What’s the story?
UFC has just announced on Twitter that Anderson Silva will be taking on Derek Brunson at UFC 208 on February 11 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
However, the position of the bout on the UFC 208 card isn’t clear yet. The event is headlined by Holly Holm vs Germaine de Randamie for the inaugural UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship.
In case you didn't know:
Anderson Silva (33-8) recently said in an interview that still has five to six fights remaining on his contract and he would like to have a rematch with the current Middleweight Champion Michaell Bisping, regardless of the belt.
Also read: UFC News: Anderson Silva and Michael Bisping beef on Instagram about UFC bout
While UFC didn’t give him a fight against the champ himself, a win against Derek Brunson (16-4) could likely set up a fight with Bisping or an interim title bout. Silva is currently #7 on the middleweight rankings while Brunson is right behind him on #8.
The heart of the matter:
UFC 208 has been a tough card for the organisers. The event was supposed to be headlined by a title unification bout between the featherweight champion Jose Aldo and the interim champion Max Holloway.
However, the bout was scrapped due to Holloway’s nagging injuries and his desire to spend some time with his family. The card is now headlined by a fight for the inaugural UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship between Holly Holm and Germaine.
The latest addition to the card was announced by UFC President Dana White on Twitter:
What’s Next?
While no one questions that the fight for the inaugural belt looks good on paper, UFC 208 was expected to do very less number of PPV buys as compared to some of UFC’s previous buys.
The lack of potential headliners was the primary reason why UFC wasn’t able to load up the card. However, with the legendary Anderson Silva now being on it, the numbers are expected to improve dramatically owing to his popularity.
This isn’t the first time that Silva has come to the UFC’s rescue. Last year, Silva faced Daniel Cormier on a very short notice as a replacement for Jon Jones at UFC 200 and saved the day for UFC.
Sportskeeda’s take:
Although Anderson Silva hasn't been able to get a positive result in the last five of his fights, there is still enough excitement every time the legend steps into the Octagon. Silva would be facing a tough challenge in the form of Derek Brunson and it would be interesting to see how the fight turns out.
With still around five to six fights remaining on Silva’s contract, it would be interesting to see which way the Spider heads in case he manages to defeat Brunson. A rematch against Bisping should be a distinct possibility.
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