Silvia Back To His Unanimous Decision Ways

"The winner by unanimous decision: Tim 'The Main-iac' Silvia!"

Is the CD skipping?

We've heard this many times before and it is exactly why Tim Silvia gets booed. He is not an exciting fighter. Sure he's finished opponents in the past, but he is slow and awkward and has been very boring to watch as of late. He said in a pre-fight interview that he wants to finish his opponents and that we'd see a different, more exciting Tim Silvia. For a guy who doesn't like to go to a decision, he has sure done it a lot lately.

If he would only let his hands go and use his kicks and knees in a more aggressive fashion, he could be one of the most exciting fighters to watch.

Right from the get-go Silvia clinched with Vera and pushed him into the cage. This was basically the entire fight. A lot of hugging and kissing and calling each other George. Vera seemed to be very frustrated at the way the fight was going; you could tell he wanted to get some distance and drop bombs, but Silvia would have none of it. Silvia seemed content to press Vera into the cage and pretty much lean on him the entire fight. Vera unable to move the monster that is Silvia, was stuck in this position, and as much as he wanted to stand and trade with Silvia, he couldn't get the big man off of him. Frustrating not only for him but frustrating for everyone watching. There is not a single person in the world who wanted to see these two hug it out against the cage for the entire fight.

Silvia doesn't impress me with his fighting skills. He is so dominant because he is so big. He's tall and heavy. His reach is enormous and there's few fighters who can deal with those traits. If he were a smaller man, Tim Silvia would not be at the top of the heavyweight division.

After the win, Silvia called out Cheick Kongo. This, in my opinion, was simply because he does not want to fight Minotauro. Silvia knows that Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira is one of the best heavyweights in the world and would rather beat up Kongo on the ground than be beaten around by Nogeuira in a very Couture-esque fashion. Before Silvia's fight with Vera, there was much talk about the winner of the fight facing Nogeuira for the vacant heavyweight title. Tim most likely heard about this and decided it would be in his best interest to win a fight against a guy like Kongo who has no ground game. He wants to hype up a fight between him and Kongo to the point that the UFC decides it might be a good idea. Tim Silvia will beat Cheick Kongo, there's no doubt in my mind. Silvia will only finish Kongo if he takes him down and pounds him out. If the fight is left standing, it will be much like Silvia vs Vera or Kongo vs Cro Cop. Either way, I don't like the prospect of this fight. This is Tim's way of saving his own ass so that he doesn't go 1-2 in his last 3 fights; although I don't believe that that type of record would push Tim Silvia out of the UFC, it would severely hurt his chance for another shot at that title he craves so badly.

Vera, on the other hand, will fight anyone the UFC puts in front of him; his opponent at UFC 77 for example. Vera is the real deal. If Vera hadn't broken his left hand in the first round of the fight, he could have quite possibly won that fight. I believe he took round 2; broken hand and all. Round 3 I gave to Silvia, but Vera didn't throw much in the third. He seemed tentative and a little concerned about throwing combinations. Had he been able to fight without the worries of a broken hand, he most likely would have taken round 3. For a guy who's been out of the fight scene for nearly a year, he showed no signs of rust. Vera will be back very soon and will be, in the words of Tim Silvia, "someone to be reckoned with".

Vera vs. Gonzaga in the future? I guess we'll have to wait and see.