Source: MMA Weekly

Story:

There are a lot of reasons to fear Anderson Silva. He is perhaps the greatest MMA fighter to have ever lived. His precision and striking accuracy makes him a highlight reel every time he steps into the octagon. And yet, Chael Sonnen does not fear Anderson Silva or his aura. Sonnen proved it when he destroyed Silva the last time they met for 4 and 1/2 rounds before Silva was able to pull off a late submission and win the fight. Dana White expects nothing less from Chael Sonnen this time around when they meet in the most publicized rematch in UFC history at UFC 148 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

According to White, Silva has an aura of invincibility like Mike Tyson used to have in his heyday. Guys are scared to fight Silva. But Sonnen isn’t. Sonnen relishes fighting Silva. Its like Sonnen only lives for fighting Silva. White chalks Sonnen’s confidence up to him being so “nutty”. Whatever the reason, Sonnen is confident this time around that he is going to finish the job he started the last time they met. And despite internet rumors to the contrary, this time around, both guys are completely healthy and ready to fight come July 7.

Blogger Opinion:

Besides the Jon Jones vs Rashad Evans fight (which turned out to be a total bore), the rematch between Silva and Sonnen is one of the fights I have been looking forward to all year. White is right about Silva’s aura. Most guys fear fighting him. Silva pretty much beats these guys even before they fight. Its like fighting a god. If they can’t beat him in their minds, how can they beat him in the octagon? Look at Silva’s fights with Forrest Griffin, Yushin Okami, Thales Leites, and Patrick Cote; those guys lost even before the fight started. Griffin got the worst of it, being knocked out with a jab and running out of the ring afterwards. I don’t think Griffin landed a punch against Silva. Yushin Okami was so scared to attack Silva that Silva went into hyper mode almost begging the guy to try and hit him. When Okami tried, he was knocked down and pounded out.

Anderson Silva’s fights are always the same. For the first minute or so, Silva just stands around warming up. You know he is gauging his opponent’s movement, distance, and ability. Meanwhile, his opponent is too scared to attack him. Even Vitor Belfort who is known to start fast played Silva’s game letting him warm up and get his bearings in. The only guy that didn’t was Chael Sonnen. Sonnen didn’t wait, the second that the ref started the fight, Sonnen went right after Silva. That’s the only way to fight Silva. You have to risk life and limb knowing that every second that you are letting him warm up and analyze you, is each second that he is going to use against you when he is ready. That’s why the first match between Silva and Sonnen was so different than any fight you have ever seen with Silva. Sonnen isn’t afraid of him. You can expect the same when they meet again next month. The only difference is you don’t know who is going to walk out of the octagon with the belt.

Update 6/25/2012: If Chael Sonnen wasn’t afraid of Anderson Silva before, maybe he should be now. An audibly upset Anderson Silva threatened to break Sonnen’s arms and legs, and every tooth in Sonnen’s mouth when they meet next month. Dana White said this is the first time he has ever heard Silva so upset and disrespectful towards another opponent. Both Silva and Sonnen left the telephone conference call early either due to connection issues or anger. Silva threatened to beat Sonnen like he has never been beat before, I don’t know if Sonnen needed to add any more fuel to Silva’s fire, but he did. Now he is going to have to face the music.