Anderson Silva is a future Hall of Famer. His place in the world of MMA is secure. But he’s not about to call it quits yet. He’s even up for a fight this coming Saturday in Rio de Janeiro, where he’ll look to add to his legacy in the sport and in the UFC. Silva isn’t the only Brazilian legend fighting this weekend, though, as #1 strawweight brawler Jessica Andrade looks to take down American Rose Namajunas. Read more below on the above two matchups and other big bouts in our breakdown of each of the five main card fights in UFC 237.
Namajunas will be defending the women’s strawweight belt for the second time since copping it in a knockout win over Joanna Jedrzejczyk in 2017. Namajunas beat Jedrzejczyk in a rematch via a unanimous decision in April for last year. Expect Namajunas to steer clear of Andrade whenever the latter tries to engage her in a striking battle. Andrade does come across as the powerful striker, as she has six of her 19 wins have come via knockouts. Instead, look for Namajunas to bring the fight to the ground, where she plays the best. Namajunas has six wins via submissions. That said, Andrade is also a fantastic ground fighter with a seven submission victories.
Silva is no longer the terrifying fighter he used to be, but this even being in Brazil says all about why the man they call The Spider is in the main card of UFC 237. Silva, who just turned 44 last April, has lost three of his last four fights. That includes his unanimous loss to Israel Adesanya last February. Silva showed flashes of brilliance, but only in spurts. His best days are clearly way behind him – not even visible in his career rearview mirror – but his experience and the fact that he’ll be fighting in front of an entire crowd cheering for him should definitely help him in trying to take down the younger Cannonier, who is 35. The Killa Gorilla is coming off a second-round knockout win over David Branch in November of last year, which stopped a two-fight losing skid. Silva is taller (6’2” by a couple of inches than Cannonier (5’11”), but both fighters have the same length of 77.5 inches.
Writer’s prediction:
Cannonier ekes out a split decision win over Silva.
After back-to-back losses to Max Holloway (both title fights), the 32-year-old Aldo has picked himself up with two consecutive victories. Aldo beat Jeremy Stephens by knocking him out in the first round in July 2018. Then Aldo made a mincemeat out of Renato Moicano in a second-round knockout victory last February. Aldo intends to hang up his fighting gear at the end of 2019, but he could possibly defer his retirement plans if he notches another victory against a seemingly dangerous opponent in Volkanovski, who has won all of his last 16 bouts. Aldo has 16 knockouts out of his 28 wins, while Volkanovski has 11 out of 19 total bouts, so expect this fight to be a powder keg waiting to get lit up.
An all-South American clash will also be on tap in the main card of UFC 237 with Alves fighting for pride of Brazil, while Staropoli will represent Argentina. Alves, 35, is coming off a win (split decision) against Max Griffin last February. That victory put a halt to his two-fight losing streak, and he could build a wining streak with a victory against Staropoli, who could be looking to beat Alves in the latter’s game. Alves is a striker with 13 wins by knockout. Staropoli, however, has five wins via knockouts out of nine fights. Staropoli could also put Alves in an uncomfortable position by taking the fight to the mat, as Alves has been submitted four times in his career.
Writer’s prediction:
Staropoli scores a submission win.
Francisco Trinaldo (+125) vs Carlos Diego Ferreira (-155)
Lightweight
How about a fight between two countrymen in their home nation? That’s what we’re all about to witness in this bout between Trinaldo and Ferreira, who are both coming off wins. Trinaldo knocked out Evan Dunham in the second round of their fight last September. Ferreira, on the other hand, extended his win streak to four fights by earning a unanimous decision victory over Rustam Khabilov back in February. Trinaldo is five years the senior of Ferreira (40-35), but the veteran has eight knockout wins and has yet to be knocked out in his career. Ferreira is always open to exchange bombs standing up with a 4.7 strikes landed per minute t just 3.27 by Trinaldo, but he’s also 6-0 via submissions.
