Thiago Silva's (right) hand was raised in victory at UFC 125 after he put on a dominant performance at the expense of "The Truth" Brandon Vera (left). The Brazilian's first fight in a year showed him to be in top form and perhaps better than ever before. (Photo courtesy of Zuffa, LLC.)
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines “domination” as: Supremacy or preeminence over another; Exercise of mastery or ruling power; Exercise of preponderant, governing, or controlling influence. It also goes on to define“aggression” by: A forceful action or procedure (as an unprovoked attack) especially when intended to dominate or master.
With the fireworks set off at UFC 125, Thiago Silva (16-2) made his return to the Octagon demonstrating both aforementioned terms at the expense of “The Truth” Brandon Vera (11-6). Though it appeared to be a battle of two high-level Muay Thai practitioners in the beginning of the fight, it was the clinch work and grappling of Silva that lead to Vera’s downfall. Despite bearing a wrestling background coupled with Jiu-Jitsu, Vera was unable to improve his situation after Silva, a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu himself, took him to the ground. Once the fight hit the canvas Silva went on to seek improved positions at every moment and unleash an unforgiving ground-and-pound assault.
It was the third round where Silva most commandingly demonstrated his superiority over Vera. “The Truth” was pressed against the cage with the hyper-aggressive Brazilian on his back constantly raining down strikes and seeking a Rear Naked Choke submission. However Vera’s lack of effort to escape but more to ensure he did not suffer damage left Silva frustrated, led him to resort to open-hand palm strikes reminiscent of the days of Pancrase and taunting Vera by drumming his back. The bout concluded with Silva jumping back on the winning side with a Unanimous Decision victory and Vera left with now three losses in a row and a broken nose on par with “Ace” Rich Franklin (27-5) after his UFC 77 match with “The Spider” Anderson Silva (27-4).
The question that now must be posed for both Silva and Vera is: What’s next? Continue reading »
