UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva

By Joshua Molina

Let’s get one thing clear:

Anderson Silva is one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time. He COULD be the greatest of all time.

But when Dana White says it, we all should be skeptical. That’s because White after UFC 153 Saturday night said Silva is the greatest fighter of all time in combat sports.

Why does he say things like that? Because he’s really trying to market the UFC as the superior brand in all of mixed martial arts.
The fact is you just can’t make those comparisons. Is Silva better than Roy Jones Jr.?
Honestly, no.

Jones went 49-0 (the only loss was a DQ for hitting an opponent behind the head) to start his career. Silva is 33-4 -and he’s lost by tap out twice.
Jones during the 1990s moved up from middleweight champion to undisputed light heavyweight champion eventually to win the heavyweight championship of the world.

Jones fought more consistently and against higher quality of competition.

And back then, Jones was widely regarded as unbeatable and the best fighter in the world.

What about Aaron Pryor, the awesome junior welterweight from the 1980s who started his career 39-0 with 35 knockouts?

Or Evander Holyfield, who won the heavyweight title four times – more than anyone else – or even Mike Tyson, the youngest heavyweight champion in history.

Larry Holmes defended his heavyweight championship 20 times, twice as many times as Silva. What about undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Manny Pacquiao? These fighters are considered among the greatest too.

The UFC hasn’t been around long enough to really make claims that any of its fighters are the best ever in combat sports.

White should learn his combat history or shut up.

Speaking of Silva, if he’s going to fight a ham-and-egger like Stephan Bonnar, the UFC should at least put him in the cage with fighters who will come to win.

Before Silva fights Jon Jones, the UFC should give former Strikeforce Middleweight Champ Cung Le a shot against Silva.
Let’s see Silva survive Cung’s San Shou kicks. Cung Le would need to keep the fight standing to keep it competitive, but Le is one of the few guys who would bring the offense to Silva. Book the fight at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, and give the warrior Le a shot and making magic.