Hyden's Take
HYDEN BLOG: The Anderson Silva Superfights, and Ronda Rousey on Pay-Per-View
Nov 21, 2012 - 9:50:16 AM HYDEN BLOG: The Anderson Silva Superfights, and Ronda Rousey on Pay-Per-View

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By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch Contributor

Georges St-Pierre defeated Carlos Condit in an epic fight at UFC 154 last weekend. Condit almost knocked GSP out, but GSP came back and took the clear decision. This potentially clears the way for the Anderson Silva vs. Georges St-Pierre superfight, though GSP's camp has come out and said that they would want the fight to take place at welterweight or as close to 170 lbs. as possible. They talk about the size advantage that Silva would have over GSP as being the main reason why they want Silva to cut as much weight as possible.

This is the main reason that I would rather see Silva fight Jon Jones than see him fight GSP. For the record, I think SIlva would beat either guy. That may not be true in a few years, but for now I feel very confident in Silva beating either man. In the case of Silva beating GSP, a lot of people would point to the size difference as being the reason Silva would win. That's just not true, as I think Silva would win because he's just the better fighter.

I know size plays a role in fights, that's why we have weight classes. However, that's for normal fighters. Anderson Silva is not normal. If there's anything that Silva has proven, it's that he's a different type of fighter. He's on a different level. I've said in the past that I think that Silva can beat any fighter, regardless of size, and there have been plenty of people who try to give me grief over that, but I still believe that. I think that Silva's recent fights have validated my thoughts, and I still think that Silva would beat either Junior dos Santos or Cain Velasquez. As a matter of fact, I think Jon Jones would have a better chance to beat Silva than either of those guys because they would be way too slow and they'd gas out way too quickly trying to keep up with Silva, who has proven that he has the ability to knock anyone out. They may be stronger, but a well-placed strike is more damaging than 10 powerful but wild swings.

A win over Jones would do more for Silva's legacy than a win over GSP. Far too many people would only look at the weight difference between Silva and GSP and say that was the determining factor. Beating Jones would negate any of that kind of talk.

I want to make it very clear that I'm not saying that any smaller fighter could beat a bigger fighter. Size absolutely plays a role in a fight, but it's only one of many factors that determine how a fight plays out. There are certain fighters who can transcend size. There's only a select few, but they exist. I do think that GSP can transcend size, but it has to be the right matchup. For instance, I think GSP could beat either Chael Sonnen or Michael Bisping. I'd take GSP's wrestling over Sonnen's at his age, plus Sonnen's standup is quite lacking. Bisping has cotton balls for fists so GSP would just work him over with his boxing without worrying about being caught with a punch, which is GSP's only real weakness.

In an ideal world, we'd get to see both of these fights next year. I'd love to see a Silva vs. GSP superfight in the first half of the year and a Silva vs. Jones superfight in the second half. I would find both of those fights much more interesting than Silva defending the UFC Middleweight Title against any of the current contenders. To be blunt again, there's no one in the middleweight division who belongs in the cage with Silva at this point, let alone is worthy of a title shot. There's just too many players vying for the title shot at this point. While that works itself out, Silva should get the biggest fights he can get.

The UFC should book at least one, if not both, of these fights for the Jerry Dome in Dallas, Cowboys Stadium. The alternative would be running a stadium in Brazil, which would be fine too. The point is that the UFC could do huge numbers if they paired either of these fights with some other good fights. They shouldn't make the mistake of making the pay-per-views one-fight cards. Surround them with some nice fights and go after the UFC 100 record.

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Dana White has said that Ronda Rousey's UFC debut will be on pay-per-view. Again, keeping with my being blunt today, this is an incredibly dumb and short-sighted move. You're going to have her fight in front of what could potentially be the smallest audience possible? What part of that makes sense? They need to put her on a FOX card to maximize the eyes that see her. They're trying to build a division around her, as she's the most well-known of the female fighters they can get. That's precisely why you want to put her in front of the largest audience you can.

By putting her on a FOX card, you're also sending a message to people that she's the real deal, that the UFC believes in her. Putting her on PPV right away may net more money in the short term, possibly, but why not build her up a bit? I must have missed the story about Rousey retiring soon. I can't think of another reason that the UFC would be so short-sighted on this one.


Comments and suggestions can be e-mailed to hydenfrank@gmail.com