has his sights set on Jones already, same goes for Rashad Evans who won't budge from his favorite weight class. It's going to take a beyond human fighter to figure out Silva, the man who drops his hands, calculates distance and lands a perfect strike to end the fight. He is inhuman if there was a real set of the X-Men. Anderson Silva would be leading the team in a goofy outfit made heavily of spandex and Kevlar.
The present layout of the UFC tells us that there is no one who is going to hold a candle to this incredible champion, the only other reasonable test could perhaps be Luke Rockhold once Zuffa finally folds Strikeforce. He has cleaned out his division while dominating every opponent outside of his first bout with Chael Sonnen. Nobody has ever looked like such a God among men inside of the cage as Anderson Silva does in every fight, he pushes each man to the limit with an uncomforting ease. The man is a puzzle that it seems may never be solved; never has a fighter been so carelessly enigmatic during a fight as this man, who stands above all in the sport as the master of his art. He will likely retire with his belt, win streak and legacy intact, and the only question we will have left is this: who is the next Anderson Silva?
Thanks for reading, follow me on Twitter @BradMMATorch
Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/Staff_Editorials_19/article_14690.shtml
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