Anderson Silva is the longest reigning champion in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He hasn't lost in five UFC fights, and his most serious challenger in the middleweight division is Temecula's Dan Henderson, whom Silva fights tonight at UFC 82 in Columbus, Ohio.
Another victory affirms Silva's status as UFC's best pound-for-pound fighter, and could possibly leave him void of any legitimate competition in a beaten-up middleweight division.
"If Anderson walks through Dan Henderson, this guy is our Mike Tyson," UFC President Dana White said this week.
Or at least Tyson minus the personal baggage.
Silva (20-4 in mixed martial arts) is a Brazilian who speaks little English. He speaks in a high, quiet voice, has four children and says he spends off-time playing video games, watching Jackie Chan and Jet Li movies and playing paint ball.
"He's the sweetest guy," White said. "You hear him talk, and ask, 'This guy fights?' "
Does he ever.
At 6 feet 2, Silva usually has a height and reach advantage over his 185-pound opponents, an important detail given his superb striking and kicking ability. The 32-year-old moves quickly, is a skilled jiujitsu fighter, and professes to being as comfortable on the mat as he is in an upright stance.
That claim will be tested by Henderson, the former PRIDE Fighting Championships two-belt champion who is most dangerous on the canvas (He was a CIF wrestling champion from Victorville).
"I'm not afraid to try to clench him [upright] or beat him up on the ground," Henderson said. "Out in the open, I have to be careful. He's got a little length on me, and has amazing kicks and long strikes."
Silva won the UFC title in October 2006, punishing champion Rich Franklin with a series of knee kicks to the body. He landed a devastating knee to Franklin's face, and the champion slumped to the mat late in the first round.
Silva's three fights since, including another dismissal of Franklin, haven't lasted past the second round.
"Every day, I learn something new," Silva said recently through an interpreter while working out at a Redondo Beach gym with current UFC heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. "There's always someone coming along thinking they're better than me and each fight is different. That's why I train with a lot of different guys."
