Pros Picks: Silva vs. Griffin

The world’s premier mixed martial arts organization will roar into the City of Brotherly Love this Saturday with UFC 101 “Declaration.” With the UFC coming to town, the citizens of America’s first capital city can look forward to some great fistic action, apart from the numerous skirmishes they see in the seats at virtually any Eagles, Phillies or Flyers game.

The co-main event features UFC middleweight king Anderson Silva and his return to the light heavyweight division, as he takes on former 205-pound titleholder Forrest Griffin. It looks like a classic matchup between blood-and-guts warrior and supreme technician. After Silva appeared human in his two previous bouts, he could find himself pushed over the edge as he deals with Griffin’s pressure and size.

Sherdog.com recently spoke to dozens of professional fighters and trainers and found out where they stood on this light heavyweight showdown.

Scott Bieri: I’m going with the goofy-looking American. Forrest is good anywhere this fight goes. Silva is sharp, but Griffin can hang and will rough him up on the mat.

Erik Paulson: The fight between Anderson and Forrest will be a closer fight because of the body size similarity. Forrest always comes in great shape for all his fights, but I’m not sure if he has the answer or can develop the game plan and tactics to beat someone like Anderson, who has been at the top of for some while. If Forrest can come in with a strong game plan and stick to it, he may have a chance to upset the king’s throne. All in all, this should be an exciting fight, and, hopefully, we shall see some great tactics displayed this night.

Jason Lambert: Anderson is a class act, but I’m pulling for Forrest on this one. [Forrest by] third-round TKO.

Robert Drysdale: Forrest by submission.

Kevin Burns: Silva wins by decision. As of late, he has been fighting not to lose in my opinion. He won’t take any chances, [will] pick his shots and grind out a three-round decision.

Travis Lutter: I think Anderson will beat Forrest because, at some point in the fight, Forrest will bite down on his mouthpiece and start swinging.

Jeff Monson: Anderson Silva by KO late in the fight.

Jaime Fletcher: Silva by a striking technique rarely used in MMA [in the] second round. I think Forrest presents a lot of problems and is always improving, but so is Silva, and I think it will be a while before everyone catches up, if ever.

Eddy Millis: I have Anderson Silva in this fight. I see these two banging it out. Silva comes off with a KO kick to the head in round one or maybe two.

Travis Wiuff: I like Forrest in this one. I think he will outwork Anderson and win a close decision.

Cung Le: I like Forrest in this one. He is bigger and will pull off a big win like he did over “Shogun,” but by decision.

Bill Mesi: I always try and come up with something clever to say in these predictions, but with this fight, I don’t understand how Forrest wins this. His strategy is that of a young Russian bear Taktarov -- beat on me until you get tired. And with Anderson, he inflicts the maximum amounts of damage with the least amounts of strikes. Anderson -- early second-round TKO.

Robin Black: Let’s face it. Silva has looked mediocre in his last few fights, mentally weak, like he can’t handle the pressure of being considered the best. Forrest, on the other hand, is mentally strong and very, very committed. At 205 pounds, I’m seeing Forrest make Silva look really bad on the way to a Griffin unanimous decision.

Billy MacDonald: This could all boil down to which Anderson Silva we see. If Anderson comes out like his last fight, then Forrest has the chance to overwhelm him. That being said, I don’t think that’s what we’ll see Saturday night. Silva will be back to his usual dominating self, and if Forrest comes out guns blazing, then it could be a short night. In the end, I see Silva with his hand raised after three rounds of countering Griffin’s always-moving-forward attack. Silva via decision.

Stav Economou: Forrest is such a hard fighter to bet against. Forrest is good-to-great at all aspects of his game, along with being a huge light heavyweight, which is making my decision of picking Anderson even harder. But to be honest, the only way I see him winning is by taking a decision win. I can, however, see Silva knocking Forrest out at any point during the fight, so that’s why I’m picking Anderson to win.

Michael Guymon: I am going with Forrest. He is the king of upsets to me. I think he will be too physical for Anderson and takes the fight in the fourth round.

Stephane Vigneault: Silva by decision. It’s not a fight where I have a lot of interest.

James Zikic: Silva by third-round TKO.

Rick Roufus: I’m going with Silva; too many weapons. Forrest is a tough guy, has the heart of a champion [and] won’t quit, but Forrest will keep coming, which is tailor-made for Silva. Silva by KO.

Gabe Ruediger: Anderson by KO or TKO. It’s going to be an entertaining fight because Forrest always comes forward. If you come to fight with Anderson, it’s a good thing, but Anderson is too technically sound for Forrest to win

Thomas Denny: Man, at 185, Anderson is without a doubt number one, but Forrest is a big 205er. That being said, I think Forrest wins and Silva drops back down to 185 and reigns supreme there.

Patrick Cote: I am going with Silva. He has no choice now to put on a big show.

Jamie Varner: Griffin.

Ray Sefo: Forest is looking awesome in training. He would also be the bigger of the two and stronger, I think, so I’m 100 percent going with Forrest and the fact he’s a friend and teammate. I like Anderson. I’ve met him a few times, and he’s a really nice guy also, but he hasn’t looked the best in his last few fights. I think Forest needs to stay sharp because Anderson is coming up in weight, so I’m thinking he’s gonna want to prove to himself and the world at large that he can mix it up with the big boys.

Pros that picked Silva: 13
Pros that picked Griffin: 10
Pros that could not decide: 1