UFC on FUEL TV 8 finally has its main event, and it’s a good
one.
According to the UFC, former PRIDE staple Wanderlei Silva will
step into his old stomping grounds once again as he takes on feared striker Brian Stann in the main event of UFC on FUEL TV 8, which takes place March 2 at
Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
Silva became famous when he fought for PRIDE in Japan, while
Stann was born on a military base in nearby Tokyo.
The five-round middleweight bout serves as the evening’s main
event, with a previously announced heavyweight bout between Mark Hunt and
Stefan Struve scheduled for the co-main event slot.
On paper, both fights should produce “Knockout of the Year”
candidates.
Silva is coming off a decision loss to Rich Franklin at UFC 147,
and with an inconsistent stretch of fights dating back to his last days as the
PRIDE middleweight champion, the end can’t be far from over for the once-feared
“Axe Murderer.” But he takes the chance to get back right into the mix of
things by accepting a fight with Stann, who is coming off a decision loss to
Michael Bisping at UFC 152. The former U.S. Marine desperately needs another
big win to prove that he’s still someone that can contend for the UFC
middleweight belt after falling short to Bisping and Chael Sonnen in his most
high-profile matches. And in a fight between Silva, whose chin is fading, and
Stann, who has dynamite in his fists, it’s possible Silva could get KO’d.
Although he can never be counted out of a fight, do not be surprised if this is
Silva’s last fight in the Octagon if he loses, especially if it’s via knockout.
In many ways, it’s surprising that the UFC would book Silva
against another one-punch knockout artist like Stann when UFC president Dana
White has said quite recently that maybe it’s time for the long-time veteran of
the sport to hang up the gloves. Right now, it’s clear that most observers are
picking Stann to win by knockout, and that’s scary when Silva has been getting
knocked into unconsciousness as of late. This fight could end up being similar
to Franklin vs. Chuck Liddell from UFC 115, if you know what I mean.
The Struve vs. Hunt battle is a very fun one as well. Struve is
the UFC’s tallest heavyweight at 7’, while Hunt is its shortest at 5’10”. With
Struve’s submission ability and Hunt’s knockout power, will this fight stay
standing or go to the ground? Honestly, even though it might not make the most
sense as far as divisional rankings are concerned, boy oh boy it’s a fun fight,
and it is very reminiscent of the former “freakshow fights” put on in PRIDE FC.
In addition to those two bouts, the UFC announced six other
fights for the card. They are:
Diego Sanchez vs. Takanori Gomi – guaranteed fireworks at
lightweight
Dong Hyun Kim vs. Siyar Bahadurzada – intriguing WW matchup
Cristiano Marcello vs. Kazuki Tokudome – interesting LW bout
Alex Caceres vs. Kyung Ho Kang – re-booking of fun BW fight
Riki Fukuda vs. Brad Tavares – winner moves into top 15 of MW
division
Bryan Caraway vs. Takeya Mizugaki – winner moves into top 10 of
BW division
2013 is shaping up to be a great year in MMA, indeed. And I, for
one, can not wait.
