Feature23 March 2008
THE AXE MURDERER
For six years he held the Pride Title and brutally destroyed all comers. Now Wanderlei Silva faces Chuck Liddell
From 2001 to 2007, Brazil's Wanderlei Silva imposed a reign of terror over the 205-pound division in Pride. He stopped current UFC Champion Quinton Jackson not once but twice, in brutal fashion with his lethal knee strikes. He fought everyone the promotion put in front of him from Olympic Judo champion Hidehiko Yoshida and giant kickboxer Mark Hunt.
Dana White has been after him for years and now that Pride is dead and buried, the UFC prez is bringing The Axe Murderer back to the Octagon for the first time since April 2000. But after 39 fights and two devastating KO losses in a row, has Wanderlei still got what it takes to cut it in the cage?
ANYTHING GOES
Born in Curitiba, Brazil, Silva trained with the famous Chute Boxe Academy and made his debut at Brazilian Vale Tudo 6 in November 1996, in truly old school anything goes contests. There were no gloves, very few rules and a lot of bloodshed. It was no place for caution and, from the start, Silva possessed none. His nickname in Brazil is Cachorro Louco (Mad Dog) and the nom de guerre fits him perfectly; his style seems born of street fighting, fuelled by a bottomless well of fury with little thought of defence.
No technician, his game plan is never a nuanced attempt to find a weakness in his opponent's armour. Instead, he comes forward to swap punches and exchange pain with his opponent, to see who can soak it up and who crumbles in agony. He swings punches with vicious intent, looking for the knockout with every blow and never wasting time with jabs or scoring points. His Muay Thai background means that his favourite place to be is the clinch, where he can grind his victims into a pulp with merciless knee strikes.
Fighting under Vale Tudo rules, Silva won his first four fights before losing on a cut to Artur Mariano. Silva actually made the cut worse by constantly headbutting Mariano, testament to the all-consuming rage that propels him in the ring. At IVC 6 he gave Mike Van Arsdale his first loss, knocking him out in the opening round and earning an invitation to face Vitor Belfort at UFC Ultimate Brazil in October 1998.
Sadly, the fight was a disaster for Wanderlei. As he came forward, Belfort let rip with his blinding hand speed and blasted him. He staggered back but Belfort was on top, his fists a blur, and Silva was out in 44 seconds. He went back to Brazil and the IVC where he beat Adrian Serrano by KO and forced Eugene Jackson to tap out, rather than have Silva keep battering him. He returned to the Octagon at UFC 20, putting Tony Paterra to sleep with a knee to the head, and was then asked to compete in Japan's fledgling Pride Fighting Championships.
A HOME FOR HURTING
The history of Pride was one of dizzying highs and plummeting lows, but The Axe Murderer was a mainstay of the promotion for eight years - and champion for six of those. When he made his Japanese debut in September 1999, the organisation was still ironing out the rules. Silva's first opponent was pro wrestler Carl Malenko, who had previously defeated Enson Inoue by holding him down for the duration of the contest (since, at the time, Pride referees didn't have the power to restart the fighters on their feet).
Malenko was able to take Silva down but the Brazilian landed better punches fighting off his back than Malenko did from the top, winning the unanimous decision. He then beat his first Japanese foe at Pride 8, taking the decision over fearless jobber Daijiro Matsui, before facing Dutch heavyweight Bob Schrijber. Though Schrijber was more experienced with a record of 14-7, Silva tapped him out with a choke less than three minutes into the opening round. With three wins in a row, Silva was welcomed back to the UFC.
Frank Shamrock had announced his retirement after beating Tito Ortiz at UFC 22, leaving the 205-pound title vacant, so Ortiz and Silva were matched for the belt. The fight lasted all five rounds, with Ortiz getting the judges' nod thanks to his takedowns. Silva went back to Brazil to smash Todd Medina into dreamland in 38 seconds at Meca Vale Tudo 2 before returning to Pride, never to stray from the Japanese promotion until it closed its doors.
At Pride 10 he fought a barnstorming match against Guy Mezger that packed several highlight reels worth of action into 225 seconds, before a vicious flurry from Silva crumpled the Lion's Den fighter in a heap. After an accidental kick to Gilbert Yvel's nuts ended their hotly anticipated fight in just 21 seconds at Pride 11, Wandy faced Dan Henderson for the first time at Pride 12 in December 2000. Though Hendo staggered Silva, The Axe Murderer came back for more and used his size to bully the American, giving Henderson his first loss in MMA. He was now, officially, a player.
In March 2001, Silva got a crack at Pride's first megastar, submission wizard Kazushi Sakuraba. The pro wrestling showman's unorthodox style and superb grappling had made him the promotion's top fighter, and he possessed an uncanny ability to mess with his opponents' minds. Vitor Belfort, for example, didn't know whether to spit or chew gum by the time Sakuraba was done with him, keeping Belfort baffled by constantly feinting, then throwing spinning kicks and flying stomps.
The only problem with Saku's headgames were that they didn't work on an opponent whose head was only filled with the desire to cause pain and suffering. When Silva got in the ring with Sakuraba, he gave him no chance to mess with his mind - he went right after him, looking for blood. The ref stopped the fight in under two minutes, with a berserk Silva trying to stomp Saku's head through the canvas.
PUBLIC ENEMY NUMBER ONE
Their superhero and national pride severely dented, Pride's Japanese owners threw every domestic fighter they had at Silva - and he annihilated them one after another. Shungo Oyama fell first, in a fight that lasted 30 seconds, before Sakuraba came back for a second try at Pride 17, breaking his collarbone when Silva slammed him to become the first ever Pride Middleweight Champion. Alexander Otsuka actually managed to reach the third round before losing on a cut, while Rings veteran Kiyoshi Tamura was battered until the referee saved him in the second round at Pride 19.
Silva took a brief break from destroying Japanese fighters to face a newcomer to mixed martial arts - deadly Croatian K-1 star Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic. In one of Pride's (many) bizarre twists it was decided that, if the fight went the distance, it would automatically be declared a draw. So, when both men were still standing at the final bell, a draw it was.
Two more Japanese fighters tried their hands next - Tatsuya Iwasaki and Hiromitsu Kanehara - but neither survived long enough to see the second round. In August 2003 Pride hosted a Grand Prix and, in the opening bracket, Kazushi Sakuraba decided to have one last try at besting the Brazilian assassin. Just five minutes into round one, Silva's fists found Saku's chin and the Japanese wrestler was out like a light.
In the second round of the tournament, held that November, Silva faced Olympic gold medallist and World Champion Judoka Hidehiko Yoshida. Although Yoshida showed great heart and lasted the distance, Wanderlei inflicted so much punishment that he picked up the decision convincingly. In the finals he squared off against Quinton Rampage Jackson, who earned his spot with a decision over Murilo Bustamante and a ground and poundage that sent Chuck Liddell (who everyone wanted and expected to make the finals against Silva) into Slumberland.
Jackson scored a takedown but, back on his feet, Wanderlei let rip with everything he had, unloading a barrage of punches, kicks and knees that rocked Rampage hard. Hurt but trying to make his opponent think he was okay, Jackson smiled at Silva. The Axe Murderer grinned right back, then hit Quinton with 11 consecutive knees until the referee had to stop the slaughter, with Jackson unable to do anything more than act like a punching bag.
IT'S BLOODY AT THE TOP
The Grand Prix win cemented Silva's position as the best 205-pounder in the world, but that didn't stop Pride throwing more hapless Japanese fighters at him in the desperate hope that one of them might get lucky. Ikuhisa Minowa lasted just over one minute while King Of Pancrase Yuki Kondo fell in less than three, the victim of yet another relentless beatdown.
Quinton Jackson returned for a rematch but, unbeknown to his trainer, Rampage had been fasting in the week before the contest - a decision that cost him dearly. In round one Jackson had the mount on Silva, but didn't have the energy to put the champion away; in round two, his wind failed him and Silva sent bone-crunching knees into his face. Jackson fell like he'd been hit with an axe and was left hanging unconscious on the ropes in one of the most terrifying knockouts in MMA history.
In his next contest, Silva gave up 80 pounds (five-and-a-half stone) against massive Kiwi, Mark Hunt - a former K-1 Champion with two cannons for arms. The fight went the distance and Hunt took a questionable split decision that many observers thought should have gone to the Brazilian. Silva bounced back by entering the 2005 GP, taking a decision over Hidehiko Yoshida in a first-round rematch before blasting out Kazuhiro Nakamura.
Silva's bid to recapture the tournament title ended when he lost to Ricardo Arona at Final Conflict 2005, but he was avenged by team-mate Mauricio Shogun Rua, who destroyed Arona in the finals to win the tourney. At Shockwave, the New Year's Eve supershow, Silva beat Arona by decision in a rematch, as Pride paved the way for its Openweight Grand Prix in 2006. Reigning Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko was supposed to participate but an injury kept him on the bench so, as the Middleweight Champ, Pride brought in Silva to take his spot.
He started well, stopping Kazuyuki Fujita when Fujita's corner threw in the towel as Silva, in full-on mad dog mode, was smashing their fighter all over the ring. True to his Iron Head nickname, Fujita proved impossible to actually knock out, but he took a fearful battering (complete with soccer kicks to the head) as he stubbornly refused to stay down. The win over Iron Head put Silva in the semi-finals where he faced a rematch with Mirko Cro Cop who, on the run of a lifetime, had been crushing everyone in his path.
Silva came in fearless, despite the Croatian's size and weight advantages. Unfortunately, Cro Cop caught Silva with a violent missile kick to the side of the head, smashing the Brazilian to the floor (and breaking his orbital bone) in the most painful loss since the Belfort fight. Filipovic went on to win the GP, roughing up Josh Barnett in the finals and hitting the apex of his career (which has been on a drastic downward course ever since).
LOSING THE CROWN
No sooner had he recovered from the KO than The Axe Murderer was defending his Middleweight Championship against Dan Henderson, who already held Pride's Welterweight Title. Back in 2000, Henderson had taken a fight with Silva on short notice and his lack of conditioning cost him dearly; he wasn't about to be under-prepared a second time. In the third round Henderson staggered Silva with a spinning backfist then, moments later, crashed home a left hook to the jaw that sent Wandy careening to the canvas.
After six long years and 19 fights, he was no longer the champion - and it was the end of an era in more ways than one, for the loss marked Silva's last appearance in a Pride ring. Shortly thereafter the organisation was bought by the Fertitta brothers (owners of the UFC) and dismantled. Quinton Jackson and Anderson Silva made their way to the Octagon where they became champions, Cro Cop failed to replicate his Grand Prix success, and many other Pride stars found themselves in limbo, as what was once the biggest MMA promotion on the planet fell apart. But Wanderlei was always high on Dana White's shopping list.
White finally got Silva's signature on a UFC contract in August. As crazy as this sounds, Dana gushed, this is the pinnacle of my seven-year career in this company - I'm so excited to have this guy under contract. He grabbed my arm and looked me in the eyes like one of his pre-fight staredowns and he said, I'm gonna fight so good for you. You're gonna see the best fights ever from Wanderlei Silva.' And the fight that everyone wanted to see was with Chuck Liddell.
Dana tried to bring Silva into the UFC for a unification bout with Liddell back in 2006, with a staredown between the pair taking place at UFC 71 only for the fight never to materialise. After The Iceman was dethroned by Rampage it was rumoured that he and Silva would headline UFC 76, but that didn't happen, either. Instead, a lacklustre Liddell lost a decision to Keith Jardine as Wanderlei, sitting cageside, simply shook his head in disbelief as the dream match seemed cursed.
When the fight between the pair - scheduled for December at UFC 79 - was finally set in stone last month, it was without the fanboy fanfare of last year's teaser. With both once-indestructible-looking men now having lost two in a row, the sheen is considerably off what was once the ultimate Pride versus UFC showdown. But while it might be 12 months late to be the fight to end all fights, The Iceman versus The Axe Murderer is still going to be a dream come true for hardcore fans and a buyrate-obliterating main event for UFC casuals, as two of the sport's most terrifying strikers will finally collide on 29 December
For the rest of this feature, check out issue 21 of FSM - available at WH Smith and all good retailers. (For US readers we are now carried at Borders and Barnes & Noble, so check for local availability or click here to subscribe.)
From 2001 to 2007, Brazil's Wanderlei Silva imposed a reign of terror over the 205-pound division in Pride. He stopped current UFC Champion Quinton Jackson not once but twice, in brutal fashion with his lethal knee strikes. He fought everyone the promotion put in front of him from Olympic Judo champion Hidehiko Yoshida and giant kickboxer Mark Hunt.
Dana White has been after him for years and now that Pride is dead and buried, the UFC prez is bringing The Axe Murderer back to the Octagon for the first time since April 2000. But after 39 fights and two devastating KO losses in a row, has Wanderlei still got what it takes to cut it in the cage?
ANYTHING GOES
Born in Curitiba, Brazil, Silva trained with the famous Chute Boxe Academy and made his debut at Brazilian Vale Tudo 6 in November 1996, in truly old school anything goes contests. There were no gloves, very few rules and a lot of bloodshed. It was no place for caution and, from the start, Silva possessed none. His nickname in Brazil is Cachorro Louco (Mad Dog) and the nom de guerre fits him perfectly; his style seems born of street fighting, fuelled by a bottomless well of fury with little thought of defence.
No technician, his game plan is never a nuanced attempt to find a weakness in his opponent's armour. Instead, he comes forward to swap punches and exchange pain with his opponent, to see who can soak it up and who crumbles in agony. He swings punches with vicious intent, looking for the knockout with every blow and never wasting time with jabs or scoring points. His Muay Thai background means that his favourite place to be is the clinch, where he can grind his victims into a pulp with merciless knee strikes.
Fighting under Vale Tudo rules, Silva won his first four fights before losing on a cut to Artur Mariano. Silva actually made the cut worse by constantly headbutting Mariano, testament to the all-consuming rage that propels him in the ring. At IVC 6 he gave Mike Van Arsdale his first loss, knocking him out in the opening round and earning an invitation to face Vitor Belfort at UFC Ultimate Brazil in October 1998.
Sadly, the fight was a disaster for Wanderlei. As he came forward, Belfort let rip with his blinding hand speed and blasted him. He staggered back but Belfort was on top, his fists a blur, and Silva was out in 44 seconds. He went back to Brazil and the IVC where he beat Adrian Serrano by KO and forced Eugene Jackson to tap out, rather than have Silva keep battering him. He returned to the Octagon at UFC 20, putting Tony Paterra to sleep with a knee to the head, and was then asked to compete in Japan's fledgling Pride Fighting Championships.
A HOME FOR HURTING
The history of Pride was one of dizzying highs and plummeting lows, but The Axe Murderer was a mainstay of the promotion for eight years - and champion for six of those. When he made his Japanese debut in September 1999, the organisation was still ironing out the rules. Silva's first opponent was pro wrestler Carl Malenko, who had previously defeated Enson Inoue by holding him down for the duration of the contest (since, at the time, Pride referees didn't have the power to restart the fighters on their feet).
Malenko was able to take Silva down but the Brazilian landed better punches fighting off his back than Malenko did from the top, winning the unanimous decision. He then beat his first Japanese foe at Pride 8, taking the decision over fearless jobber Daijiro Matsui, before facing Dutch heavyweight Bob Schrijber. Though Schrijber was more experienced with a record of 14-7, Silva tapped him out with a choke less than three minutes into the opening round. With three wins in a row, Silva was welcomed back to the UFC.
Frank Shamrock had announced his retirement after beating Tito Ortiz at UFC 22, leaving the 205-pound title vacant, so Ortiz and Silva were matched for the belt. The fight lasted all five rounds, with Ortiz getting the judges' nod thanks to his takedowns. Silva went back to Brazil to smash Todd Medina into dreamland in 38 seconds at Meca Vale Tudo 2 before returning to Pride, never to stray from the Japanese promotion until it closed its doors.
At Pride 10 he fought a barnstorming match against Guy Mezger that packed several highlight reels worth of action into 225 seconds, before a vicious flurry from Silva crumpled the Lion's Den fighter in a heap. After an accidental kick to Gilbert Yvel's nuts ended their hotly anticipated fight in just 21 seconds at Pride 11, Wandy faced Dan Henderson for the first time at Pride 12 in December 2000. Though Hendo staggered Silva, The Axe Murderer came back for more and used his size to bully the American, giving Henderson his first loss in MMA. He was now, officially, a player.
In March 2001, Silva got a crack at Pride's first megastar, submission wizard Kazushi Sakuraba. The pro wrestling showman's unorthodox style and superb grappling had made him the promotion's top fighter, and he possessed an uncanny ability to mess with his opponents' minds. Vitor Belfort, for example, didn't know whether to spit or chew gum by the time Sakuraba was done with him, keeping Belfort baffled by constantly feinting, then throwing spinning kicks and flying stomps.
The only problem with Saku's headgames were that they didn't work on an opponent whose head was only filled with the desire to cause pain and suffering. When Silva got in the ring with Sakuraba, he gave him no chance to mess with his mind - he went right after him, looking for blood. The ref stopped the fight in under two minutes, with a berserk Silva trying to stomp Saku's head through the canvas.
PUBLIC ENEMY NUMBER ONE
Their superhero and national pride severely dented, Pride's Japanese owners threw every domestic fighter they had at Silva - and he annihilated them one after another. Shungo Oyama fell first, in a fight that lasted 30 seconds, before Sakuraba came back for a second try at Pride 17, breaking his collarbone when Silva slammed him to become the first ever Pride Middleweight Champion. Alexander Otsuka actually managed to reach the third round before losing on a cut, while Rings veteran Kiyoshi Tamura was battered until the referee saved him in the second round at Pride 19.
Silva took a brief break from destroying Japanese fighters to face a newcomer to mixed martial arts - deadly Croatian K-1 star Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic. In one of Pride's (many) bizarre twists it was decided that, if the fight went the distance, it would automatically be declared a draw. So, when both men were still standing at the final bell, a draw it was.
Two more Japanese fighters tried their hands next - Tatsuya Iwasaki and Hiromitsu Kanehara - but neither survived long enough to see the second round. In August 2003 Pride hosted a Grand Prix and, in the opening bracket, Kazushi Sakuraba decided to have one last try at besting the Brazilian assassin. Just five minutes into round one, Silva's fists found Saku's chin and the Japanese wrestler was out like a light.
In the second round of the tournament, held that November, Silva faced Olympic gold medallist and World Champion Judoka Hidehiko Yoshida. Although Yoshida showed great heart and lasted the distance, Wanderlei inflicted so much punishment that he picked up the decision convincingly. In the finals he squared off against Quinton Rampage Jackson, who earned his spot with a decision over Murilo Bustamante and a ground and poundage that sent Chuck Liddell (who everyone wanted and expected to make the finals against Silva) into Slumberland.
Jackson scored a takedown but, back on his feet, Wanderlei let rip with everything he had, unloading a barrage of punches, kicks and knees that rocked Rampage hard. Hurt but trying to make his opponent think he was okay, Jackson smiled at Silva. The Axe Murderer grinned right back, then hit Quinton with 11 consecutive knees until the referee had to stop the slaughter, with Jackson unable to do anything more than act like a punching bag.
IT'S BLOODY AT THE TOP
The Grand Prix win cemented Silva's position as the best 205-pounder in the world, but that didn't stop Pride throwing more hapless Japanese fighters at him in the desperate hope that one of them might get lucky. Ikuhisa Minowa lasted just over one minute while King Of Pancrase Yuki Kondo fell in less than three, the victim of yet another relentless beatdown.
Quinton Jackson returned for a rematch but, unbeknown to his trainer, Rampage had been fasting in the week before the contest - a decision that cost him dearly. In round one Jackson had the mount on Silva, but didn't have the energy to put the champion away; in round two, his wind failed him and Silva sent bone-crunching knees into his face. Jackson fell like he'd been hit with an axe and was left hanging unconscious on the ropes in one of the most terrifying knockouts in MMA history.
In his next contest, Silva gave up 80 pounds (five-and-a-half stone) against massive Kiwi, Mark Hunt - a former K-1 Champion with two cannons for arms. The fight went the distance and Hunt took a questionable split decision that many observers thought should have gone to the Brazilian. Silva bounced back by entering the 2005 GP, taking a decision over Hidehiko Yoshida in a first-round rematch before blasting out Kazuhiro Nakamura.
Silva's bid to recapture the tournament title ended when he lost to Ricardo Arona at Final Conflict 2005, but he was avenged by team-mate Mauricio Shogun Rua, who destroyed Arona in the finals to win the tourney. At Shockwave, the New Year's Eve supershow, Silva beat Arona by decision in a rematch, as Pride paved the way for its Openweight Grand Prix in 2006. Reigning Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko was supposed to participate but an injury kept him on the bench so, as the Middleweight Champ, Pride brought in Silva to take his spot.
He started well, stopping Kazuyuki Fujita when Fujita's corner threw in the towel as Silva, in full-on mad dog mode, was smashing their fighter all over the ring. True to his Iron Head nickname, Fujita proved impossible to actually knock out, but he took a fearful battering (complete with soccer kicks to the head) as he stubbornly refused to stay down. The win over Iron Head put Silva in the semi-finals where he faced a rematch with Mirko Cro Cop who, on the run of a lifetime, had been crushing everyone in his path.
Silva came in fearless, despite the Croatian's size and weight advantages. Unfortunately, Cro Cop caught Silva with a violent missile kick to the side of the head, smashing the Brazilian to the floor (and breaking his orbital bone) in the most painful loss since the Belfort fight. Filipovic went on to win the GP, roughing up Josh Barnett in the finals and hitting the apex of his career (which has been on a drastic downward course ever since).
LOSING THE CROWN
No sooner had he recovered from the KO than The Axe Murderer was defending his Middleweight Championship against Dan Henderson, who already held Pride's Welterweight Title. Back in 2000, Henderson had taken a fight with Silva on short notice and his lack of conditioning cost him dearly; he wasn't about to be under-prepared a second time. In the third round Henderson staggered Silva with a spinning backfist then, moments later, crashed home a left hook to the jaw that sent Wandy careening to the canvas.
After six long years and 19 fights, he was no longer the champion - and it was the end of an era in more ways than one, for the loss marked Silva's last appearance in a Pride ring. Shortly thereafter the organisation was bought by the Fertitta brothers (owners of the UFC) and dismantled. Quinton Jackson and Anderson Silva made their way to the Octagon where they became champions, Cro Cop failed to replicate his Grand Prix success, and many other Pride stars found themselves in limbo, as what was once the biggest MMA promotion on the planet fell apart. But Wanderlei was always high on Dana White's shopping list.
White finally got Silva's signature on a UFC contract in August. As crazy as this sounds, Dana gushed, this is the pinnacle of my seven-year career in this company - I'm so excited to have this guy under contract. He grabbed my arm and looked me in the eyes like one of his pre-fight staredowns and he said, I'm gonna fight so good for you. You're gonna see the best fights ever from Wanderlei Silva.' And the fight that everyone wanted to see was with Chuck Liddell.
Dana tried to bring Silva into the UFC for a unification bout with Liddell back in 2006, with a staredown between the pair taking place at UFC 71 only for the fight never to materialise. After The Iceman was dethroned by Rampage it was rumoured that he and Silva would headline UFC 76, but that didn't happen, either. Instead, a lacklustre Liddell lost a decision to Keith Jardine as Wanderlei, sitting cageside, simply shook his head in disbelief as the dream match seemed cursed.
When the fight between the pair - scheduled for December at UFC 79 - was finally set in stone last month, it was without the fanboy fanfare of last year's teaser. With both once-indestructible-looking men now having lost two in a row, the sheen is considerably off what was once the ultimate Pride versus UFC showdown. But while it might be 12 months late to be the fight to end all fights, The Iceman versus The Axe Murderer is still going to be a dream come true for hardcore fans and a buyrate-obliterating main event for UFC casuals, as two of the sport's most terrifying strikers will finally collide on 29 December
For the rest of this feature, check out issue 21 of FSM - available at WH Smith and all good retailers. (For US readers we are now carried at Borders and Barnes & Noble, so check for local availability or click here to subscribe.)
From the Fighting Spirit Magazine archive. Byline: David West.