“I promise violence.”
April 14, 2016, at 2:00 p.m. – Truer words have never been spoken by any man. When this mass of muscle and sinew steps into an arena, be it ring or cage, you know that is exactly what he brings; a beautiful spectacle of unadulterated destruction. If he were an animal, he would be a great white shark, a silent predator that smells blood and then strikes, leaving few if any survivors in his wake.
He is Wanderlei Silva, the “Axe Murderer.” His stare downs are legendary, his battles always epic. No fighter past or present has ever been able to intimidate the way he does. No fighter has been able to capture the rabid fan’s attention as easily as he does. His fighting style is an MMA promoter’s dream. He comes to bang, he doesn’t care with whom. Brazilian Jiu-jitsu black belt be damned, Silva fears no man on the feet. The fight ring is his block of stone, fists, hands and vicious knees are his carving tools.
I have followed Wanderlei’s entire career. I am one of the biggest Wandy homers you will ever meet. To prove this, I have put together a top ten list of what I feel are “Cachorro Louco’s” greatest fights. While his place in MMA history is already set by these and other great battles, I have little doubt he will give us many more memorable moments, win or lose, before it’s all said and done.
Top 10 Wanderlei Silva Fights
10. VS Tony Petarra at UFC 20
This fight is significant for the simple fact than it was Silva’s first victory inside the octagon. Silva had come off of a horrendous highlight reel knockout at the hands of Vitor Belfort just a few months earlier, and hoped to make a better showing in this one.
From the outset, it was obvious that Petarra wanted no part of Silva’s standup, and spent the majority of the fight crowding him up against the cage. Silva finally found an opening just before the three-minute mark, unleashing a devastating knee that buckled Petarra to the canvas. A second knee knocked Petarra completely unconsciousness at 2:53 of the first round.
9. VS Mark Hunt at PRIDE Shockwave 2004
This fight proved to the world, more than any other fight, that Wanderlei Silva was a warrior. Despite being outweighed by more than 70 pounds, Silva took everything the former K-1 Grand Prix Champion had, and dished out plenty of offense of his own.
Silva took Hunt down several times, attempted several submissions, unleashed some decent ground and pound, and even landed some solid shots to Hunt on the feet. When the final verdict was announced, everyone (including Hunt) was surprised that Silva was not the winner.
It should be noted that Hunt took the fight on three days notice. Even so, I am not alone in believing that a world class striker outweighing his opponent (also a striker) by over 70 pounds should have had a little more impact on the judge’s decision.
8. VS Guy Mezger at PRIDE 10
I could write an entire article on the man that is Mezger (and I will). Truly one of the most underrated (and unfortunately unlucky) fighters of all time, Mezger is the Patrick Ewing of MMA. Always good, always a threat, and yet things always seemed to go against him at the worst possible moment.
This fight was an example of that. Mezger started out extremely impressive. He utilized his height and reach advantage to keep Silva at bay. His striking was much crisper than Silva’s and he even opened a cut over Silva’s right eye. Mezger seemed to be cruising towards either a cut stoppage, or an easy points victory.
Then, around 2:48, Mezger ate a Silva right hook. Although he would survive the initial barrage that followed, he seemed to be a bit shook up. Several more exchanges would follow, culminating with a vicious flurry of punches (and a headbutt) that would leave Mezger a slumped heap in the corner of the ring at 3:45 of the first round.
7. VS Keith Jardine at UFC 84
Coming in with a three-fight losing streak, many MMA pundits were saying Silva’s career was over. Despite being only 32, it was being said that he had been in too many brutal wars to continue to fight at a high level. Keith “The Dean of Mean” Jardine was coming into this fight having just defeated former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell, and was looking to do the same to the former PRIDE Champion.
Indeed, a victory against Silva would not only cement Jardine’s legacy as “Legend Killer,” it would secure him a title shot. Alas, it was not meant to be, as a surprisingly quick and explosive Axe Murderer needed just 36 seconds to overwhelm and destroy The Dean.
While I never really bought into the washed up rhetoric being thrown around, even I was surprised at the ease in which the Silva dismantled Jardine. Silva looked every bit the beast he had been back in his PRIDE days.
6. VS Kazushi Sakuraba at PRIDE Total Elimination 2003
Having already bested Sakuraba twice before, this fight didn’t have the luster the previous two fights had. Indeed, Sakuraba had gone just 2-3 in his previous five fights, with one of the losses being from Silva. Despite this, the Japanese fans wanted another fight between these two, so it happened at the 2003 PRIDE Middleweight Tournament.
This fight is mostly memorable for the way in which Silva finished Sakuraba. While Sakuraba fought surprisingly well on his feet for the first 4:59 of the fight, Silva leveled the IQ Wrestler with a brutal 1-2 combination, leaving the Japanese legend snoring on the canvas. Sakuraba had never been knocked unconscious before, and many fans feel this should have been the final fight of Saku’s storied career.
5. VS Dan Henderson at PRIDE 12
When “Dangerous” Dan Henderson climbed into the PRIDE ring with Wanderlei Silva on December 9, 2000, many had already dubbed him the best fighter in the world. His resume was extremely impressive, having already claimed the RINGS: King of Kings title, as well as winning the UFC 17 Middleweight Tournament. He had defeated a who’s who of Mixed Martial Artists, with names such as Carlos Newton, Allan Goes, Renato “Babalu” Sobral, Gilbert Yvel, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira to all fall at the hands of “Hollywood.”
Sitting at 9-0, most people expected the decorated wrestler to grind down the Brazilian dynamo en route to another victory. This fight was an absolute war. Silva dropped Henderson to the canvas early on, only to be sent there himself from a big right hand.
Silva, bleeding out of an extremely swollen right eye, would battle back though, rocking Henderson with solid striking, and then finishing the round with some nasty stomps and pugnacious ground and pound. Henderson looked like a beaten man as he headed back to his corner, and yet, when the second round started he rocked Silva early with another big right hand.
Henderson then exploded on Silva landing a flurry that had him backpedaling across the ring. The fight ended with Wanderlei Silva pounding away at an exhausted Henderson from top position. Silva took a hard fought but well deserved Unanimous Decision victory over who at that point was arguably his toughest opponent.
4. VS Quinton Jackson at PRIDE Final Conflict 2003
When this fight happened, both Silva and Rampage were coming off tough fights in their semi-final matches. Silva had won a hard fought unanimous decision against Hidehiko Yoshida, and Rampage had just come off a second round TKO of Chuck Liddell.
Rampage wasted no time, immediately going for the takedown. Wanderlei attempted a guillotine choke, but was ultimately taken down by Jackson who put on a good display of ground and pound, including a nice knee to Silva’s head. Wanderlei stalled on the ground, and Jackson’s attacks became slower and slower causing a stand-up and a Silva Yellow Card.
This would prove to be Jackson’s undoing, as following the next exchange, he caught a hard knee and a couple of hard punches that began what is now one of the most insane beat downs ever captured in the sport. The onslaught culminated in Rampage eating nearly 20 unanswered knees, a pair of vicious soccer kicks, and a smiling right hook that led to the ref saving him at 6:28 of the first round. While he was obviously out on his feet, how Rampage survived as long as he did is simply amazing.
3. VS Brian Stann on UFC on Fuel TV 8: Silva vs Stann
For what would become Wanderlei Silva’s final appearance in the Octagon, he went out with a bang! The fact that he was in an absolute war with former WEC Light Heavyweight Champion, Brian Stann, gave the fans everything they had come to see.
Stann struck first, blitzing the Axe Murderer by instantaneously trapping him against the fence, but, just as quickly, fell to a Silva counter hook. Stann was immediately dropped, but returned the favor dropping Silva with a vicious overhand right. Just near the midway point, Stann buckled Silva with another hard strike, but an errant kick to Silva’s groin briefly stopped the contest and allowed the Axe Murderer the time to recover.
The wild round continued with the two trading strikes before Silva floored Stann again with another hook but the Silver Star Honored Hero came back, taking Silva down and unleashing hard ground and pound that lasted to the end of the round. The second round picked up right where the first left off, but, unfortunately, for Brian Stann, Silva’s power was too much and the former Marine fell victim to another huge Silva hook; he was knocked unconscious by the subsequent ground strikes as he lay dazed on the canvas.
This is one of those fights that is just so much fun to watch, and a fitting end to the UFC career of one of the greatest strikers to ever put on the four ounce gloves.
2. VS Quinton Jackson at PRIDE 28
Despite being beaten by the Axe Murder at PRIDE Final Conflict 2003, Rampage wanted this fight more than anything else. Determined to prove that his loss the first time was a combination of fatigue and what he felt was a premature stand-up, Rampage repeatedly asked for a rematch with the PRIDE Middleweight Champion.
His request was granted if he could beat Ricardo Arona in a number 1 contender’s match, which he did with a highlight reel knockout via body slam. This time around, Rampage made a much better showing, highlighted by a hard shot that knocked Silva to the canvas. Rampage than unleashed some devastating ground and pound, and looked to have Silva in deep trouble.
Unfortunately for Jackson, the bell would intervene, and he would have to start the second round on his feet. The second round continued where the first left off, but the tide turned on a jaw-crunching right hook that staggered Rampage. Silva, arguably the best finisher in the business swarmed on Jackson, unleashing a torrent of knees that would leave Rampage hanging unconscious out the ropes at 3:26 of the second round. Silva showed the heart of a lion and the ferociousness of a grizzly bear in this fight, which is truly one of the greatest fights in the history of PRIDE FC.
1. VS Kazushi Sakuraba at PRIDE 13
This fight is the greatest victory on Silva’s ledger. It’s his “Thrilla in Manilla,” his Hagler vs Hearns. The two top fighters on the planet going toe to toe. Believe it or not Sakuraba was the favorite in this fight, as silly as it seems in retrospect. Silva was bigger, stronger, and younger, but Sakuraba was coming in at 12-2-2, with his only loss in the previous 10 fights being to a much larger Igor Vovchanchyn. Saku was known for his unorthodox fighting style, solid wrestling and very high fighting IQ, as well as possessing perhaps the best single-leg takedown MMA has ever seen.
Despite being a much better fighter on the ground, Sakuraba instead attempted to stand and trade with Silva. While he was able to taste success early by knocking Silva down, Silva took control and laid a ferocious pounding to Sakuraba, leaving him bloodied, dazed and defeated at 1:38 of the first round. Sakuraba’s career would never be the same after that. Wanderlei Silva, however, had become the PRIDE Middleweight Champion. He would then begin a reign of terror that would see him go undefeated for nearly four years and 14 straight fights.
Conclusion
Silva recently signed a contract with Bellator Fighting Championships, and will be competing in a tag team grappling match against old rival Kazushi Sakuraba later this month for Rizin Fighting Federation. Someday the dust will settle on this combatant’s illustrious career, and when it does, Wanderlei Silva will be remembered as a great fighter who always brought his best, fought his hardest and left everything in the ring/cage. He is the true embodiment of the term warrior, and deserving of his seat in the Pantheon of MMA greats.
