Here on the eve of arguably the biggest card in the history of the UFC, we are going to look at the co-headlining bout. How do the combatants in (arguably) the most anticipated fight in the history of MMA stack up? I am going to come right out and say that I think Wanderlei is going to defeat Chuck. I know there are many Liddell fans on this site who will not agree so please allow me to explain before you string me up and beat me (although, I might actually enjoy that)……..
This fight really could go many different ways. Since both fighters are coming off back-to-back losses, they may both try to protect their records and fight a defensive, boring fight where neither fighter is willing to take any chances and the only knock out comes at the expense of the audience who falls asleep. But I doubt that. Another possibility is Silva may try to take the fight to the mat where he will most likely have an advantage. I doubt this scenario also though, as Silva has not employed this strategy since he fought “Dirty” Bob Schrijber back in 2000. Wand is always willing to strike these days, even if he’s out gunned. The third possibility is both fighters will come out all guns blazing, aiming to tear each other’s heads off in an effort to erase any memory of their previous losses!!! This is the strategy I think both fighters will employ and we will use this for the basis of this analysis.
First of all, both fighters have impressive records. Chuck owns victories over Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz and Wanderlei has defeated the likes of Rampage Jackson and Dan Henderson. While it’s difficult to say who’s faced the stiffer competition, I would say “The Axe Murderer” has faced better strikers than “The Iceman”. Silva has faced Mark Hunt and fought Cro Cop twice going the distance with each of them once and losing to Cro Cop in the 2006 Pride GP. Chuck really hasn’t fought anyone with comparable skills with the aforementioned Rampage being the most accomplished striker he has competed against since early in his career when he fought “Pele” Landi Jons.
One thing I have heard from a lot of people lately is “Chuck is a counter puncher and Silva will play right into that”. True, old Chucky boy does prefer to return fire as opposed to initiate things but he has never fought anyone in his professional career that comes forward as aggressively as Wanderlei will. Chuck is not a graceful counter puncher either. It’s not so much his fancy footwork which has allowed him to put away so many fighters as say, his ability to effectively digest fists. He doesn’t mind eating a few punches in exchanges and Silva will put a hurtin’ on him if he tries to stay in the pocket.
Another reason I see Silva taking this one is the fact that in addition to having a deeper overall skill set, Wand is also a more well rounded striker. Wanderlei has the ability to put you away with both hands, both feet and both knees. Aside from a highlight reel KO of Babalu back in 2002, Chuck generally lets his fists do the talking. He also showed in the Jardine fight that he just isn’t interested in blocking leg kicks and that is not a good way to fight against a Muay Thai verteran like Silva.
Which brings me to our final point: Knees.
While he hasn’t really utilized them lately, knees from the clinch are Silva’s most dangerous weapon. He used them to destroy world class competition like Henderson, Sakuraba, Yoshida and Rampage (twice!). Chuck has never faced anyone with a clinch game as good as Wanderlei’s and I believe that will be the single biggest deciding factor in this fight. I wouldn’t even be surprised to see Chuck try to get the fight to the ground if he takes enough abuse in the clinch. Yes, Wand’s knees are absolutely DEADLY. If you need a point of reference watch either of the Silva/Jackson bouts. Brutal.
In summation, I think Wand has faced better strikers than Chuck and I don’t think Liddell will show him anything he hasn’t seen before. Chucky on the other hand has made a career out of counter punching with wrestlers. He has not faired well against the two decent strikers who he has recently faced and Wanderlei is unquestionably a better striker than either of them. Wanderlei also has the potential to throw a lot of things at Chuck he may never have had to deal with in The Octagon before.
Mark these words: When they clinch – it’s good night for The Iceman!
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