Anderson Silva vs. Yushin Okami agree to meet at August's "UFC: Rio"

Discussion in 'General MMA Discussion' started by Anthony, Apr 14, 2011.

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  1. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

    Anderson Silva vs. Yushin Okami agree to meet at August's "UFC: Rio"

    by John Morgan on Apr 13, 2011 at 7:15 pm ET
    [​IMG]Regardless of what happens at UFC 129, Georges St-Pierre will apparently have to wait his turn.

    MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has confirmed that UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva (28-4 MMA, 13-0 UFC) and Yushin Okami (26-5 MMA, 10-2 UFC) have each verbally agreed to meet in August at "UFC: Rio," the UFC's first event in Brazil since 1998.

    UFC president Dana White first revealed the booking to USA Today, and MMAjunkie.com subsequently confirmed that both parties are committed to the fight, though bout agreements have not yet been distributed.

    Silva's teammate, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, this past week told Brazilian site Tatame that Silva next will fight Okami. However, a source close to the negotiations told MMAjunkie.com the reports were premature and officials haven't completely cooled on the idea of Silva fighting welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, who meets Jake Shields later this month at UFC 129.

    However, it now seems the need to keep Silva active may have been a driving force behind the Okami booking. Should St-Pierre get past Shields, no small task, of course, the Canadian champ would need time to pack on the muscle necessary to compete at 185 pounds. Okami provides an opportunity to keep Silva in the interim. Of course, all that is predicated on a St-Pierre win, and as White has reminded the public repeatedly, the potential Silva vs. Pierre superfight is still just a "fantasy" at this time.

    Silva has won 14 consecutive fights, which includes a record eight consecutive UFC title defenses. Undefeated in the UFC, Silva hasn't lost a fight since 2006, when the Brazilian suffered a disqualification loss (due to an illegal upkick) to Okami at a Rumble on the Rock show in Hawaii.

    Okami, a longtime middleweight contender, defeated Nate Marquardt at UFC 122. The November bout initially was declared a No. 1 contender's fight, though officials haven't formally announced Okami as the next title challenger. Regardless, the Japanese fighter has won six of his past seven fights. His current win streak include a knockout of Lucio Linhares and decision victories over Mark Munoz and Marquardt.

    The UFC's Brazil event, likely to be UFC 134, takes place Aug. 27 at HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro. It's the UFC's first event in the country since "UFC Ultimate Brazil" (UFC 17.5) in 1998. Many of the organization's top Brazilian fighters are expected to compete at the event.
     
    Anthony, Apr 14, 2011
    #1
  2. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

    Middleweight division is garbage.
     
    Joe King, Apr 14, 2011
    #2
  3. Bob N Weave

    Bob N Weave Guest

    Jesus wtf is Anderson doing in the MW division already?? There is nothing there for him.
     
    Bob N Weave, Apr 14, 2011
    #3
  4. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

    A couple years back, people were crying about Okami not getting a shot at Anderson. This was even after he lost to Franklin.

    Anderson beats Okami fairly easy.
     
    *Z*, Apr 14, 2011
    #4
  5. Haymaker

    Haymaker WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

    Hopefully Anderson moves up after this and fight Bones.
     
    Haymaker, Apr 14, 2011
    #5
  6. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

    I could see Bones smashing Anderson like he's done to everyone else. Anderon's lack of wrestling could allow Jones that chance. We already saw that a good but one dimentional wrestler can almost get the job done and it's not like Anderson is some BJJ wizard off his back, it took him almost the full five rounds to catch Sonnen who isn't exactly the hardest guy to sub.
     
    *Z*, Apr 14, 2011
    #6
  7. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

    Want to put a bet on it?
     
    Anthony, Apr 14, 2011
    #7
  8. Bob N Weave

    Bob N Weave Guest

    I would.
     
    Bob N Weave, Apr 15, 2011
    #8
  9. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

    Maybe, lets see if it even happens first. Anderson ain't no spring chicken either, he just turned 36.
     
    *Z*, Apr 15, 2011
    #9
  10. jarhead

    jarhead Undisputed Champion

    wow. I really can't believe this is Anderson's next fight. What a waste.
     
    jarhead, Apr 15, 2011
    #10
  11. Trplsec

    Trplsec Sleeps in a Cage


    All I can remember is how silly Anderson made Okami look when they fought before at 170 pounds. He made Okami's shots look moronic. And he toyed with him in the stand up.

    Okami's wrestling is solid and has improved since then, but he has shown that it isn't in the same ball park as Sonnen. I'm not excited about this fight but Okami did "earn" the shot.
     
    Trplsec, Apr 15, 2011
    #11
  12. Bob N Weave

    Bob N Weave Guest

    Didn't Okami get him down?
     
    Bob N Weave, Apr 15, 2011
    #12
  13. Trplsec

    Trplsec Sleeps in a Cage

    Yep on his 4th or 5th attempt if I remember... Hell, screw my 45 year old memory.


    <iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/iDsFK3WhwSs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


    By the way, illegal or not, that upkick was nasty...
     
    Trplsec, Apr 15, 2011
    #13
  14. *Z*

    *Z* WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

    He was whooping Okami and he looked pretty comfortable on the bottom there as well. He basically gave Okami that TD. He's going to wreck this guy.
     
    *Z*, Apr 15, 2011
    #14
  15. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

    Im confused by the outrage. He did just beat Marquardt in a title eliminator. What did you guys expect to happen? He earned his shot.
     
    Anthony, Apr 15, 2011
    #15
  16. Trplsec

    Trplsec Sleeps in a Cage

    Yep, that's what I said in my initial post. I don't like the fight but Okami did earn it.
     
    Trplsec, Apr 15, 2011
    #16
  17. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

    you are right you did. My bad Trp
     
    Anthony, Apr 15, 2011
    #17
  18. joony

    joony "Twinkle Toes" McJack

    why are upkicks illegal?
     
    joony, Apr 15, 2011
    #18
  19. Trplsec

    Trplsec Sleeps in a Cage

    And realistically, who else is there at 185. I, like you, don't really think a rematch with Sonnen should be done immediately. So who else?

    Personally if I could have any fight I wanted, I would like to see Silva-Bisping. Not because it makes sense or it would be a good fight, but because I want to see Bisping knocked out again.

    I would literally allow Dan Henderson to liver punch me in exchange for getting to watch Silva grab a double collar tie on Bisping and then land 10-15 unanswered knees.
     
    Trplsec, Apr 15, 2011
    #19
  20. Trplsec

    Trplsec Sleeps in a Cage

    Only when the opponent is on the ground. If Okami was standing it would have been cool but he was on his knees.

    Personally I think what Silva did should be allowed. Talk about being dangerous off your back.
     
    Trplsec, Apr 15, 2011
    #20
  21. joony

    joony "Twinkle Toes" McJack

    gotcha. yea, it looked like legitimate kick.

    what's the difference between SF and UFC? SF allows elbows and UFC only allows forearms?
     
    joony, Apr 15, 2011
    #21
  22. Trplsec

    Trplsec Sleeps in a Cage

    Prior to being purchased by Zuffa (UFC), Strikeforce did not allow elbows on the ground. UFC does and now so does Strikeforce.

    Oddly, in Bellator Tournament fights they don't allow elbows on the ground. But in their Championship fights they do.
     
    Trplsec, Apr 15, 2011
    #22
  23. joony

    joony "Twinkle Toes" McJack

    i thought elbows were legal in strikeforce and not legal in ufc. didnt jones get DQed because he elbowed hamil or were you saying that ufc has recently allowed elbows on the ground?

    as for bellator, that's a strange ruling haha.
     
    joony, Apr 15, 2011
    #23
  24. Bob N Weave

    Bob N Weave Guest

    Jones used his elbows illegally. He did 12-6 elbow strikes which are illegal.
     
    Bob N Weave, Apr 15, 2011
    #24
  25. GoldGlover

    GoldGlover Leap-Amateur

    Okami has def earned the shot but GEEZUS he's a slooooow and methodical and careful fighter to watch. Always involved in sleepy decisions. In terms of being a 'test' for ASilva, Okami is about a 5.5 on a 10-point scale. MW division is ONLY elite where the current champ resides. The rest is a revolving door of highly touted and capable fighters with absolutely ZERO chance of ever winning the title. Makes for wasteland title defenses......
     
    GoldGlover, Apr 16, 2011
    #25
  26. Anthony

    Anthony Admin Staff Member

    sonnen had a pretty good chance.
     
    Anthony, Apr 16, 2011
    #26
  27. GoldGlover

    GoldGlover Leap-Amateur

    Very true. But hes the sole exception to the rule. In over 15+ title fights.....
     
    GoldGlover, Apr 16, 2011
    #27
  28. jarhead

    jarhead Undisputed Champion

    I don't really think anyone is suprised or outraged. Yes we all know the Marquardt/Okami fight was for a title shot. The question is why? both Nate and Okami recently lost to Sonnen. Neither one has really been dominant in the division. Its just a really poor title shot if you ask me.
     
    jarhead, Apr 17, 2011
    #28
  29. Joe King

    Joe King WBC Silver Diamond Emeritus Champ

    Not sure but since that fight was in Hawaii, I'll see if I can get the result changed.:scared2:
     
    Joe King, Apr 17, 2011
    #29
  30. royyjonesjrp4pno1

    royyjonesjrp4pno1 "Twinkle Toes" McJack

    Its about time Okami got a shot.
     
    royyjonesjrp4pno1, Apr 17, 2011
    #30
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