Anderson Silva v. James Irvin

[Mr. Zhu]

At least Rich didn't collapse after a single punch to the face.

Seriously, Anderson's attack was more like a jab than a power strike. He just knows where to put it, and has a sense of timing that's akin to voodoo. He only had a fraction of a second to do it, and he put it right where he needed to without hesitation. He's a real live fighting genius. Anderson had to cut a lot of pounds to compete in the middleweight division, and he still cuts weight to get down to 205, but he doesn't need to lose nearly as much to be in the LHW division. I think he's going to be even more dangerous now than he was at 185.

What I think is most interesting about this is that Silva's top training partner, Lyoto Machida, is also in the LHW division - and they're both undefeated in the UFC. Usually, if someone holds a belt in another weight class they get a fast shot at the other title holder, but I think Machida is the #1 contender for the division right now. If Anderson fights Forrest first, he could very well take the title and then Machida would be next in line; if Machida fights Forrest and takes the title, Anderson would be right behind him.

Anderson stated after the fight that his main duty is going to be defending the Middleweight Championship. I don't think he's going to move up officially, but I think Silva would make a very decent Light Heavyweight, and I don't think Machida is the #1 Contender :S.. But in all honesty, there's no one in the Middleweight Division I can actually think of that stands a fraction of a chance against Silva...