Heavyweight veterans Antonio Silva and Andrei Arlovski look to insert themselves into the mix at UFC Fight Night 51, which takes place TONIGHT (Sat., Sept. 13, 2014) in Brasilia, Brazil. Having already battled once in Strikeforce, what adjustments should each man make to claim victory? Read our fight preview and find out!
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) heavyweights Antonio Silva and Andrei Arlovski will battle for a second time at UFC Fight Night 51 later on tonight (Sat., Sept. 13, 2014) from Nilson Nelson Gymnasium in Brasilia, Brazil.
Antonio Silva's UFC career has been extraordinarily up-and-down. He followed up his bloody debut loss to Cain Velasquez with a pair of upset knockouts over Travis Browne and Alistair Overeem.
... only to get knocked back out by Velasquez.
After his bid for the belt failed, "Bigfoot" went to war with former teammate Mark Hunt, resulting in a "Fight of the Night"-worthy draw. However, some of the luster -- and bonus cash -- was lost from the bout when "Bigfoot" failed the drug test.
Now, the monstrous Heavyweight will look to rebound once more.
Arlovski recently went down a similarly rocky path. He willingly left UFC to fight for upstart promotion Affliction, but the result was a brutal knockout at the hands of Fedor Emelianenko, which started his four-fight slide. Recently, he's turned it around, having gone 7-1 (1) in his last eight bouts, including a questionable victory over Brendan Schaub.
Let's take a look at their keys to victory.
Antonio Silva
Record: 18-5 (1)
Key Wins: Fedor Emelianenko (Strikeforce Fedor vs Silva), Travis Browne (UFC on FX 5), Alistair Overeem (UFC 156)
Key Losses: Cain Velasquez (UFC 160, UFC 146), Fabricio Werdum (Strikeforce Fedor vs Rogers)
Keys to Victory: Silva is a solid combination of brute strength and sound technique. He doesn't do anything particularly fancy, but he does everything well and with power.
Silva is a competent boxer, but he excels once he's on top of his foe. In fact, a majority of his 13 knockout victories came from his vicious ground and pound. If Silva can consistently take his opponent down, he will win the bout.
Arlovski has a lot to prove in this bout, having lost his first fight with Silva and coming off a performance in which he showed very little aggression. Therefore, he's likely to be aggressive.
Though it would benefit "Bigfoot" to dictate the pace, he can certainly use Arlovski's aggression against him as well. Silva's long jab kept Arlovski at range and bloodied his nose in their first fight, and it would be even more effective if Arlovski was charging into it.
Plus, Silva would be smart to circle around or duck under as Arlovski came forward. If he executes the movement well, he could get Arlovski's back to the fence without having to pressure him.
Should Arlovski shell up like he did in his last performance, the fight will be quite easy for Silva. Without a significant fear of Arlovski's punches, Silva can feel free to push him back with long punches then clinch him against the fence. From there, Silva can control the fight as he grinds away for takedowns.
Andrei Arlovski
Record: 22-10 (1)
Key Wins: Brendan Schaub (UFC 174), Roy Nelson (EliteXC: Heat)
Key Losses: Anthony Johnson (WSOF 2), Antonio Silva (Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery)
Keys to Victory: Arlovski became famous early in his UFC career for his ruthless attack and quick boxing. Though his aggression has faltered at times, he still possesses much of the skill set that once earned him a championship.
In order to defeat "Bigfoot," it's vital that Arlovski's mental game is on point. He simply cannot afford to hesitate; Silva will take control of the bout too quickly for that. It doesn't matter what Arlovski's gameplan is or how excellent his physical conditioning is if he's not able to pull the trigger.
Assuming Arlovski brings the heat, his next biggest concern is staying off the fence, as Silva's physical strength makes escaping that position quite difficult. However, if Arlovski is able to keep the fight in the center of the Octagon, his quicker hands and sharper technique will likely give him the edge standing.
In addition, it will force Silva to come to him. This can be great for Arlovski -- Silva is far from difficult to punch and would merely be adding to the force of Arlovski's blows -- or awful, depending on how "Pitbull" reacts. Should Arlovski back straight up like he did in the first bout and find himself against the cage, he's in for a rough night.
Overall, Arlovski has the skills to not only defeat Silva but end his night early. The question is largely whether or not he can follow a game plan while being aggressive.
If "Pitbull" fails at either part, then it's Silva's fight to lose.
Bottom Line: Though both men are ranked inside the Top 15, it does not seem that either are likely to challenge for the title any time soon. It's simply been too long for Arlovski, while Silva has already been finished by the champion twice.
However, it's still an important fight for both men.
Silva could really use a win. His last fight was certainly entertaining, but a draw turned No Contest is not the desired result. Plus, there are questions as to how he will perform after getting back off Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT). Though a win will not really move him up the ranks, he will continue to get high profile bouts.
A loss would be pretty devastating, seeing as Silva already holds a win over the Belarusian. In addition to dropping him down the rankings significantly, Silva certainly does not want another knockout loss after absorbing so much damage already in his UFC career.
For Arlovski, his performance is likely more important than the result. Though a win over "Bigfoot" would be huge for "Pitbull" in terms of divisional relevance, it just doesn't seem likely that the 35-year old will be challenging for the title. Since a title shot is not probable, a loss to a top contender would not really hurt him either.
However, Arlovski fighting timidly, again, would be very bad. If he's not a contender nor entertaining, then he doesn't offer much to the UFC other than a name. Should he fight with passion and fire, Arlovski will prove he's worthy of his spot in the organization and possibly earn a win.
At UFC Fight Night 51, dangerous heavyweights Antonio Silva and Andrei Arlovski will collide for the second time. Who will earn the victory?
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