the spider wants to move up to HW

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/josh_gross/08/20/anderson.silva.heavyweight/index.html?eref=T1
he doesnt want machida and is tired of the mw division so why the hell not. thoughts

word up, there really isn't anything interesting at 185, and he and Machida are about 6 months away from clobbering all the 205ers.

I really don't think he'd fair well with the wrestlers up there, Cain included(I see no shot vs Brock(at this point anyway)), but the standup guys would all be cool matchups.

And one has to figure the ultimate goal is Fedor.

I wonder if part of his plan here is to have the UFC take away his 185 belt, so that he can jump ship after his contract, to fight Fedor, if Fedor does not come to the UFC first of coarse.

He'd be a pretty small heavyweight....

He could take out most HW's, but the big wreslters would just take him down and not let him move. He wouldn't have the size or strength to compete with those guys. A bad idea... If he just waits a few months Shogun or Page will topple the seemingly indestructable Machida and he can have a go with one of them...

LikesToFightGuy wrote:

He could take out most HW's, but the big wreslters would just take him down and not let him move. He wouldn't have the size or strength to compete with those guys. A bad idea... If he just waits a few months Shogun or Page will topple the seemingly indestructable Machida and he can have a go with one of them...

Rampage had a better shot to beat Shogun in Pride that night than he does Machida. If there was ever a fight where there was literally no way someone could win, it was this.

nobody is gonna beat Machida for a very....VERY long time.

I know everybody is on the Silva nuthug wagon, and to an extent, i am too. But i truly believe he does not make it too far as a HW.

Mir vs Spider?


http://www.mmabay.co.uk/Story%2002387.html

Ninja\Rua/Fan wrote:

Mir vs Spider?


http://www.mmabay.co.uk/Story%2002387.html

Silva would KO him within the first 2 minutes of the 1st round....

Mir via decision

ummm we've see what a smaller heavyweight that can strike can do to Mir.just go ask Brandon Vera


and last time i checked Anderson>Vera

CainVelasquezFan wrote:

ummm we've see what a smaller heavyweight that can strike can do to Mir.just go ask Brandon Vera


and last time i checked Anderson>Vera

Mir would kill Vera now. Frank's striking is a lot better now, plus at that time he was still not back in form from returning from the motorcycle accident. That's a tough fight for Anderson, especially since he never fights HW.

I would not use MMA math here, especially since there is an obvious difference between Mir returning from a career threatening accident in 2006 losing to Vera and Cruz, and when he came back after a 10 month layoff in 2007 and beating Hardonk, Lesnar and Nog consecutivley.

KingsOwn19 wrote:

CainVelasquezFan wrote:

ummm we've see what a smaller heavyweight that can strike can do to Mir.just go ask Brandon Vera


and last time i checked Anderson>Vera

Mir would kill Vera now. Frank's striking is a lot better now, plus at that time he was still not back in form from returning from the motorcycle accident. That's a tough fight for Anderson, especially since he never fights HW.

I would not use MMA math here, especially since there is an obvious difference between Mir returning from a career threatening accident in 2006 losing to Vera and Cruz, and when he came back after a 10 month layoff in 2007 and beating Hardonk, Lesnar and Nog consecutivley.

Whoa... There is no room in this forum for logic, sensibility and or intelligent opinions. The audacity...

Meh. Mir is and always has been over rated and would get murked by the Truth once again. Mir would be destroyed by Anderson Silva.

I don't think Mir would be destroyed, in a Forrest Griffin way, but I do think he would get beat. Unless he could somehow catch Silva and put him on the ground and even then it would be a 50-50 shot.

Mir already said when training for Brock he had a ton of trouble sparring with Forrest because he was quick and just kept bringing it. Now Anderson is more of a counter striker, but if Mir has trouble with Forrest then Silva is going to pick him apart a few rounds and then get dropped.

I wonder at what weight Spider would enter the ring as a heavy. As a guy who makes a fairly dramtic cut to make 185, I assume his weight training is such that it keeps him lean and light. But if he were to make the transition to heavy I imagine his weight training would change so as to put on some bulk.

In a very small sample at 205 he has looked phenomanal, both physically, and skill wise. His recent fights there have been far more impressive then his recent fights at 185. Yet his frame still looks as though it could handle more weight.

I don't think it would be a stretch to expect Spider to weigh in at 235 or so. I have a hard time seeing Brock having a hard time with any 235 lber, but otherwise, I think Spider could do signifcant damage at that weight.

No way Spider could get to 235 without getting a huge gut. He was already looking a little puddy at 205. And when I say puddy keep it in a context of pro fighter not everyday person. I say Anderson couldn't get above 215.

http://www.sherdog.com/pictures/gallery/fighter/f_1356/92361/8

Your saying this guy looks pudgy? He prob weighed in at 215 the day of the Griffen fight.

To say there is "no way" that Anderson could put on 20 lbs constructively is pretty baseless.

When you compare to this



It doesn't look like he is putting on muscle just gaining weight.

http://www.sherdog.com/pictures/gallery/fighter/f_1356/46500/

Here's Spider at 185 vs Nate. Despite the way the lighting might make it look, spider is usually not a chiselled dude. He has clearly handled the weight with ease in both his fights at 205. "just gaining weight?" come on this was not like Penn's last attempt at 170.

Anderson's frame is easily large enough to hold the weight. He needs to slowly bulk up with muscle mass and not just not cutting weight.

He definitely looks thicker there, but Anderson wasn't putting a lot of muscle on. He doesn't plan to stay at 205 forever. If he stayed at 205 he could build his muscle mass up and then cut from a heavier weight. After that I could see him 225-235, that's all the bigger Randy is. If he moved slow and gained weight properly he could do it.

However, both age and weight slow fighters down, and combos of the two can be career altering. Of course, Silva has speed to share, and should he slow down a bit, moving up a class might help him stay relevant, like it did with Randy and the big slow oafs he has faced(until Lesnar) since returning.