Beyond the aforementioned, Emelianenko also has excellent submission defense and submissions, from both the top and bottom positions. Those that saw him fall to Fabricio Werdum in his last fight might question his ability to defend against submissions, but two formerly successful bouts against Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira playing out mostly on the ground would seem to speak volumes.
Remember people- anyone can get caught.
What Antonio Silva (15-2) brings to the table: First, he's huge. Second, he's strong. Third, Silva is technically sound on both his feet and the ground. In other words, he's a complete fighter.
Against Mike Kyle in his last bout, Bigfoot proved to have a very good jaw, as he was forced to fight through some big time trouble. That said, the fight also served to put on display Silva's greatest weakness- his speed. He can be hit, as Kyle proved. His hand and foot speed, due to his size, are not stellar.
Fedor Emelianenko vs. Antonio Silva Prediction: Emelianenko has shown us time and time again that flash knockout capability of his. His hands are lightning fast, and once he hits home it's usually tough to recover from it. Silva is very good. That said, I think that he will have difficulty getting this fight to the ground, if that's where he wants it to go. What's more, though just as technically accurate on his feet, he does not have Fedor's explosive power. Expect that power to shine through in a flash moment by round two.
Fedor Emelianenko defeats Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva by TKO in round two.
