The Book on Anderson Silva
Posted by Lee Casebolt on February 27th, 2008
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by Lee Casebolt
The Book is back, just in time for what promises to be the best title fight of 2008.
For our newer readers, The Book is Total-MMA’s scouting report on the best fighters in the world. Later this week, the ever-demanding Jonathan Snowden will be scrutinizing Pride 183-lb champ Dan Henderson. First, though, let’s take a look at Henderson’s opponent for this weekend, UFC and Cage Rage middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
Strengths: Silva’s base style, Muay Thai, is often referred to as “The Science of Eight Limbs” - two fists, two feet, two elbows, two knees. Perhaps no Thai boxer in MMA exemplifies that as well as Silva. He’s as good a striker as there is in MMA. Some people punch harder, others have better kicks or knees or elbows. I’d be hard pressed to pick out anyone who offers as big a threat as a total package, though. You can ask Chris Leben about his hands, Tony Fryklund about his elbows, Rich Franklin about his knees, and Yushin Okami about his feet if you need references.
What separates Silva from the run of the mill MMA brawler - say, Phil Baroni - is the combination of timing and speed he uses to produce power. I suspect most elite middleweights would destroy Silva in the weight room, but very, very few of them can approach the effect he gets by hitting first, hitting more often, and hitting at exactly the time when his opponent is vulnerable. His long limbs and southpaw stance cause more problems for his opponents in standup fights. He has a reach advantage on most opponents, and his already-deadly strikes come from unorthodox angles. Defensively, his reflexes are simply ridiculous. The second Franklin fight is an example of a good fighter getting clowned by the physical advantages of a superior opponent. There are middleweights who can match Silva in a straight standup fight, but there aren’t many of them.
That Muay Thai background and those long limbs come in handy in the clinch, as well. Silva’s plum clinch is so good it causes many to overestimate his strength, but the Spider traps opponents with technique more than power. His height advantage makes it easier for him to get and maintain position. Once he locks on, he has the flexibility and experience to mix up knees to the body and head more or less in any combination, at will. Anyone who saw his wreck the rapidly-becoming-underestimated Rich Franklin can attest to the efficacy of that attack.
So, if you can’t fight Silva standing up, you’d better take him to the mat, right? Silva does have a BJJ black belt, so good luck with that. It isn’t one of those Wanderlei Silva, can’t-really-fight-on-the-ground black belts, either. He triangled TUF “winner” (getting to fight Anderson Silva is a prize of questionable value) Travis Lutter quite handily. Before that, he handled Jeremy Horn rather adeptly. He showed a ground and pound game against Curtis Stout. The mat isn’t where Silva prefers to operate, but he is capable there.
Weaknesses: He managed to stuff the takedown attempt of Nathan Marquardt in their bout, and followed up quickly enough that “Nate the Great” never got a second shot at it. Silva is reputedly working extensively on his wrestling. He better be. Anybody who gets slammed by Jeremy Horn has some work to do. Horn calls his own wrestling “shitty” and the objective observer is hardpressed to disagree. So where does this leave Silva? On his back, if he isn’t careful.
The biggest weaknesses for Silva, though, aren’t technical. They’re physical. The first is his physical strength. This is, frankly, only a weakness against a beast like Henderson, but that’s who he’s fighting. A number of observers have claimed Silva will have a strength advantage in this fight, and that’s just ridiculous. Henderson hasn’t been overpowered even in his bouts against heavyweights and big light heavyweights like Quinton Jackson. The idea that Silva will muscle him around is ridiculous. Henderson’s sheer physical power will take a toll on Silva.
To be fair, the second is more of a question mark than a weakness. How will Silva handle a five round fight? Henderson’s gone to war with Wanderlei Silva, Quinton Jackson, and Ricardo Arona, among others. Silva has never fought past fifteen minutes. For all his power, he’s fighting a man who’s never been stopped by strikes. That points to a long fight, and there’s no way to know if Silva can match the pace that Henderson can set.
Overall: I’ll be honest. I have no idea how this fight will play out. I suspect Henderson’s chin, power, and endurance will let him overcome an early onslaught by Silva, but I’m not a brave enough man to put money on it. Silva hits as hard as anyone in the middleweight division, and more often than most of them. The fact that Henderson’s never been stopped doesn’t mean he can’t be. Horn had never been stopped before he fought Liddell the second time, then he got wrecked by feared striker Matt Lindland. There’s no reason at all Anderson Silva can’t be the first man to put Hollywood’s lights out.