Anderson Silva will definitely have a smile of victory on his face as he looks back on his past and compares it to what he has achieved over the years and where he stands now. He was once a child who lived in abject poverty and whose parents could not afford to pay for his fighting lessons. But with a sheer determination to succeed in the martial arts, he grew into an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight champion, and not only did he become champion, but Andersons holds the longest title record (2,457 days) in the UFC to date, with 16 consecutive victories.
For this and many other things he has done in his fighting career, Dana White (UFC President) and Joe Rogan (UFC Commentator) have honored him – the greatest UFC fighter of all time. In the following sections, we will find out how true this is.
Anderson Silva Bio (Wiki)
The fighter was born in Sao Paolo, Brazil, on April 14, 1975, and was baptized Anderson da Silva, after Vera Lucia da Silva (mother) and Juarez Silva (father), who were piss poor at that time. Given the situation of his immediate family, the young lad spent much of his childhood with his aunt and uncle in Curitiba, where he at least got a decent diet.
Anderson Silva’s involvement in martial arts began quite early when he began training Jiu-Jitsu with peers. When he was about 12 years old and still in his teens, he already took part in Taekwondo, Capoeira, and Muay Thai courses, which he continued until the age of 16. At this time things were going much better for his family, as they were now able to pay for his flying lessons, as the young fighter wanted to make a career.
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Fighting Record, Injury, and Major Highlights
In 1997 at the age of 22 Silva made his professional debut in Brazil as a welterweight and won twice in a row. This victory was thwarted by Luiz Azeredo in 2000 when he lost to him in a unanimous decision in a fight. He recovered from the defeat and continued a nine-fight winning streak before fighting Shooto champion Hayato Sakurai in Japan and defeating him in the third round as the first man to finish Sakurai’s 20-fight unbeaten record.
The Brazilian-born fighter started fighting in 2002 at the Pride Fighting Championship and got away with an impressive 3 victories. However, he had to take a defeat against Daiju Takase, who was a venture in this sport at that time. With a victory over Lee Murray in Cage Rage 8 in 2004, Anderson was able to revive his career in the Cage Rage revaluation in England. The win earned him the Cage Rage Middleweight Championship, which he successfully defended against Jorge Rivera and Curtis Stout. Silva continued to fight in Cage Rage and other promotions around the world until he entered the Ultimate Fight Championship in 2006.
He made his UFC debut at Ultimate Fight Night 5 on June 28, 2006, against Chris Leben, who was undefeated in the UFC at that time with 5 consecutive wins. It took the Brazilian fighter only 49 seconds to knock Chris out to the cheers of the crowd in the first round. His next opponent was UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin, whom he knocked out with a technical knockout in the first round. With this victory, Anderson has crowned the new UFC middleweight champion.
At UFC 73 on July 7, 2007, Silva successfully defended his title against Nate Marquardt, whom he sent on the defensive in the first round with a TKO (4:50). Rich Franklin then made a comeback for the title, but in the second round at UFC 77 on October 20, 2007, he put him out of action again with a TKO. He then went on to fight Dan Henderson, then Pride middleweight champion, in UFC 82 in a title unification bout that Anderson Silva won, against expectations.
He defended his middleweight title against Patrick Côté in UFC 90 on October 25, 2008, Demian Maia on January 2, 2010, in UFC 108, Chael Sonnen in UFC 117 on August 7, 2010, Vitor Belfort on August 5, 2010, and the UFC’s UFC 90 on October 25, 2008. February 2011 in UFC 126 (won the night’s knockout), Yushin Okami in UFC 134 on August 27, 2011. Chael Sonnen challenged him again to win the title but lost it the second time around, with Silva finally losing it to Chris Weidman by knockout on July 6, 2013, in UFC 162.
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The two (Silva and Weidman) played each other in a return match UFC 168 on December 28, 2013, but Anderson Silva lost the fight anyway. Not only did he lose the match, but he also suffered one of the deadliest injuries he has ever had in his career, with a broken left fibula, a fractured shin, and a broken tibia. After the game, he had to undergo orthopedic surgery to stabilize his shin with an intramedullary rod, which was successful.
Since losing his title, Anderson Silva has had fewer victories than before as fans have asked him to retire from the sport. Still, it is worth noting that Silva considered the UFC Middleweight Champion a record 2,457 days of record winning with 16 consecutive victories that began in 2006 and ended in 2013.
Anderson Silva Net Worth
In fact, if you work hard, the fruit of his labor will reap theirs, for sure, Anderson Silva reaps the fruits of his labor over the years as a mixed martial artist in the UFC. The fighter Anderson Silva has a stated net worth of approximately $18.9 million, which has made him one of the 20 richest fighters in the world.
