One month ago, Erick Silva was one of the UFC's hottest prospects, an exciting fight finisher with heavy hands and some serious skills. He was not only the first man in a long time to not come in as a significant underdog in a bout against Jon Fitch, he was actually a slight favorite, with many fans and analysts confident in him to win the contest.

Then came the fight, and it didn't go so well.

Despite a strong opening round, Silva was thoroughly beaten over the next two rounds, en route to a unanimous decision loss in a "fight of the night" performance. Now is time for the prospect to pick himself up and get back from this tough loss, and it appears he'll be doing that at UFC 156 in Las Vegas on Feb. 2, 2012.

This report comes from Tatame, who spoke with the young Brazilian:

I enjoyed my family a bit in my down time after the fight, but unlike other times, I have resumed training well in advance. I asked my manager a fight as soon as possible, I want to keep steady training.

Apparently, his manager answered the call, getting Silva a spot on the UFC 156 card after the new year, giving Silva three months to prepare himself for his upcoming bout. Silva has said that the opponent will be announced within one or two weeks, and his potential opponent may be interesting.

Being that UFC 154 next week features four top welterweights, any one of those men coming off a loss could provide a very interesting match up, while keeping Silva among the elite in the division. Silva also expressed a desire to rematch Fitch in the future, which could also be an interesting contest if Silva can get back into the winner's column.

Who would you like to see him fight, Maniacs?