By Robbie Blakeley, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO – Brazil’s Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva is desperate for a heavyweight title shot, and had some harsh words this week for heavyweight champion Alistair ‘Demoliton Man’ Overeem and Fedor ‘The Last Emperor’ Emelianeko over the public slanging match the two have become embroiled in over a potential showdown. Silva is furious at being overlooked by the champion and could not understand why someone would refuse him a shot at the crown.
The Brazilian retorted bluntly; “I come from Paraíba where we don’t back down from things. I’ll fight whoever they put in front of me; you won’t see me picking and choosing opponents.
“It’s sad when the heavyweight champion [Overeem] starts whining that he’ll only fight this guy or that. What kind of a professional is this guy? He is the champ, isn’t he? Why be afraid to fight me?”
Silva’s record is less than perfect in the U.F.C, but he did not spare Emelianeko, a man who has beaten him previously.
“Foder [Emelianeko] is one of the biggest legends in the sport, but is this how he became a legend, by declining fights? We are fighters, supposed to be some of the best in the world, and our job is to get up there, perform, and put on a good fight for the fans. I am ready to do this, just tell me who is next and I will be there. Give me whoever and I will fight him, and, win or lose, people will know I came to fight that day and I put my heart into it. To me, this is the only way.”
Silva’s wrath not yet extinguished, he also turned on industry insiders who have ranked former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar as the number one contender to the heavyweight crown. Lesnar, a relative rookie in the world of U.F.C. has a five-to-one win record, and Silva believes he is being unfairly pushed to the front of the queue due to his fame rather than his fighting abilities.
Meanwhile, two Brazilians squared up at U.F.C. 118 in Boston, Massachusettes, On Saturday night (August 28th). Carioca Mario Miranda lost to Demian Maia in the bout between the two middleweight jiu-jitsu black belts. Maia dominated from the outset, smothering his opponent and coasting to a unanimous 30-27, 30-27, 30-27 victory in the process.
Maia’s experience was obvious throughout, and his speed and agility were too much for Miranda, who spent more of the fight on his back than his feet and making futile attempts to repel submission moves. The match was too one-sided for the crowd, and the match ended in somewhat farcical circumstances, with the winner booed for winning too comfortably and not creating a spectacle.
The victory was an important one for the Paulista Maia, who was competing in his first bout since being outfought in a title fight with Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva. Maia is desperate to redeem himself against one of the greatest fighters in the sport’s history, and was more focused on securing victory on Saturday night than the manner in which it came.
Things are not looking quite so good for Miranda, who has lost two of his three fights since joining U.F.C. after a perfect eleven victories in eleven contests in amateur competition.