A hotly anticipated rematch years in the making, delayed by a positive drug test after Sonnen's first meeting with Silva, became arguably the most hyped fight in UFC history after Sonnen went on a promotional rampage, trashing-talking and goading Silva at levels never before seen, or duplicated since. Sonnen began carrying his own UFC title belt (obviously a fake), referring to himself as the true middleweight champion, and insulting Silva and the people of Brazil on an extremely personal level. An example? "Tell Anderson Silva I will pat his wife on the ass and have her make me a steak." The reaction wasn't pretty, though oddly, after this fight Silva and Sonnen would appear almost friendly at times, and most people wound up in on the fact that Sonnen's shtick was just that - an act (except perhaps the now banned for life Wanderlei Silva). What happened in the bout? The first round was almost a carbon copy of their first fight. Sonnen had control of the fight, and it looked like he had a chance to dethrone Silva. In the second, the round started out the same - but Sonnen got too eager, and attempted to throw a spinning backfist that put him off balance. He slipped, Silva pounced, landed a crushing knee to the body and followed it up with strikes. This UFC 148 win back in July 2012 would be Silva's last title fight victory.
Primarily covering the sport of MMA from Ontario, Canada, Jay Anderson has been writing for various publications covering sports, technology, and pop culture since 2001. Jay holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Guelph, and a Certificate in Leadership Skills from Humber College.
