The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Brazil for the first time in 13 years when UFC 134 kicks off in Rio De Janeiro on August 27th.
The card is filled with Brazilian natives and is sure to feature tactics and strategies that hearken back to the dominant days of the Gracie family. All but one of the twelve scheduled fights features a native son, and a preliminary Bantamweight fight between Raphael Assuncao and Johnny Eduardo actually pits fellow countrymen against each other. Indeed, Dana White and the UFC’s legion of partial-owners have once again brewed up a potent concoction that is sure to send the local masses into a frenzy.
The event is headlined by 36-year-old legend Anderson Silva, who is hoping to score a memorable victory as he nears the inevitable end of a career that has made millions of Brazilians honored to call him their own. Silva will face Yushin Okami in a highly-anticipated showdown that is essentially a rematch of a fight gone wrong.
During a 2006 Rumble on the Rock tournament in Honolulu, Silva was dominating a spent Okami when he landed a kick to the face of the Japanese star that technically qualified as striking a downed opponent. The situation was incredibly unfortunate given the gravity of the match and the fact that Silva was a heavy favorite to win the event. The drama was ratcheted up when Okami passed on the chance to finish the fight and took advantage of the chance to garner a win by disqualification.
As usual, Silva has trained with a posse that features some of the biggest names in Brazilian mixed martial arts. The champ comes into the fight with a 34-4 career mixed martial arts record and has plans to add a 35th victory in a few weeks.
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