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Anderson Silva has 10 UFC title defenses to his name. The Spider has won many accolades in his amazing MMA career that started in 1997. Silva notably won the Shooto middleweight title by defeating Hayato Sakurai via unanimous decision at Shooto 7 in August 2001.
Another milestone in his career was when he won the Cage Rage middleweight title. The Spider accomplished this feat by defeating Lee Murray via unanimous decision at Cage Rage 8 in September 2004.
Silva defended his Cage Rage middleweight title thrice, but he never quite received the deserved recognition for his unique and innovative MMA fighting style.
Anderson Silva broke through as a major star right at the beginning of his UFC career
The striking maestro, Anderson Silva, made an immediate impact upon arriving in UFC. In his debut for the promotion, Silva defeated fan-favorite Chris Leben via first-round KO at UFC Fight Night 5 in June 2006.
This was a No. 1 Contender’s fight, and Anderson Silva’s second UFC fight was against then Middleweight champion, Rich Franklin. The Spider dethroned the Franklin via a first-round KO at UFC 64 in October 2006.
This marked the beginning of Silva’s reign as the UFC Middleweight champion. To this date, Silva holds the record for the longest title reign in UFC history, having held on to the championship for 2,457 days.
Anderson Silva has 10 UFC title defenses
The next fight Anderson Silva competed in was a non-title fight because his opponent Travis Lutter missed weight. The Spider defeated his opponent via a second-round submission at UFC 67 in February 2007.
Silva’s first title defense was against Nate Marquardt whom he defeated via a first-round TKO at UFC 73 in July 2007. The Spider put his Championship on the line for the second time against Rich Franklin in a rematch. Silva bested Franklin once again by the way of a second-round TKO at UFC 77 in October 2007.
Following this, Silva made his third title defense, besting Dan Henderson via a second-round submission at UFC 82 in March 2008.
The Spider then competed in a non-title bout at Light heavyweight, beating James Irvin via a first-round KO at UFC Fight Night: Silva vs. Irwin in July 2008.
Silva's fourth title defense came against Patrick Cote whom he defeated via a third-round TKO at UFC 90 in October 2008. He defended the Middleweight Championship for the fifth time against Thales Leites, beating him via unanimous decision at UFC 97 in April 2009.
This was followed by another non-title fight in the Light Heavyweight division when Silva faced Forrest Griffin. Silva beat Griffin via first-round KO at UFC 101 in August 2009. Silva then made his sixth title defense, beating Demian Maia via unanimous decision at UFC 112 in April 2010.
Anderson Silva’s iconic comeback win served as an exclamation mark on what was a memorable seventh title defense.
After getting outwrestled throughout the fight, Silva defeated Chael Sonnen via fifth-round submission at UFC 117 in August 2010. The Spider’s eight title defense was against Vitor Belfort whom he bested via a first-round KO at UFC 126 in February 2011.
He put his title on the line for the ninth time came against old foe Yushin Okami whom Silva had lost to via disqualification back in 2006. The Spider bested Okami in the rematch via a second-round TKO at UFC 134 in August 2011.
Silva’s tenth and final title defense came in a rematch against Chael Sonnen. The Spider beat Sonnen via second-round TKO at UFC 148 in July 2012.
The Spider followed this up with a non-title light heavyweight bout against Stephan Bonnar. Silva defeated Bonnar via first-round TKO at UFC 153 in October 2012.
Anderson Silva faced Chris Weidman in his next fight. Silva lost to Weidman via a second-round KO at UFC 162 in July 2013 – losing his UFC Middleweight title and ending what was a truly legendary championship reign.
Presently, Anderson Silva is a free agent – having parted ways with the UFC late last year – and could continue his MMA or boxing career in other organizations.
