MMA and UFC News

Anderson Silva Reminds Demian Maia That His Fight At UFC 112 Is MMA, Not Jiu Jitsu

Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva was originally scheduled to face Vitor Belfort for the UFC middleweight title.  Due to a shoulder injury Belfort sustained not too long ago, Demian Maia was called in as a replacement to fight Silva as part of the upcoming UFC 112 main event in Abu Dhabi.

Maia is known for his expertise in the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, acquiring 8 of his 12 wins via submission.  Silva is well aware of Maia’s dangerous ground game, but the current middleweight champion points out a very important aspect in this sport.  Silva vs. Maia will be a mixed martial arts bout, not a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu match.  Although Silva is also a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he continues to train both the ground game as well as his stand-up skills.

Again, anything can happen when it comes to MMA competition.

From Anderson Silva via Tatame.com:

“This isn’t jiu-jitsu, it’s MMA, a sport that involves many techniques and elements. It’s hard to say that I would beat him standing up and he would defeat me on the canvas. Logically, each one of us owns a specialty but a fight is always a fight. MMA is a new sport and there’s no precise gameplan so we keep training and studying. I’m going to study for the rest of my life. It has been going correctly but it can happen that I won’t give my best showing and it’s over. We’re training and if it’s God’s will to have me stay as champion, I’ll stay. I don’t feel pressure to fight with Demian or any other fighter in this division. I’m worried about how I’m training each day.”

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

To Top