Anderson Silva

Anderson Silva is a threat to his opponents because of his precise hitting, knockout power, technically cruel Muay Thai, and ability to counterstrike.
Anderson Silva in a file photo [Image-UFC.com]

Anderson da Silva was born on April 14, 1975. He is a mixed martial artist and boxer who is Brazilian-American. He previously held the Middleweight UFC Championship, and his 2,457-day title reign is the longest in UFC history. This lasted from 2006 until 2013, and during that time he achieved a UFC record 16 straight victories.

Silva has been hailed as one of the best mixed martial artists of all time by UFC president Dana White, UFC commentator Joe Rogan, and many other MMA experts. In November 2020, Silva quit the UFC and went back to boxing. In his most recent contest, he faced Jake Paul and was defeated by a unanimous decision. Until losing to Conor Mcgregor at UFC 194 in December 2015, Aldo had won 18 straight fights after suffering his first MMA loss in November 2005.

NameAnderson da Silva
D.O.BApril 14, 1975
Height 6ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight77 kg
OccupationBoxer, Mixed Martial Artist
Professional Debut1997
WifeDayane Silva
NicknamesThe Spider

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Background

Silva was born in So Paulo, Brazil, on April 14, 1975. Being the son of a poor family, he spent much of his youth living with his aunt and uncle, who worked as police officers in Curitiba. When he was a young child, Silva began practicing jiu-jitsu with nearby children. Silva started learning taekwondo, capoeira, and muay thai as a teenager.

Before concentrating on MMA, Silva began boxing in 1998 and acquired a record of 1-1. At the BFC: Brazilian Freestyle Circuit 1, Silva made his MMA debut by defeating Fabricio Camoes through TKO (retirement) and Raimundo Pinheiro via first-round rear-naked choke submission.

Early Career

After a three-year break, he made his MMA comeback in 2000 at Mecca 1 against Luiz Azeredo. After recovering and going on a 4-bout winning streak to get a shot at the Shooto Middleweight Championship against Hayato Sakurai, he lost the fight by unanimous decision. Prior to joining Pride FC, Silva defeated Roan Carneiro at Mecca 6 and became the new champion after winning the bout by unanimous decision.

Before he left Pride FC for promotion in 2003, Anderson had a stellar 3-1 record there. After Pride, Silva competed in two victories in the independent circuit before joining Cage Rage in 2004.

At Cage Rae 8, Silva competed for the Cage Rage Middleweight Championship against Lee Murray. He earned a unanimous decision victory to claim the title. He was submitted by Ryo Chonan in the third round of their subsequent bout at Pride Shockwave 2004. Silva went back to Cage Rage and faced Jorge Rivera and Curtis Stout twice to defend his championship.

He later competed in Rumble on The Rock 8’s Welterweight tournament. Yushin Okami was the opponent Silva faced in the opening round. Okami was on his knees when Silva hit him with an up-kick, which resulted in a DQ (illegal kick). At Cage Rage 16, Silva faced Tony Fryklund in the third defence of his Cage Rage Championship. He knocked Tony out in the opening round (elbow). Silva subsequently joined the UFC in 2008 after this win.

UFC career

At Ultimate Fight Night 5, Anderson Silva faced Chris Leben in the UFC for the first time. Silva controlled Leben throughout the bout and KO’d him in 49 seconds (knee). After winning, Silva faced Rich Franklin for the UFC Middleweight Championship at UFC 64. Anderson dominated Franklin and defeated him via KO(knee) in the opening frame to win the UFC Middleweight Championship.

At UFC 67, Anderson faced Travis Lutter in a non-title fight after Lutter failed to make weight. Lutter was KO’d by Silva in the second round. Before making his UFC Light Heavyweight debut against James Irvin at UFC Fight Night: Silva vs. Irvin, Silva successfully defended his three titles against Nate Marquardt, Rich Franklin, and Dan Henderson.

Irvin was punched out by Andeson in 61 seconds, and Irvin later tested positive for methadone and oxymorphone. After the contest, Silva moved up to Middleweight where he would face Thales Leites in a championship defense at UFC 97. Leites was decisively trounced by Anderson. After that, he switched back to light heavyweight and faced Forrest Griffin at UFC 101. Griffin was defeated by Silva in the first round, and he moved back to the Middleweight division to defend his championship.

At UFC 112, Silva defeated Demian Maia to successfully defend his championship. Then, Silva defeated Chael Sonnen via submission in the fifth round. At UFC 126, Silva defeated Vitor Belfort by dominant front kick knockout and punches.

With convincing victories over Yushin Okami and Chael Sonnen (a second time), Anderson maintained his superiority at middleweight. To fight Stephan Bonnar at UFC 153, Silva later switched to the Light Heavyweight division. In the last seconds of the battle, he TKO’d Bonnar (knee to the body and punched).

At UFC 162, Anderson faced Chris Weidman for the Middleweight Championship. Silva was being cocky and didn’t have his hands up in the second round, at which point Weidman knocked him out. Weidman remained composed throughout the fight and successfully connected with a left hook to finish Silva out.

At UFC 168, Anderson lost his rematch with Weidman after Weidman checked his kick, breaking the fibula and tibia in his left leg. After returning from injury, Silva’s career took a turn for the worst. In 2015, Anderson Silva faced Nick Diaz at UFC 183 to make his comeback to the sport. Silva won the bout, but the Nevada State Athletic Commission reversed the result because Silva tested positive for anabolic steroids, changing it to a No-Contest.  As a result, Silva received a one-year suspension from the commission.

Silva competed against Michael Bisping at UFC Fight Night 84 following his ban. Silva was defeated in the competitive contest by a narrow unanimous decision. He then switched to light heavyweight for his UFC 200 battle against Daniel Cormier, which he lost by a unanimous decision. In his subsequent contest, Silva defeated Derek Brunson at UFC 208 to enter the victory column.

At UFC Fight Night 122, Kelvin Gastelum was supposed to face Silva next. He was subsequently removed from the bout after failing the USADA drug test. Silva received a one-year suspension from November 2017 to November 2018 as a result. In 2019, Anderson made a comeback to the UFC to take on Israel Adesanya at UFC 234. Anderson fell short but was awarded the Fight of the Night bonus. Silva then suffered defeats to Uriah Hall and Jared Cannonier. The UFC let go of Anderson Silva on November 19, 2020.

Boxing Career

When Anderson Silva was released from the UFC, he switched to boxing. In June 2021, he faced Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in his first boxing contest since leaving the UFC. With his shot style and Wing Chun chain boxing abilities, Silva exploited his expertise to outwork and outperform Chavez to win a split decision. In September 2021, he faced up against Tito Ortiz again. Ortiz was severely knocked out by Silva after 90 seconds.

Matches Wins Losses Draws KO/TKO
4 3 1 0 2

Films

Year Title Role
2009 Never Surrender Spider
2009 Hell’s Chain King Anaconda
2011 Like Water Himself
2013 Til Death Do Us Part 2 Andrew Silver
2013 Worms Hairy (voice)
2014 Tapped Out Anderson
2014 Monday Nights at Seven Mateus
2017 Ultimate Beastmaster Himself/host
2019 The Invincible Dragon Assassin

Championships and accomplishments

  • Cage Rage Championships
    Cage Rage Middleweight Championship (One time, Final)
    Three successful title defenses
  • Shooto
    Shooto Middleweight Championship (One time)
  • Ultimate Fighting Championship
    UFC Middleweight Championship (One time)
    Ten successful title defenses
    Unified the UFC Middleweight and Pride World Welterweight Championships
    Fight of the Night (Five times) vs. Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin, Chael Sonnen, Michael Bisping, and Israel Adesanya
    Knockout of the Night (Seven times) vs. Chris Leben, Rich Franklin (2), Nate Marquardt, Forrest Griffin, Vitor Belfort, and Chael Sonnen
    Most “Knockout of the Night” awards in UFC history (7)
    Submission of the Night (Two times) vs. Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen
    Longest title reign in UFC history (2457 days)
    Longest win streak in UFC history (16)
    Most UFC Middleweight title fights (13)
    Most wins in UFC Middleweight title fights (11)
    Tied for most knockouts in the UFC Middleweight division history (8) (w. Uriah Hall, Thiago Santos)
    Most successful title defenses in the UFC middleweight division (10)
    Most consecutive title defenses in the UFC middleweight division (10)
    Second most consecutive title defenses in UFC history (10)
    Most finishes in the UFC Middleweight division history (11)
    Most finishes in UFC title fights (9)
    Second most knockdowns in UFC history (18)
    Most knockdowns in the UFC Middleweight division history (13)
    Most knockdowns in UFC title fights (10)
    Most knockouts in UFC title fights (7)
    Most total fight bonuses in the UFC Middleweight division history (12)
  • ESPN.com
    2011 Knockout of the Year vs. Vitor Belfort on 5 February
  • Inside MMA
    2011 KO Kick of the Year Bazzie Award vs. Vitor Belfort on 5 February
  • MMA Live
    2010 Fight of the Year vs. Chael Sonnen on 7 August
  • Sherdog
    2009 Beatdown of the Year vs. Forrest Griffin on 8 August
    2011 All-Violence 1st Team
  • Mixed Martial Arts Hall of Fame
  • Spike Guys’ Choice Awards
    2008 Most Dangerous Man
  • Sports Illustrated
    2008 Fighter of the Year
  • World MMA Awards
    2008 Fighter of the Year
    2010 Fight of the Year vs. Chael Sonnen on 7 August
    2011 Knockout of the Year vs. Vitor Belfort on 5 February
  • Wrestling Observer Newsletter
    Most Outstanding Fighter (2012)
    MMA Most Valuable Fighter (2012)

MMA records

46 matches 34 wins 11 losses
By knockout 23 4
By submission 3 2
By decision 8 4
By disqualification 0 1
No contests 1