Another weekend of fisticuffs has come and gone as UFC 160 blew the roof off the MGM Grand Garden Arena last Saturday night (May 25, 2013) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
See all the results and post-fight fallout here.
Many combatants were left licking their wounds after a wild night of fights including Mark Hunt, who saw his Cinderella run come to an end thanks to Junior dos Santos (watch it here). And Gray Maynard, who was knocked out in the very first round to the surprising star of the night, T.J. Grant (read all about it here).
But, which fighter is suffering from the worst post-fight hangover, now two days removed?
The heavy-handed Brazilian looked to erase the nightmare that was his bloody first-round loss to current Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight Champion Cain Velasquez at UFC 146 last Memorial Day weekend, by attempting to exact some revenge and becoming the promotion's 265-pound kingpin in the process.
Not only did he fail to do that, he now has more bad memories that will haunt him for the months to come as Cain blitzed through "Bigfoot" in the very first round, yet again. This time, however, he needed 135 seconds less than their first fight.
I guess Daniel Cormier knew something we didn't.
So, what went wrong for Silva?
Cain's speed.
Prior to his bout against Antonio, Alistair Overeem labeled "Bigfoot" a "big, slow moving target" based on his lack of speed and enormous size. And while Cain wasn't as talkative as "The Reem," he somewhat proved the Dutch kickboxer's theory right.
Velasquez blasted his foe with a powerful right hand which dropped the Brazilian to his knees just as Silva was attempting to throw a punch of his own. The champ's offense just got there first and hit its mark perfectly.
He then continued to deliver some relentless ground and pound, which forced the referee to put a halt to the punishment. While some questioned the stoppage and placement of punches, Velasquez proved he is without a doubt the best heavyweight MMA fighter in the world and is determined to make his title reign last longer than his first.
Velasquez's quickness, aside from his better overall mixed martial arts (MMA) game, proved to be the determining factor in their title fight. And while "Bigfoot's" size and strength advantage have always given him an edge over his opponents, he didn't get a chance to enforce it against Cain, who always seemed to be one punch ahead of the massive Brazilian.
With the quickness and agility of a light heavyweight, Cain has proven that, aside from his almost flawless techniques, his speed and accuracy will pose problems for any big man for years to come.
With a trilogy bout against "JDS" on the horizon for Cain, Silva is left to regroup and start from scratch. So, who would be a great opponent for his return to action?
"Skyscraper" hasn't seen action since having his jaw jacked by "Super Samoan" earlier this year. As he eyes a potential return to action later this year, a match-up between the two towering heavyweights would be a nice return fight for two of the tallest men to ever step foot inside the Octagon.
Unless, of course, you have another opponent in mind?