Daniel Cormier victorious over Anderson Silva
Originally, Daniel Cormier was supposed to fight Jon Jones to create an undisputed UFC light heavyweight champion on this show. However, Jones was pulled from the show following a drug test failure. The legendary Anderson Silva stepped in on just two-day notice to take the fight. Silva will have a tough time of it with a younger, bigger, more prepared fighter with top of the line wrestling but Silva is the most dynamic striker in the history of the sport and certainly can’t be overlooked.
Round 1. Silva circles around the cage as Cormier moves in. Cormier shoots in and gets a takedown less than a minute in. Cormier drops a heavy elbow down and postures up by the cage. Cormier didn’t get in any big shots and appeared to want to pass guard. He didn’t succeed in that effort so he landed some punches and elbows on the ground. Silva is forced to just hold on as Cormier lands shots. 10-9 Cormier.
Round 2. Silva throws a front kick to start. Cormier comes in and lands a hard right hand. Silva moves in with a flying knee to the body. Cormier smiles and grabs the leg. He takes down Silva again to loud boos from the crowd. Cormier works in half guard, smothering Silva and landing punches here and there. Cormier lands some hard elbows and continues with punches. Cormier appears to be setting up a kimura but gives it up. The fight is stood up with 90 seconds left in the round. Cormier lands a nice jab and walks down Silva. Cormier connects with a solid right hand. Silva lands a knee to the head. They trade some wild looping punches from close range and Silva mixes in a low kick and elbow. 10-9 Cormier.
Round 3. The fighters hug before the beginning of the round. Silva throws a leaping kick. Cormier lands a big right hook. Silva goes for a reverse elbow from the standing position before Cormier takes Silva down to thunderous boos from the crowd. Cormier works on the ground, landing punches and working over Silva to the dislike of the crowd. The fight is stood up with two minutes remaining. The action is slow back on the feet, with Silva throwing some kicks low and lands a body kick that causes Cormier to wince. Silva moves in wildly looking trying to finish, but Cormier ties him up and the fight comes to an end. 10-9 Cormier, 30-27 Cormier. Silva is lifted on the shoulders of his teammate and celebrates at the end of the fight, clearly more about his effort than suggesting he won the fight. Cormier is booed loudly after the fight and Silva wildly cheered.
Winner: Daniel Cormier, unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26).
That was a really tough situation for Daniel Cormier. Anderson Silva took the fight on short notice against a bigger man in what was framed as a make good for the fans. So of course fans were going to want Cormier to stand and trade, since they knew he could outwrestle the smaller, less prepared man to begin with.
With that said, it would be silly for Cormier to throw caution to the wind and stand and trade with arguably the most dangerous striker in the history of the sport. Beyond the threat to his physical safety, he doesn’t need a loss at this stage of his career and he badly wanted the win. Thus, he fought the smart fight.
The problem was that this night more than anything should have been Cormier getting his recognition and appreciation from the fans for all his hard work and skill over the years when his rival Jon Jones deprived him of the opportunity to fight. This should have been the light at the end of the tunnel after a terrible week that Cormier suffered through no fault of his own. Instead, he was lustily booed and Silva given a hero’s exit. For Cormier, it has been a long road towards the respect and adulation he deserves. Tonight should have been a step forward but instead it ended up yet another strange step backwards.
Category: Mixed Martial Arts
