It's a very simple premise.  Anderson Silva NEEDS to fight both Dan Henderson & Nathan Marquardt for the UFC World Middleweight Championship.  And here are the facts to back it up.  There have been 8 rematches in the UFC where a fighter lost in a championship fight, and then got a rematch for the title again. The ones in BOLD show the times when the guy who lost the first fight won the 2nd one....

1. Randy Couture vs. Pedro Rizzo - Couture Won Fights #1 & #2
2. Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia - Arlovski Won Fight #1.  Sylvia Won Fights #2 & #3.
3. Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell - Couture Won Fight #1.  Liddell Won Fights #2 & #3.
4. Anderson Silva vs. Rich Franklin - Silva Won Fights #1 & #2.
5. Matt Hughes vs. Carlos Netwon - Hughes Won Fights #1 & #2.
6. BJ Penn vs. Matt Hughes - Penn Won Fight #1.  Hughes Won Fight #2.
7. Matt Hughes vs. Georges St. Pierre - Hughes Won Fight #1.  GSP Won Fights #2 & #3.
8. Georges St. Pierre vs. Matt Serra - Serra Won Fight #1.  GSP Won Fight #2.

NOTE: I left out Couture vs. Belfort due to the fluke occurance of their first title fight....

Imagine if Matt Hughes refused to give GSP a rematch?  Or if Couture did the same with Liddell?  This idea that Anderson Silva is above rematches is a bunch of BS.  Dan Henderson and Nathan Marquardt are both worthy challengers to his championship.  And history has proven that title fight rematches don't always go in favor of the champion.  In fact, from the list above, 5 out of 8 went in the opposite direction..... That's 62.5%.

Now, if we were talking about doing a Championship Trilogy, then I could understand the issue.  In all 5 cases above, the guy who won the 2nd Fight, won the 3rd (in title fights).  They have all been pointless so far.

Outside of the statistics, Anderson Silva still needs to fight these guys for the belt.  The idea that any fighter is above rematches is crap.  No fighter is above rematches.  MMA has been built on classic rematches that shined better then the first and showed that even 2 years later a fighter can win with either improved skills or a better gameplan.  If a guy has built himself as a contender again, he is worthy of that rematch.

Anderson Silva needs to stop worry about moving up two weight classes to fight random fighters, and start taking the legit title challengers that are in front of him..... And that is Dan Henderson & Nathan Marquardt.

And if he does beat them both and no other legit challengers are out there..... I see no reason for him to vacate the belt and move up a weight class.... But that time is not now.

From Strikeforce's Official Website:

http://www.strikeforce.com/schedule/

ROCKSTAR ENERGY DRINK PRESENTS STRIKEFORCE CHALLENGERS

SpiritBank Event Center - Tulsa, OK
Friday, September 25, 2009 – 8:00PM/CT

LIVE ON SHOWTIME SPORTS!

MAIN CARD (BEGINNING AT 10:00PM/CT):

Tim Kennedy (11-2) vs. Zak Cummings (10-0) - 3X5 - 185lbs

Ray "Sugarfoot" Sefo (1-0) vs. Kevin "The Shaman" Jordan (11-7) - 3X5 - Heavyweights

Tyron "T-Wood" Woodley (5-0) vs. Zach "The Lisbon Outlaw" Light (4-8) - 3X5 - 170lbs

Thomas Longacre (4-0) vs. Travis "The Dark Night" Calonoc (4-0) - 3X5 - 147lbs


NON-TELEVISED UNDERCARD (BEGINNING AT APPROXIMATELY 8:00PM/CT)

Lacey "The Ladie" Schuckman (2-0) vs. Jeri "Fists of Fury" Sitzes (2-2) - 3X5 - 120lbs

Levi "The Marine" Avera (12-5) vs. Paul Bradley (10-1) - 3X5 - 170lbs

Trey Houston (1-0) vs. Brandon Gaines (4-10) - 3X5 - 185lbs

Kenny Giddens (8-5) vs. John Carson (7-1) - 3X5 - 155lbs

Nick Gibbons (13-0) vs. Josh Pulsifer (11-4) - 3X5 - 145lbs

Lemont Davis (2-3) vs. Dillon Smith (1-0) - 3X5 - 170lbs

* Fight card subject to change

 

Not sure why this finalized card hasn't made it to the various MMA websites.  It's been up for over 24 hours on Strikeforce's website.....

From Kevin Iole:

NEW LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT: The UFC signed 11-1 light heavyweight Jared Hamman to a four-fight contract, manager Nima Safapour said Thursday. He’s finished every one of his victories and his only loss came via flying knee just 15 seconds into a fight.

He has fought for Elite XC, the International Fight League and Strikeforce. He is a teammate of veteran Vladimir Matyushenko, who recently signed with the UFC.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/news;_ylt=AoUSSeANsaU2mt2Z022AVX49Eo14?slug=ki-ufcnotes082809&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

This is a solid pick-up for the UFC, and another blow to Strikeforce.

http://mmapayout.com/2009/08/wamma-announces-strategic-partnership-with-brand-asset-digital/

NEW YORK (August 20th, 2009) –The World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts (WAMMA) today announces a new strategic partnership with Brand Asset Digital, the distributed technologies company. The association between the two groups will help WAMMA incorporate new sponsorships into traditional and electronic platforms.

 

“We believe our combined efforts will help bring new sponsors into the MMA arena,” says WAMMA CEO Dave Szady. “I will also help advance WAMMA’s mission of promoting the integrity, legitimacy and prosperity of MMA.”

 

"Brand Asset Digital will provide WAMMA with unparalleled access to P2Plive streaming technology and our social networking platform providing them with the ultimate online experience," says Brand Asset Digital CEO Tim Hogan. "We are on the cutting edge of changing the LIVE experience on the internet and the future of online programming with P2PLive Streaming. We are looking forward to applying that technology to mixed martial arts."

 

WAMMA also congratulations Strikeforce on signing WAMMA Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko, and congratulates M-1 and Dream on their partnership with Strikeforce.

 

“All three of these organizations have been friends of WAMMA and these developments and plans to co-promote move the sport of MMA forward on a global scale,” said Szady. “The three of these organizations have a tremendous talent pool from which to draw and WAMMA looks forward to future Championship fights.”

 

Additionally, Szady addressed rumors of WAMMA’s demise, including blogosphere photos of vacant WAMMA offices.

 

“Clearly WAMMA is alive and well, and growing,” says Szady. “We are in the process of relocating to new office space in Pensacola and will resume our rankings this month. WAMMA has been actively seeking a new rankings committee chair. We plan to finalize a new Rankings Committee Chairperson and make that announcement shortly.”

 

About WAMMA

 

WAMMA is the only universally accepted global governing body in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

 

WAMMA is dedicated to leading the sport of Mixed Martial Arts to unprecedented levels of integrity, legitimacy and prosperity. With the help of forward-looking MMA promotions, WAMMA has created an environment where fighters from all organizations have the opportunity to openly compete to be the one true, undisputed champion in their respective weight classes based on WAMMA’s objective MMA Rankings.

 

About Brand Asset Digital

 

Brand Asset Digital is a distributed technologies company with a core focus on P2P Search Marketing and Optimization, delivering efficient, high-quality, live streaming technology, and video centric social networking platforms. Our mission is to provide cutting edge products and services that enable and empower Advertisers and Content Owners to easily leverage these technologies within a robust, scalable architecture. We promote and build brands amid a vast, untapped audience. We are the P2P Solutions Company.

WAMMA is like a really bad horror movie franchise that will just never die.  Of the 7 weight classes primarily used in the United States (excluded Fly & Super), the UFC has 52 of the 70 Top Ranked fighters.  This is according to both Sherdog and BE's rankings.  And with all of this top competition always fighting each other, it really makes these belts they hand out pointless.

Please go away WAMMA!!!!

I kind of chuckle at some fans who really think that female MMA can be a viable option for a MMA promoter.  It might be able to increase ratings here or there, but it is not the type competition to give them strong, consistent ratings.  Female fighters will likely have a small, minimal place in fighting.  Here are the 4 Reasons why:

1. WHERE'S THE TALENT COMING FROM?  Each established female sport in America has a strong feeder system.  The WNBA has a strong women's college program to draw from.  Females start from a very early age playing the game.  Tennis & Golf both have larger college programs.  Primarily a "wealthy" persons sport, it isn't uncommon for advanced athletes to get expensive coaching from an early age in order to advance their careers.  Even men's MMA pulls from wrestling, BJJ, Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Boxing, etc.  Most of the advanced wrestlers today in the UFC started competing before the age of 10.  Simply put, each sport has an strong foundation to draw talent from.  THIS DOES NOT EXIST FOR FEMALE FIGHTERS.  Women's wrestling is almost non-existent.  Many females who do BJJ are not likely to make the transition over.  And there are no major female boxers or a female K-1 division.  Yes, female MMA will draw from these sports, but there just isn't enough of them happening in order to get a strong enough pool of talent.

2. SHOW ME THE MONEY!!!  Despite being called a success, the Gina Carano vs. Chris "Cyborg" Title Fight drew a gate of less then $1 Million.  It is highly unlikely that an event headlined by females can become a strong PPV attraction or get a huge gate.  Even if Gina Carano won, there is no way her name could get people to purchase a $45 PPV, or spend $200 on a ticket.  More proof of this is the WNBA.  Despite having the full backing of a billion dollar industry like the NBA, they have a hard time bringing in money.  Salary Caps for each team are set at $900,000.  That's for the ENTIRE TEAM.  Outside of Tennis & Golf (which have a very wealthy fanbase), no female sports stars have been able to command high ticket prices for their events.  I don't see any female MMA fighter changing this.

3. SHORTER CAREERS!!!!  We often are amazed at guys like Randy Couture or Bernard Hopkins can compete well into their 40's.  This is much less common for female athletes.  Their careers are often shorter for a few reasons.  First, their hormones can start to change which can make it harder to be a competitive athlete later in life.  Secondly, they do have weaker knee ligaments which can cause more injuries.  Lastly, a very simple two words: FAMILY & BABY!  Athletes like Joy Fawcett (Soccer) and Dara Torres (Swimming) can have children and still compete in their respective sports.  Heck, Torres had a baby 15 months prior to winning the 2007 Nationals.  In MMA, having a baby is without question a career ender.  With a shorter career length, there is a shorter window of opportunity for a promoter to not only make a woman into a champion, but a likely shorter time span of being on top.

4. IF IT COULD HAVE BEEN DONE, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN!!!  Looking at the overall history of sports in America, it is easily dominated by male athletes.  Female athletes as a whole are a side note.  Football is 99.9% men.  Baseball has softball, which gets little to no attention.  The NBA has the WNBA, which has never been successful.  If females could be sold to the general public, don't you think somebody would have figured it out for one of these sports already?  As i said before, the only two sports in which female athletes have done solid business are in Tennis and Golf.  And both have more of a "Country Club" fan then they do anything else.  To further prove my point, here is a list of other popular female athletes and the sports they were supposed to propel into the mainstream:

1. Sheryl Swoopes & The WNBA- Swoopes, an Olympic Gold Medalist.  Branded as "The Michael Jordan"of the WNBA.  The 1st Overall pick for the league.  She could not make the WNBA popular.  As it stands today, the league continues to suffer from financial problems, low TV ratings, and a lack of fanfare.
2. Christy Martin & Women's Boxing- Martin was given the push of a lifetime as she was often promoted on the undercard of Mike Tyson events.  Not the current Mike Tyson of today, but the wrecking machine Tyson back in his prime.  She even appeared on the cover of Sports illustrated, making some believe women's boxing would finally become popular.  Despite all of this, women's boxing could not make a dent to the public.
3. Laila Ali & Women's Boxing- The daughter of the most famous boxer alive today, the great Muhammad Ali.  Laila, a very gifted boxer herself, could not make women's boxing popular.  It would be like a female "Gracie" being in MMA.  She now has a child and is retired from the sport.
4. Mia Hamm & Women's Soccer- And finally there is Mia Hamm.  A great soccer player who lead the United States to a Gold Medal in the Olympics.  The Summer of Mia got the sport of Female Soccer so much attention.  Mia Hamm was in multiple commercials, and the sport looked to be taking off.  Not to mention little girls around the nation were looking up to these ladies as roll model.  The onslaught of media attention even allowed for the formation of the WUSA, the first female soccer league.  Despite all of their popularity, the league (which included many of Mia's well known teammates from the Olympics) failed miserably.

If Hamm, Swoopes, Martin, & Ali couldn't make their sports popular to the American public.... I don't see how Gina Carano or Chris "Cyborg" can do it.  The female MMA fights will provide for some added discussion amongst the more devoted fans.  And every once in a while get more mainstream attention.  Female MMA having any real potential for a MMA Organization is HIGHLY improbable.  And that is putting it nicely.

First a quick breakdown of fighters at Heavyweight in each company:

ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Brock Lesnar
2. Frank Mir
3. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
4. Randy Couture
5. Shane Carwin
6. Cain Velasquez
7. Junior Dos Santos
8. Gabriel Gonzaga
9. Heath Herring
10. Cheick Kongo
11. Mirko Filipovic

STRIKEFORCE

1. Fedor Emelianenko
2. Alistair Overeem
3. Brett Rogers
4. Fabricio Werdum
5. Paul Buentello

Now, here is the major problem almost NOBODY is talking about..... In the UFC, to get a title shot, each of those fighters will need to beat somebody else on that list to earn it.  Three examples of this coming up are Couture/Nogueira, Filipovic/Dos Santos, & Carwin/Velasquez.

Will this same thing happen in Strikeforce?  Nobody on that list deserves a shot at Fedor right now.  Alistair doesn't have a significant win at Heavyweight since beating Paul Buentello 2 years ago.  Brett Rogers needs another big win to really get a shot at Fedor.  Werdum is coming off a loss, and is now being fed a Light Heavyweight in Mike Kyle.

What YOU the MMA fans are about to see is Fedor Emelianenko fighting Overeem, Rogers, & Werdum in some sort of order.  In order to perserve this due to a lack of depth in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Division, all 3 of those potential challengers will NOT be matched up against each other.  Instead, they will be given easier fights in order to preserve their showdowns with Fedor Emelianenko.

This is not good for the fans.  We deserve to see these fighters constantly challenged.  Not given the "boxing treatment" where they are protected until they get a title shot.

This is not good for the sport or the fans.

Not much of a post here, but the issue deserved a definite discussion.

From The Underground:

http://www.mixedmartialarts.com/mma.cfm?go=forum_framed.posts&forum=1&thread=1500905&page=4

From: CindyO
Posted: 1 hour ago Member Since: 2/10/06
Posts: 11429  

brianmeyers -  I take it the UFC has staked a claim to Mousasi's contract rights through the absorption of Affliction?

 
Mousasi was lied to about the amount of money the UFC offered him by his manager and encouraged to sign with Strikeforce for less than half of the purse amount. Mousasi found out and verified it with the UFC and then confronted his management. I don't know what happened after that.

He is PISSED and anyone in the media can ask him- I see no reason why he would lie.

Cindy

If this is found to be true, which is sounds it is.... Then we can only assume Fedor is being lied to as well.

Shady people they M-1 people are.

Banner Before Becoming The HULK: "Don't Make Me Angry.  You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."

Besides nearly instantaneous healing abilities, the HULK's greatest atribute is that the angrier he gets, the bigger and stronger he becomes.  That is what Zuffa is to MMA. The more you make them angry, the bigger and more powerful they become.  Here are the 4 (and potentially soon to be 5) examples:

1. PrideFC- There was a time back in 2001-2003 that Zuffa was willing to work with other MMA organizations.  The organization they were most willing to work with was Pride Fighting Championship.  They sent over Chuck Liddell to Pride to fight Guy Mezger and then again to compete in the 2003 Middleweight Grand Prix.  Unfortunetly, PrideFC never returned the favor, and put a sour taste in Zuffa's mouth about working with other MMA companies.  THE OUTCOME: As Pride is in financial peril, the UFC purchases them and gets a good number of their fighters, distinguishing themselves as the undisputed best MMA organization in the world.
2. WFA- Before there was EliteXC on Showtime, the WFA almost made it onto that station.  Showtime decided to dabble in MMA by showing the 30 minute preview show that featured Quinton Jackson vs. Matt Lindland.  After poor PPV sales and even worse ticket sales, the WFA was out of the MMA business.  THE OUTCOME: UFC purchases WFA, including the contracts of future champions Quinton Jackson, Urijah Faber, & Lyoto Machida.
3. WEC & IFL- At the same time as the WFA purchase, the UFC also announced the purchase of the CA based World Extreme Cagefighting.  At first the reasoning behind the move was perplexing.  The WEC had no real top level fighters.  It was later revealed that the purchase was made in order to block the IFL from getting on Versus.  The UFC was under contract to SpikeTV and unable to put additional shows on another cable station.  THE OUTCOME: The IFL was going to die off anyways, but Zuffa helped it along with this move.  They now have many of their fighters under contract.
4. Affliction- Affliction, banking on a Couture/Fedor fight broke away from the UFC and decided to create their own fighting organization.  After being unable to get Couture, two PPV's that under performed, and two cancelled shows.... Affliction stopped being a promoter.  THE OUTCOME: Affliction put their tale between their legs and signed back on as sponsors of the UFC, and handed over multiple contracts in the process.  All with no cost to Zuffa.

Each time a competitor comes after the UFC, they grow in size, strength, and control of the sport.  Dana White up against a wall is a scary guy to do business with.  The question now becomes, will they target Strikeforce if Scott Coker signs Fedor Emelianenko?

One can assume that if Strikeforce signs Fedor Emelianenko and attempts to promote him heavily, that Zuffa will go after them until most of their top talent is under Zuffa contracts.  Already with a thinner fighting roster, Strikeforce cannot afford a poaching of fighters such as Jake Shields, Nick Diaz, Renato Sobral, and a few others.  And if Dana White has shown anything this past week, he is willing to pay out a lot of money to squash competition and to sign as many fighters to contracts as possible.

There is also a strong possibility that Zuffa will make every attempt to dry up the Heavyweight Division outside the company by attempting to sign the majority of free agents available.  Without any challengers, Fedor less and less like a #1 ranked fighter with nobody to fight.

Dear Fedor Emelianenko..... Please don't make Zuffa angry..... HULK SMASH!!!!!

This story begins with two fighters.  The first starts outside of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.  The fighters name: Georges St. Pierre.  The second starts inside Russia.  The fighters name: Fedor Emelianenko.  Through their fight careers they both have something in common.  And yet, their storied fight careers could not be more different.

GSP & Fedor are both at the top of their respective weight divisions.  Fedor Emelianenko is the #1 Heavyweight in the world.  Georges St. Pierre is the #1 Welterweight in the world.  Both are Top 5 Pound For Pound Fighters.  Their competition has been left is awe of their greatness.  However, the similarities end there.

GSP has done everything possible to remove any doubt that he is the greatest Welterweight alive today.  He has defeated an unbelievable level of talent that includes: Matt Hughes, BJ Penn, Frank Trigg, Josh Koscheck, Jon Fitch, Thiago Alves, Karo Parisyan, Matt Serra, Jason Miller, Jay Hierson, & Sean Sherk.  However, this is just a list of fighters names.  What is more important is when he competed against them.

Take Carlos Newton for example.  Does a win over him mean anything today?  Not really.  However, beating him in 2001 was a big deal.  It is the timing in which you fight your competition that is the true measure of how great a fighter is.

GSP has passed that test.  He beat Matt Hughes while Hughes was in his prime.  Beat BJ Penn while he was the #1 Lightweight in the world.  Best Alves & Fitch within a year of each other when each were more then the proven #1 contenders for his title.  To put in simply, GSP has not only beaten top guys, HE HAS DONE SO WHEN THEY WERE AT THE GREATEST THREAT OF BEATING HIM.

And that is where the story of GSP ends and the one of Fedor Emelianenko begins.  Fedor is the #1 Heavyweight in the world.  However, over the last 4 years, he has stayed as such with skill, carefull management, and a deception on what it means to be fighting "top guys".  The "Fedor Era" ended on August 28, 2005.  On this day, Fedor Emelianenko defeated a true top challenger in Mirko Filipovic.  Since that time, his fight record has not been the equivalent of GSP's.

• After defeating Mirko Filipovic, he did not fight another Top 10 Heavyweight for almost 3 years (Sylvia).  During this time he fought: Zulu, Mark Coleman, Mark Hunt, Matt Lindland, & Hong Man Choi.
• During that same time period, Tim Sylvia was the reigning UFC Heavyweight Champion (2006).  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.
• During that same period, Mirko Filipovic won the Pride Open-Weight Grand Prix.  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.
• During that same period, Randy Couture was the UFC Heavyweight Champion (2007).  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.
• During that same period of time, Josh Barnett was a Top 5 contender.  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.

Here is a 3 year period in which 4 potential Top Level Heavyweights were out there, and Fedor Emelianenko did not fight them.  Some for promotional reasons, but the ability was there for others.  Then, in July 2008, he finally starts to fight better talent again.  He fights Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski in back-to-back fights.

Much is made about Fedor Emelianenko beating "Former UFC Heavyweight Champions".  However, that isn't telling the whole story.  Tim Sylvia was 1-2 in his last 3 fights, with his only win over a natural Light Heavyweight (Vera).  This was no longer the Tim Sylvia of 2006.  Fedor fought him on the way down.  A win against Sylvia in 2008 is not the same as win over him in 2006.  Andrei Arlovski is another interesting example.  Despite being ranked as high as #2 in the world, he really never had earned that ranking.  His biggest win was against Fabricio Werdum, which in no way should have had him ranked even in the Top 5.  Yes, Arlovski was a former UFC Champion, but look at who he had beaten as champion.... Sylvia (who he later lost to twice), Buentello, & Eilers.  Hardly championship caliber stuff.

And then there is the question as to why Fedor never fought Barnett in Pride.  Or why he never gave Mirko Filipovic a rematch after he had won the Grand Prix.  It would have been like Matt Hughes not fighting GSP after he had defeated Jason Miller, Frank Trigg, Sean Sherk, & BJ Penn in order to get a title shot.  There would still be doubt today if GSP never had to fight Hughes after that hot streak.

And this is where the story ends.  GSP, a champion who has defeated his toughest opponents when they were on top of their game.  A fighter who will likely go down as one of the best ever.  And then there is Fedor.  A guy who since 2005 really hasn't beaten the guys on top, not in the Top 5 anyways.

So why is this so important?  The UFC will REQUIRE Fedor Emelianenko to have a top level fight in each of his 6 contracted UFC fights.  Guys who are not only tough match-ups for him, but guys who are mentally and physically at the top of their game, not fighters like Sylvia who were 1-2 before fighting Fedor.

Fedor management knows this.  They also know that with the UFC's slew of talent, nobody can stay undefeated forever.  Whether it be Brock Lesnar, Randy Couture, Lyoto Machida, or even Anderson Silva..... One of those fighters will figure Fedor out.  And once that happens, M-1 is worthless.  This is also why "Co-Promotion" is such a big deal to Vadim.  This is something the UFC will never budge on.  And it it why it is a "requirement".  Fedor's entire aura is built on being undefeated.  If he loses inside the octagon, that aura has been smashed to pieces....

The UFC has a problem, and his name is Anderson Silva.

During the UFC 97 telecast, Joe Rogan discussed the difference between winning a fight and being entertaining.  This is the wrong line of thinking.  Not all fighters will be exciting or have the ability to entertain everytime out.  Rogan failed to realize that most important issue.... A fighter must be working towards ENDING THE FIGHT.

Anderson Silva has not tried to end a fight in 7 rounds of fighting.  He dances.  He does weird body movements.  He throws the weirdest strikes.  He is almost mocking his opponents.  While doing all of these things, I have never gotten the sense that he is trying to end the fight.

Thales Leites or Patrick Cote aren't perfect here either.  Both came into a fight looking scared.  Cote was just happy to survive.  Leites didn't throw a strike for 2 minutes at a time.

A logcial comparison many fans have made is to Lyoto Machida.  Many have said that Silva is doing the same thing that Machida does.  This is incorrect.  Machida is elusive, but still works towards ending the fight.  Silva is elusive, dances, and makes no attempt to work towards and ending.

Anderson Silva owes the fans more.  People pay $100+ for tickets and $45+ for a PPV.  A win isn't a win when Silva only comes to entertain himself and doesn't attempt to finish an opponent he obviously is superior to.  Anderson Silva is without question the biggest problem to the UFC.  They have a dominant champion that is boring the fans and not taking his job seriously.

As for the UFC, they need to find a fighter to fix this problem.  Georges St. Pierre is not a solution.  Silva beating GSP would only hurt the UFC even more.  They need a Middleweight to either make Silva exciting, or beat him and take his title away.  Fighters who could make for an exciting fight are Michael Bisping, Wanderlei Silva, and a Nathan Marquardt rematch.  Then there is Damian Maia.  There is a huge risk/reward to this fight.  The risk is that it could turn out to be as boring at Silva/Leites.  The reward is that Maia submits Anderson Silva and takes his belt away.

As a fan who purchases every single UFC PPV, the next Anderson Silva PPV better have a very good undercard, or I will be skipping my first PPV in over 3 years.