# Silva vs Maia (Short version)



## Andrew Green (Apr 14, 2010)




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## OnlyAnEgg (Apr 14, 2010)

worst
fight
ever


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## terryl965 (Apr 14, 2010)

That was Fantastic


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## crushing (Apr 14, 2010)

Glad I caught that fight at a restaurant with friends, rather than shelling out the PPV $$$.


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## Empty Hands (Apr 14, 2010)

What a ridiculous fight, and what a ridiculous series of fights.  I've never seen so many terrible headline fights in one night!

If Silva is going to taunt his opponents, he at least ought to back it up and engage.  WTF.  This fight gave us the bizarre spectacle of a bloodied, clearly outmatched fighter trying to goad his opponent into fighting him.


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## Shawn-San (Apr 14, 2010)

That was a funny video.

Whether you agree with how the fight went or not, he still retained his belt and was able to diffuse any attempt by Maia to inflict damage upon him. Maia was simply outclassed. I agree he should've put Maia away after taunting him, and if he IS really that good, but there are many factors that come in to play with a fight that last 25 minutes.


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## Andrew Green (Apr 14, 2010)

Shawn-San said:


> That was a funny video.
> 
> Whether you agree with how the fight went or not, he still retained his belt and was able to diffuse any attempt by Maia to inflict damage upon him. Maia was simply outclassed. I agree he should've put Maia away after taunting him, and if he IS really that good, but there are many factors that come in to play with a fight that last 25 minutes.




Are you sure "outclassed" is the word you want to use there?  I don't remember seeing much class.

The truth is he was extremely disrespectful to his opponent, has been warned against this behaviour before, and then, despite having a clear advantage ran away to the point of the ref stopping the fight and warning him that if he continued he would lose a point for not fighting, after putting on the worst display of sportsmanship the UFC has seen in taunting his opponent to come after him.


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## Omar B (Apr 14, 2010)

It made me disgusted to see it.  Who dares put their guard down in a fight?  It's just so disrespectful.  The entire thing was awful.  The only person who came out looking decent was Maia, because he actually "tried" to engage rather than play.  Outmatched, sure, but not outclassed.


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## MattJ (Apr 15, 2010)

I have to admit that I was impressed and entertained with Silva's antics in the first 2 rounds. Then I was thinking, "Ok, you've made your point. Get in there and finish him". But he didn't. After that was simply an abomination, insulting not just Maia, but the whole damn sport. 

I am actually praying that Chael Sonnen grinds Silva right into the mat. But I doubt it, sadly.


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## crushing (Apr 15, 2010)

The scores weren't announced after the match, but I swear the announcer said Silva won by a majority decision, leaving me to think that one of the judges may have had Maia winning rounds 4 and 5 by 10-8 on one of the judges scorecards.

Sherdog gives the following results:
Jordan Breen scores 50-47 Silva
Greg Savage scores 50-46 Silva
Mike Fridley scores 48-47 Silva


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## SensibleManiac (Apr 15, 2010)

Silva hasn't fought his last few fights with the exception of Forest Griffin, we need to see GSP come up in weight and put him away.

He is nothing but hype and the reason I say that is because he is so afraid of losing that he no longer fights.
Think about it, had he stopped goading Maia and engaged or later stopped running away and actually engaged, there is a good chance he would have been taken down and submitted.
For a BJJ black belt that is pretty sad.


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## MattJ (Apr 16, 2010)

Yikes! I'm going to have to disagree with this:



> He is nothing but hype


 
The guy has a _75%_ accuracy rate with his striking. That is inhuman! No amount of hype is going to make someone magically able to fight. He punished Maia severely, and wasn't even trying. Maia had no chance of taking him down at all - he would have been KO'd long before. 

Silva definitely took it too far, but to think that Maia had any chance at all is to be in denial.


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## SensibleManiac (Apr 16, 2010)

> The guy has a 75% accuracy rate with his striking.



I understand, but consider this, what did he do with that accuracy?

You state that he messed Maia up without even trying, think about it, this was a championship fight, he had to be trying, just because he made it look easy to hit Maia at will and not get hit in the process it was still all just showboating, even his accuracy was only used to show boat, or else he would have finished the fight which he couldn't for the simple reason that I believe he was afraid of taking that chance and losing.
So despite his accuracy rate and skills, he is just hype because a champion should not be afraid to put it on the line.

His accurace rate, speed, power and showmanship couldn't win him the fight they just serve to hype him up.

For a champion, I'm not impressed by his performance in his past few fights with the exception of the Griffin fight.


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## MattJ (Apr 17, 2010)

SensibleManiac said:


> I understand, but consider this, what did he do with that accuracy?


 
Did you see Maia's face at the end? _That's_ what he did with it. 



> You state that he messed Maia up without even trying, think about it, this was a championship fight, he had to be trying, just because he made it look easy to hit Maia at will and not get hit in the process it was still all just showboating, even his accuracy was only used to show boat,


 
Exactly, you are making my point for me. Skill. 



> or else he would have finished the fight which he couldn't for the simple reason that I believe he was afraid of taking that chance and losing.
> So despite his accuracy rate and skills, he is just hype because a champion should not be afraid to put it on the line.


 
You can't really believe that, can you? Silva spent 2 rounds *embarrassing* Maia, and then _willfully disengaged_  - the ref had to warn Silva for running away! - after that. If you want to call Silva an egotistical jackass, I can agree. But hype and no skill? No sir. 



> His accurace rate, speed, power and showmanship couldn't win him the fight they just serve to hype him up.


 
See above. That was a conscious decision, not a lack of skill. 



> For a champion, I'm not impressed by his performance in his past few fights with the exception of the Griffin fight.


 
I can agree with that, although the Leites fight was not really Silva's fault - Leites was the one flopping to his butt.


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## SensibleManiac (Apr 17, 2010)

Because I think you are sincere I'll try and explain it a little further so you can understand.

I could be alot faster than you, (AS AN EXAMPLE) so I can hit you at will because of my speed making you look bad, but because I am afraid of getting caught by you, be it a punch or clinch, I spend all my time hitting and running and then when I tire I no longer (willfully) run but am forced to because I'm getting tired and can no longer show off but will definitely lose I if I don't run. Then that is not a champion level fighter but HYPE.



> Exactly, you are making my point for me. Skill.



His skill was not enough to win the fight but to show off for a while, that not skilled enough. He couldn't truly compete against Maia at a championship level. He had to run away in the later rounds, he didn't have a choice he would have lost if he didn't. He might have beaten Maia if it was a 3 round fight but at a championship level 5 rounds, Silva didn't have what it takes and barely walked away with a decision.

I don't think Maia has anything to be embarassed about, he was hit by a superior striker but that's it. That superior striker was too scared to keep fighting him in the later rounds. I don't think Maia has anything to be embarrassed about and Silva should be the one embarassed, after all he was warned for running away and not fighting.
If Maia would have done the same you would have had two fighters running away from each other. But Maia stuck in there and actually outstruck the superior striker in the later rounds.

Sounds like for all his skill Silva couldn't do much with it. 

He won't fare so well against GSP.
This will be a round two KO or submission for George.

Think about it, "then willfully disengaged " that only means he ran away, he had to willfully disengage or he would have lost.

Just rewatch the match I think you will see for yourself.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Apr 17, 2010)

When MMA is at it's best is when both fighters engage and either try to knock each other out or submit them. When it is at it's worst is when their is no effort for the former. Silva did not put forth enough effort to knock out or submit and that plus the taunting is why he is taking so much criticism!


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## Makalakumu (Apr 17, 2010)

The real fight was left up on Youtube.  I watched part of it and was so embarrassed for the fighters, I couldn't watch anymore.  It was totally undignified and humiliating.


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## Tanaka (May 10, 2010)

SensibleManiac said:


> Because I think you are sincere I'll try and explain it a little further so you can understand.
> 
> I could be alot faster than you, (AS AN EXAMPLE) so I can hit you at will because of my speed making you look bad, but because I am afraid of getting caught by you, be it a punch or clinch, I spend all my time hitting and running and then when I tire I no longer (willfully) run but am forced to because I'm getting tired and can no longer show off but will definitely lose I if I don't run. Then that is not a champion level fighter but HYPE.
> 
> ...


I rewatched it and saw Maia punching from his knee's.
While Anderson Silva didn't look (tired from 5 rounds) or scared. 

Anytime someone can drop their guard on you.
Tap the mat infront of you.
Stop all your takedowns extremely easy.
Stand infront of you and kick and punch you before you can even do anything.
Play with you and do tricks infront of you.

I don't think it's because the other guy is trying to run away because hes scared.

I just think hes being a poor sportsman to his opponent and taunting his obvious superiority.

I think you should rewatch.





 (spoiler for anyone who might not of seen the anderson silva vs demian maia)

Anderson silva was delivering shots.(he wasn't running away). It seems like you're implying that he was JUST running and not delivering any real shots.
Silva just wasn't finishing it.
When it was obvious to everyone he could of finished it.
He was literally doing some pretty outlandish things that would get most fighters knocked out.


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## MattJ (May 11, 2010)

Apologies for coming back into this so late, but I think Tanaka is right on the ball here.  I believe that Silva knows that he's so much better than everyone else that he can just showboat a bit to make his point, and then he sees no reason to inflict further damage. It's a very odd and egotistical way to approach a professional fight - but it's not fear or lack of skill, by any means. 

SM - 



> His skill was not enough to win the fight but to show off for a while, that not skilled enough. He couldn't truly compete against Maia at a championship level. He had to run away in the later rounds, he didn't have a choice he would have lost if he didn't.


 
That is pure speculation on your part, and I certainly do not agree. I think he didn't *have* to run away, he *chose* to do that. Huge difference.



> He might have beaten Maia if it was a 3 round fight but at a championship level 5 rounds, Silva didn't have what it takes and barely walked away with a decision.


 
Again, unsupported speculation on your part.



> I don't think Maia has anything to be embarassed about, he was hit by a superior striker but that's it. That superior striker was too scared to keep fighting him in the later rounds. I don't think Maia has anything to be embarrassed about and Silva should be the one embarassed, after all he was warned for running away and not fighting.
> If Maia would have done the same you would have had two fighters running away from each other. But Maia stuck in there and actually outstruck the superior striker in the later rounds.


 
Yeah, please don't misunderstand me - I think Maia did as good a job as he possibly could have, considering the skill gap. He showed plenty of heart, and I have nothing but respect for him.  He is one of the few fighters I have seen that had their stock _raised_ in a loss. 



> Sounds like for all his skill Silva couldn't do much with it.
> 
> He won't fare so well against GSP.
> This will be a round two KO or submission for George.


 
I am a huge GSP fan, but I think this ends badly for George. Silva is a taller fighter with better striking. The ground is a question, but Silva has shown good wrestling against Nate Marquardt and Dan Henderson. I would love to see the fight, and I will be pulling for GSP, but............  



> Think about it, "then willfully disengaged " that only means he ran away,


 
Yes, you are correct here.



> he had to willfully disengage or he would have lost.


 
Now you're speculating again, sorry.


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## SensibleManiac (May 11, 2010)

> When it was obvious to everyone he could of finished it.



Then why didn't he???

That's like saying, I know I could easily enter the UFC and beat Silva myself, I just choose not to?

Huh?

If it was so obvious he could finish him, why didn't he, oh yeah, he felt bad for Maia and didn't want to hurt him, lol

And as for speculation, watch 




This is the fifth round, you want proof? No problem count how many times Maia hit Silva and How many times Maia is advancing and Silva is running away.

That's a champ???
That's who will beat GSP???
That round GSP would have taken Silva out no problem, don't believe me and think I'm speculating? Ok watch the last rounds of GSP's fights and watch his performance, now watch this, if you're not laughing I don't know how much more proof I can show you.

At around 4:30 Silva is running away until about 4:39 where Maia completely opens his arms dropping his guard against the great Silva and what does the champ do, you guessed it, runs away.
Followed then by another 40 seconds of running away until this stops because of Silva's tremendous heart where... oh yeah he's warned by the ref to sopt running away!

Do you want more speculation or will you at least watch the last round?


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## MattJ (May 12, 2010)

I don't think it's accurate for you to cherry-pick 1 round out of the fight. I could just as easily focus on the first round and show you Silva blasting Maia, *unanswered*, ("where's your jujitsu now, playboy?") over and over. If you look at the fight _as a whole_, I think you will see what I'm talking about. 

If you're asking me to answer why didn't Silva finish Maia, I can't answer that. I'm not Silva, I'm only speculating. 

Watch the whole fight, not just the last round. Otherwise, we'll have to agree to disagree.


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## tellner (May 12, 2010)

There's a difference between fighting well and putting on a good show. Silva absolutely controlled the action. He was able to control it and made Maia fight his fight. What he didn't do was provide good entertainment that gave the paying customers the grunt and pounding they pay to see.

He hit the other guy without getting hit himself. He hit him a lot.  He dominated the action, and there's no doubt he won according to the rules of the game. And as always he did it with a smile on his face. Silva is really good at the mental game and screwing with an opponent, not playing by the rules. He's an emotionally sneaky bastard and leaves the other guy off balance. Some people don't like that. I happen to like it and admire any craftsman who can use neglected tools effectively and creatively. 

But to the extent that this is about giving the audience what they want he lost. MMA isn't professional wrestling. But a good part of it is about pageantry and providing a very specific experience. Silva doesn't always give the customers what they are looking for. He's very good at winning matches. But he doesn't do it in a way which  consistently sets the emotional roller coaster running on its rails. And a lot of people here feel cheated by that.


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## tellner (May 12, 2010)

That said, I'd like to see Silva in a fight which really stretches him. So far he hasn't come up against anyone who's good enough to make him work hard. It would be something to see, well worth the price of the ticket.


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## MattJ (May 12, 2010)

I agree. I think Silva is so unchallenged, that he just won't bring it until he has to. I would love to see him up against GSP. Later against Jon Jones, when JJ is ready, and then put him against Lesnar (assuming Lesnar gets past Carwin).


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## SensibleManiac (May 12, 2010)

From my previous post:



> I could be alot faster than you, (AS AN EXAMPLE) so I can hit you at will because of my speed making you look bad, but because I am afraid of getting caught by you, be it a punch or clinch, I spend all my time hitting and running and then when I tire I no longer (willfully) run but am forced to because I'm getting tired and can no longer show off but will definitely lose I if I don't run. Then that is not a champion level fighter but HYPE.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Again I'm not cherry picking just stating the facts about the last round where Silva could no longer compete therefore chose to run.

We can agree to disagree, but regardless of the fact that Silva has great skills, I think we all agree that he's more about showing off and less about the substance of his skill.
He's a phenomenal striker with great attributes like speed, timing and accuracy. 

Beyond that he's also a black belt in BJJ, although Demian is a second degree black belt and that makes a difference. So I could understand why Silva was scared of him on the ground but for all his superior stand up, why be afraid on the feet?

Either way I agree with you that Jon Jones with a bit more work and experience will prove a formidable opponent for Silva. Especially if Jones can continue on without getting beaten or knocked out, I think his confidence will only increase and this will make him more dangerous.

He will be a great opponent for Silva, who has the potential for putting an end to his hype by making Silva fight for real or get KO'd.


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