Anderson Silva a natural HW hiding in MW

[Japanese Boxing]

I don't think he's hiding, mainly because he can make the MW cut. I do feel he should move up in weight and test himself though. I think he can beat a majority of the guys at LHW and HW. He clearly can KO anybody on the planet. Imagine if he beats Jones then Challenged and beat JDS. Who could deny those fights?(other than JDS might be friends with him) and it would solidify him as the greatest fighter. With those accomplishments nobody could touch his status.

[Anthony342]

I didn't mean trinket as in paper title, what I am saying is that if you don't fight the best competition available, in the end of it all the belt only meant so much. MW is weak, and LHW is a very deep division, and is where the obvious challenges are.

And Fedor's reign as Pride Heavyweight Champion far outweighs Anderson's middleweight reign. Silva's best wins at MW are over Rich Franklin and a weight drained Dan Henderson (who by the way I think Silva would have thoroughly beat at LHW as well, but Henderson hasn't been his best at MW). Props to him, he's had a good run. But the best competition of his era were all fighting at 205. That is a fact. And he was by no means undersized for the 205 division.

Imagine if Roberto Duran would've stayed at LW his entire career instead of stepping up to fight the best of his generation, or if Tommy Hearns would have stayed at WW instead of stepping up to fight the best. What if Sugar Ray Leonard would've contented himself with the LMW crown, and never stepped up to challenge Marvin Hagler.

But what about boxers that mostly stayed in one weight class? Carlos Monzon stayed at middleweight and defended the title 14 times, Hopkins had 20 defenses at middleweight before moving to light heavy late in his career. Marvin Hagler was a career middleweight. And Leonard didn't even challenge Hagler until Hagler was ready to retire and past his prime. I don't see a problem with Silva staying at middleweight and retiring as champion. He'll still make anyone's top 5 or top 10 all-time lists.

[Anomaly460]

Anyone can make a higher weight class simply by eating more, but where would their fitness level be at? With his lanky thin frame he would have to come in on fight night relatively out of shape to make a higher weight (look at him at 205).

While competition at MW is wearing thin he probably understands that's where he's his best at. Why would he put his record on the line and handicap himself just because he's so much better than everyone else? I think as fight fans (boxing and MMA) we can be unfair sometimes calling for fights between pound for pound fighters in different weight classes.

[hayZ]

The fighters at middleweight are just people who couldn't make it at 205 (the vast majority) apart from Anderson who I think could beat quite a few top fighters at that weight but would probably lose to a Jon Jones.

A.Silva isn't a heavyweight, dude looks fat at 220. He looks in good shape at 205 though in his Griffin fight. Anderson has never been the most ripped up dude ever anyway, he looked in phenomenal shape in his last fight against Chael...never seen him in better shape to be honest.

[BKM-2010]

Let me put more facts forward for the Fedor and GSP fans who keep claiming made up nonsense.


Got this from another forum

http://extra.globo.com/esporte/ufc-c...a-5475185.html

Basically, his nutrionist says that before starting to train for the fight (2 1/2 months ago), Anderson was weighting 207, with 16,7% bf.

With training and diet, he was before the cut with 198 lb, with 9,2 bf.

Oh, and when Silva is over 220 off season? I can't find it right now and i don't think I'm allowed to post links to other fight forums(it was from Veja magazine) but he was again measured in that fat state and guess what, Anderson was at 212lbs with 19.1% bodyfat. Or do you think the double chin, love handles and huge gut that he sports at that weight is some secret from Segal that would make him a HW? ****ing idiots.

Sorry but to claim that with those statistics and the fact that the man has NEVER had a problem making MW(when do you see Anderson half dead sucking on a damn ice filled towel to make the cut?) and that he started as a Welterweight and stayed there untill beyond his mid 20s.

AND the fact that in his devision his opponents are almost ALL huge guys themselves who also fought at LHW or higher before. Vitor was HW/LHW. Sonnen LHW. Cote LHW. Irvin LHW. Hendo LHW & HW. Franklin LHW. Lutter LHW. Okami is a giant amonst MW's. Almost all of them were big guys.

So just deal with it. Anderson is a Middleweight at his best shape.