One of the featured contests of UFC 193 is a bout between the #8 ranked heavyweight Mark “Super Samoan” Hunt and the #11 ranked heavyweight Antonio “Bigfoot Silva”. This is a rematch of their epic December 2013 encounter that many pegged as Fight of the Year. Both fighters have been on a decline since then, as they cannot take a punch like they used to and are both getting up there in age. Hunt comes into this contest on a two-fight losing streak, while Silva defeated a now retired Soa Palelei in August. Hunt and Silva both need a win to stay relevant in the UFC’s heavyweight division. Mark Hunt (10-10-1 MMA, 5-4-1 UFC, -275 favorite) Hunt is one of the most decorated strikers in mixed martial arts, even at the age of 41. He is a former winner of the K-1 World Grand Prix, which is a prestigious kickboxing championship where only the best heavyweight kickboxers across the globe may enter. While Hunt was always very dangerous with his hands, he struggled mightily with his ground game when he first entered mixed martial arts. At one point he was submitted in five out of six fights, which is an astonishing rate. However, that did not deter Hunt from continuing his mixed martial arts career. Instead, he focused on improving his weakest areas. The 41-year old is a nasty striker that has huge power in both hands and feet, though he does not throw kicks as often as he should. His trademark punches are his jab to straight right combination and his leaping left hook, which is the punch he used to knock out Stefan Struve. While he may be the hardest puncher in the heavyweight division, his defense has begun to suffer in recent years. Hunt has a tendency to drop his hands, which leaves his head wide open for attacks. That is exactly what happened in his fight against Fabricio Werdum last year, as Hunt dropped his hands and Werdum executed a beautiful flying knee that put Hunt’s lights out immediately. The area where Hunt has improved the most, though it did not show in his last fight, is his grappling and takedown defense. He is no longer a fish out of water on the ground and can get back to his feet in most instances. While he will never be an offensive submission threat, he is at least capable of holding his own against most opponents. The problem is when Hunt tires and is stuck on the bottom with his opponent on top of him raining down heavy shots. Other areas of concern are his age and his ability to take a punch like he used to. Hunt used to be able to walk through any fighter’s best punch, but that is not the case anymore. Further, Hunt’s cardio seems to have gotten worse over the last few years, which will be trouble for him if this fight goes longer than a few rounds. Antonio Silva (19-7-1, 3-4-1, +235 underdog) The 36-year old is a longtime veteran of the sport that has fought his last eight fights inside the UFC’s Octagon. The mammoth Brazilian is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu that likes to get on top of his opponents and rain down huge punches and hammerfists. Once Silva achieves top position he is an adept passer that possesses an extremely heavy mount that is almost impossible to get out of. “Bigfoot” is not that much of a submission threat, as he prefers to either get a knockout on the feet or pound out his opponent from top position. Silva has become tentative on the feet in recent years, likely due to the many times he has been knocked out. In two of his knockout losses last year I do not think he even threw a single strike. He was even on his way to losing his last fight against Soa Palelei until Soa gassed out and Silva was able to finish him with knees and punches against the cage. Since he knows his chin is suspect, he keeps a high guard and only opens up with strikes when he knows he has the advantage. Silva may need a win here to save his job, as he has been knocked out in three out of his last five Octagon appearances. Due to some of his recent shortcomings, we forget how many high-profile wins Silva has under his belt. He stopped Fedor Emelianenko with brutal ground and pound from mount, knocked out Alistair Overeem and Travis Browne, and took a decision from former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski. Not too many fighters have wins like that on their record. Thoughts The UFC had the right idea with putting this fight together. Their first matchup was sensational and many people, including Dana White, wanted to see it again. Both fighters are on a decline as they get up there in age and their ability to take damage reduces. Silva will want to get this fight to the ground and tire Hunt out and most likely go for a ground and pound finish, similar to the gameplan Stipe Miocic used to defeat Hunt in May. Hunt, on the other hand, will look to use his superior kickboxing to knock Silva out. I think the latter scenario is more likely, as I trust Hunt’s takedown defense and chin more than I do Silva’s takedown game and ability to take a shot. I see Hunt ending this one within the first two rounds with a flurry of punches or one big shot that sends the large Brazilian to the mat. The Prediction: Mark Hunt defeats Antonio Silva by knockout (round 1)
