Sherdog’s Top 10: Bloodiest Battles

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9. Cain Velasquez vs. Antonio Silva
UFC 146 “Dos Santos vs. Mir” -- May 26, 2012
MGM Grand Garden Arena | Las Vegas
A motivated Velasquez is not afraid of monsters, not when the only thing standing between him and a chance at regaining heavyweight gold was an impressive victory over the 6-foot-4, 260-plus pound “Bigfoot.” At the time, a victory against Silva was not a guaranteed ticket to a heavyweight title rematch with Junior dos Santos, who had defeated the Mexican-American at the UFC’s first Fox event in November 2011. However, once Velasquez was done with Silva, there was little doubt as to who was the most deserving No. 1 contender.

It did not take long for Velasquez to impose his will. Just as UFC commentator Joe Rogan was questioning whether Silva could deal with his opponent’s speed, the American Kickboxing Academy product caught an ill-advised kick from the Brazilian and dumped him to the canvas. From there, Velasquez sliced through the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt’s guard with a steady stream of punches and elbows, gashing Silva slightly more than a minute into the fray. After about a minute of Silva transforming the logo in the center of the Octagon from Bud Light to “Blood Light,” referee Josh Rosenthal temporarily halted the fight so “Bigfoot,” whose sight was obviously impaired, could be examined.

After a brief respite, Silva elected to continue, but there would be little relief as he was forced to return to the fight as he left it: on his back with Velasquez dropping serious leather. Silva’s vision problems persisted as he attempted to shake the blood out of his eyes, but it was to no avail. Velasquez’s offensive output continued to increase in intensity, forcing Rosenthal to put a stop to the bloodshed 3:36 into round one.

By leaving Silva looking like something from the set of a Rob Zombie horror flick, Velasquez established himself as a man on a mission.

“The only reason I got into this sport was to be the champ,” Velasquez said at the post-fight press conference. “I just don’t feel right without having [the title].”

Some seven months later, he would once again realize his goal by defeating dos Santos at UFC 155.

Number 8 » Game Changer