‘The Spider’ will look to lure Jared Cannonier into his web, as Anderson Silva is set to face the former heavyweight at UFC 237 in Brazil.
On a day full of fight announcements, perhaps this was the biggest. Legendary middleweight Anderson Silva, fresh off a main event loss to Israel Adesanya that seemed to do as much for his own stock as his young opponent’s, is set for a fight in his home country of Brazil at UFC 237. There, he’ll take on former heavyweight turned 205lb’er turned middleweight Jared Cannonier. ESPN was first to report the news.
Silva’s addition to the card isn’t exactly a surprise, given he had openly talked of joining the event both before and after his main event turn at UFC 234 earlier this month. Silva (34–9 (1)), at 43 years old, remains a legend in the sport, and can pretty much dictate where and when he fights. Few expected him to hold his own against the much younger Adesanya in Melbourne, Australia, but he did just that. It was certainly enough to quiet calls for his retirement, which had been increasing over the years as he struggled to get back in the win column. However, he’s 1-1 in his past two fights, and isn’t getting blown out of the water by any stretch of the imagination.
Cannonier (11-4) appears to have won the lottery here, with fighters including Uriah Hall interested in facing ‘The Spider.’ Cannonier started his UFC career at heavyweight against Shawn Jordan, and after going 1-1 against the big men, moved to 205lbs. Last year, he went a step further, dropping to middleweight and defeating former WSOF light heavyweight and middleweight champ David Branch.
It’s safe to say he’s never fought anyone like Anderson Silva, but Cannonier will have youth, and likely power, on his side. Silva, meanwhile, went the distance with the likes of Daniel Cormier just a couple of years ago, so that may not be as much of a concern as you’d think.
UFC 237 takes place at the Arena da Baixada in Curitiba, Brazil on May 11, 2019.
