There were no surprises come Saturday night, as Anderson
Silva did what many expected and clinically picked apart Okami before finishing
him in the second round to retain his UFC Middleweight belt and continue his
impressive winning streak. The Spider looking comfortable as ever, quickly
found his rhythm and went to work on the Judoka standout. The first round
exposed Okami’s inability to stand with the champion, and he was forced to
close the distance. The clinch didn’t seem any more favourable as Silva landed
a couple of brutal knees which tempted Thunder into shooting for wishful
takedowns. After separating, Silva landed a head kick to finish the round and
set the tone for that which was to come.
Round two saw the champion bursting out of the gates and, in
what was virtually a remake of his UFC 101 bout with Forrest Griffin, Silva
toyed with a hesitant Okami. The middleweight king dropped his hands, stood in
the pocket and even played the fool in an attempt to goad his opponent. Okami,
reluctant to fire, was punished whenever he gathered the courage, and found
himself on his back twice in quick succession. The first time courtesy of a
straight right hand, the second a right hook. He would rise but once. Silva
pouncing on the wounded challenger finished him with knees and punches and put
an exclamation mark on yet another title defence, simultaneously avenging his
disqualification loss acquired at the hands of Okami in 2006.
So where did Okami go wrong?
Many people have compared Yushin Okami to Chael Sonnen, and
looked to Okami to finish what his training partner Sonnen could not, at UFC
117 a year ago. The major question raised was whether Okami, who lacks the
wrestling pedigree of Sonnen, would have the ability to take Silva down as his
partner had done. On Saturday night, Thunder was unable to execute this game
plan, but one was left feeling this was more due to an exaggerated respect for
the champion and his abilities than his own shortfalls. Okami, a talented
fighter, was made to look less than ordinary by a confident athlete who
exploited the situation. It is nigh impossible to imagine Sonnen hesitating for
even a moment had Silva toyed with him as he did Okami, and therein lies the
difference. Sonnen believed he was better, Sonnen believed he could win, and as
a result he stood a chance. Many fights are won in the mind.
Where does Silva go from here?
Rumours have already begun circling about possible rematches
with Strikeforce Light Heavyweight
champion Dan Henderson and UFC nemesis Chael Sonnen. While Silva managed to
defeat both men, they did each expose chinks in his armour, which have been
instrumental in developing a blueprint for beating the middleweight great.
Sonnen, for his part, largely did this, only to lose via a Triangle choke with
2 minutes left on the clock. While these fights do make somewhat sense, as a
fan it is a little frustrating to constantly see title fight rematches. I would
like to see something new and interesting, which leads the argument of super
fights. I don’t think anyone would deny that Silva vs Jones would be a great
fight, but with the LHW division so stacked, it doesn’t make sense for the UFC
to make this fight. This takes us right back to Silva vs GSP. Both men have
cleaned their divisions. Both men are constantly forced to defend their title
in rematches. Both men seem to lack a challenge... so give them one. While the
UFC must protect the brands they have created in both of these athletes, a
super fight would certainly be one for the books!
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment