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Anderson Silva bobbed, weaved and clowned his way to the first loss of his UFC career.
The now-former UFC middleweight champion showed little respect to opponent Chris Weidman,
who entered Saturday's UFC 162 pay-per-view headliner as one of the smallest underdogs
of Silva's long title reign.
As a result, MMA's pound-for-pound kingpin and arguably the greatest fighter in the sport's
history gave away the fight as much as Weidman won it.
In front of a stunned crowd at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden Arena, Silva (33-5 MMA, 16-1
UFC) dropped his hands, dared Weidman (10-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) to take a swing, and laughed
off the challenger's attempts. That was all well and good through the first round, when
Silva escaped from an early takedown and heel-hook attempt to get back to his feet and deliver
some late-round leg kicks.
But like the first round, Silva continued clowning in the second round. However, unlike
his past 16 straight UFC wins and 10 consecutive title defenses, he finally paid the price
for it. After Silva backed out of range with his hands at his waist, Weidman initially
whiffed on two punches. The third, though, caught the Brazilian flush, and he tumbled
to the mat as his eyes rolled to the back of his head from the crushing left hand. Weidman
delivered a final blow to his downed opponent, which prompted Herb Dean to wave off the bout
78 seconds into the round.
Weidman said he had training partners mimic Silva's well-known mind games and taunting
during his extended fight camp.
"I was ready for it," the new champion said. "It pisses me off when someone tries to do
that to me. I just knew little by little, I was going to creep on him, and when he slept,
I was going to get him."
Weidman, a fashionable pick despite his 2-to-1 underdog status, proved correct the numerous
UFC fighters and industry insiders who predicted the upset. Their rationale was that like Dan
Henderson and Chael Sonnen, who were the only fighters to give Silva any real trouble in
the octagon, Weidman possessed a stellar wrestling game that could put the champ on his back.
However, unlike those other challengers, Weidman got the victory and ended Silva's seven-year
title reign.
Although Weidman won the bout in emphatic fashion, Silva's mental miscues likely will
be an unwelcome footnote to the victory. Still, it's not going to stop the 29-year-old New
Yorker from savoring the upset and his new belt.
"I felt I was destined for this, but it still feels a little far-fetched," he said.
Chris Weidman celebrates after defeating Anderson Silva in their middleweight chamionship bout
at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA TODAY Sports Fullscreen
Silva, who hadn't been knocked out in 37 previous pro bouts, halts an overall 17-fight win streak
and spoils plans for a potential cross-division, champion-vs.-champion superfight with the
likes of Georges St-Pierre or Jon Jones. While an immediate rematch with Weidman would be
a big-money fight for all involved, Silva said he was "done fighting for belts" and
suggested he'll turn his focus elsewhere.
However, the 38-year-old, who recently signed a new 10-fight UFC contract, quickly dismissed
questions about a potential retirement.
"No, no, I have 10 more fights," he said. "But I don't fight anymore for the belt. I'm
tired. I've fought for a long time. My (plan) for the belt is finished tonight. Chris is
the new champion."
Expect UFC President Dana White to have some thoughts on those ill-advised plans.