Rashad Evans vs. Thiago Silva New Main Event for UFC 108
A matchup between light heavyweight contenders Rashad Evans and Thiago Silva will headline UFC 108 on January 2 in Las Vegas, the UFC today announced.
Heavyweight contenders Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cain Velasquez were to meet in the card’s main event, which was announced just last week, but Nogueira was forced to withdraw from the bout due to a severe staph infection in his left elbow, the same injury suffered prior to his matchup with Frank Mir at UFC 92 last December.
Following initial treatment in his native Brazil, Nogueria is currently receiving medical care in San Diego and will require treatment for at least three weeks.
With Nogueira sidelined, Velasquez is not expected to fight at UFC 108 and may instead take on Shane Carwin in February or March with an interim title potentially on the line as title-holder Brock Lesnar is out indefinitely with an undisclosed illness.
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Pictured: Rashad Evans
Tags: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Cain Velasquez, Rashad Evans, Thiago Silva
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would make this match number 1 contender for LHW belt after Shogun rematch.
I think you’re right bluebrazil,
“sugar” better resort back to his wrestling base if he doesn’t want to end up like his boy jardine. Rashad maybe faster then thiago but thiago’s stand up is a bit more seasoned and thiago has more power in his hands. IMhO the only way rashad wins this fight is by wrestling his way to a decision. He doesn’t have enough power in his hands to knock silva out unless he super winds up and throws his right with all he’s got(like he did against lidell) and thiago somehow manages to get hit by it. On the ground, silva is a bjj black belt and has the sickest mount @ lhw. It will be hard for “sugar” to really get thiago in a dangerous position.
Thiago’s stand up is decent and not by any means “really good” BUT he just knocked jardine out with a left hook, something rashad can’t do to thiago. And like i said before, thiago’s grappling isn’t bad either and on the ground he’s bad ass so because of that and because thiago’s my boy i’m going with thiago by ktfo.
Too many guys getting injured or sick dude. It’s crazy
YES! Like Matt Brown I have Thiago winning by MURDER!
Wow, like 6 or 7 months ago we had plenty of depth in 205 division. But these two guys have a combined record of 27-2-1. Those two loses are both to the current champion. These guys are definetly at the top. But Rashads last fight was him losing the belt… giving him a 1 fight win streak. Thiago is coming off a loss to the current champ followed by a win over Jardine which would give him a 2 fight win streak if he wins. i think they are going to need tleast another fight before they get a title shot, ecspecially with lyoto out for….what… 5 more months.
RAMPAGE PLEASE COME BACK!!!!!
I think a lot of us would like Rampage Jackson back in the gym and training for a UFC fight ASAP, but until such time that he fully addresses his emotional, mental, physical, legal, and financial issues, it’s probably better for all concerned if he stays home and takes care of himeself and his children…
i got no problem with this here, should be a great matchup with lots of fireworks.. im sure both fighters really want to make a statement on their way to the title..
better be a free card
injury is really plaguing UFC.. that means another crappy event for 108
In all seriousness……..it is time to bring the WEC fighters over to make these cards worth watching! I will not pay to see Rashard vs. Thiago. DANA…….start buying some more talent or start getting the WEC involved.
This card officially sucks. Yeah, it will be a good fight, but does anybody even care? 108 was supposed to be the best card of the year, but I think it lacks that “Wrestlemania” flavor. Horrible main event.
The best card of 2010? interesting concept…. plus the Wreslemania thing what does that have to do with MMA?
Nothing. He’s just crying
like a little girlbecause he can. Probably said 105 was going to suck, right up until he watched it.Easy, dbiz. -Justin H
I think what he meant by the wrestlemania comment was just a big blockbuster event.
silva by ko!
I do enjoy when people get sooo worked up about a card, on how it sucks or there is no way I’m paying for this, so be it if everyone wishes to complain about good matchups and excellent MMA than so be it, similar to if there isn’t a title on the line that card must suck how dare the UFC not make their champions fight every month…. but hey UFC 102 was just awful and UFC 104 had no good fights, because everyone was damn sure that both those cards sucked, even on paper.
I think this is a good fight, and alot of people want to see it, how good can Thiago be, should Shad drop down in weight if he gets destroyed, can Thiago sprawl often enough to not get taken down, alot plays into this fight, o and ofcourse redemption for Shad’s friend Jardine.
Rashad will play the ‘elusive card’ for the first round and tire out Silva, and probably finish him before the end of the second round. I still believe Thiago Silva to be over rated, and a knock-out of Keith Jardine, does not a contender make ye. Evans is on a different level than his chum, Jardine, and Silva has yet to beat anyone on this level, as of yet.
Does anybody remember back in the early years they didn’t have ppv every month let alone a title fight those where few and far between. All these people complaing now that these cards suck that there is nbo title fights or gaint names to headline, yet some of these “fans” say they have been watching it from the beginning and loved it then. So what has between now and besides that now the shows and fights are a all-round better product. I watch cuz I love this sport and don’t want to miss a potential fight of the year canidate reguardless of who the fighters are.
Sorry about this little rant
I’d say for the folks that are unhappy with this card, they should simply not buy it, or watch it in the unlikely event that it’s a free-per-view on SpikeTV.
I mean clearly due to injuries and illness this isn’t the strongest PPV of the year, but some things are simply out of Dana White’s control, contrary to what even HE thinks.
Personally, I think Evans-Silva is a decent fight, and its not like the rest of the 108 card $ucks out loud or anything like that. And although I’m not 100% convinced that the winner of this fight deserves a title shot, but its hard to argue against it when you consider how Mauricio Rua was irregularly rushed to the front of the 205 contenders line because so many other top 205ers were otherwise engaged.
Also, its not like Dana doesn’t know the UFC is currently under some sort of hex or jinx, so I imagine that at some point he’ll “make it up to the fans” with stacked cards and eye-popping fights in 2010.
I’ve been a fan of this sport, and a steady customer of the UFC, for a lot of years.
In which time Dana has to a certain extent earned my trust, and my money, by doing his level best to sign the best talent available and the hottest fights possible, so I’m fine giving him a pass or two for a sh!t-awful season of TUF and a somewhat lackluster card in 108…
Jcohl
Well said
Man…. it is a good match but a so so card… they should sign dan henderson and have him fight victor belfort and the winner fight anderson silva to show who is the number one contender in my opinion….
I honestly think that Dana tried his level best to sign Hendo, but IMO there might be some stepped-on toes mindset on Hendo’s part about his “now you see it, now you don’t” title shot against Anderson Silva after putting Bisping down for his naptime.
I’m thinking that Hendo figured that Dana was going to have to pay, both literally and figuratively, to make it up to him for swerving Hendo and publicly disrespecting him during the whole Soares/Silva/Hendo/Marquardt/Dana disaster.
Hendo overplayed his hand, overestimated his personal relationship with Dana as well as his relative worth to the UFC, and until something gives, Hendo will be sitting at home in Temecula or wherever training fighters and watching MMA on his flatscreen, from the corner of one of his fighters, or from a cageside seat.
That is, unless he shows up at some Strikeforce event and announces he’s signed with the org and will be challanging both Shields and Mousasi in 2010 for their gold…
SNOOOOOZER… I’d rather watch Rampage or Henderson againts Rashad…Staurday’s card was a bore-fest too…
Too bad neither Rampage nor Henderson are going to be fighting for the UFC anytime soon.
As far as this past Saturday goes, aside from the main event, I thought it was a pretty entertaining card. Even the main was entertaining to me, because it had the suspense of “Is Randy going to get the takedown? Or is Vera going to land a solid enough shot before Randy clinches to finish it?” But I understand that not everyone appreciates the clinch work and chess match that fight was.
Dont worry Justin you cant please everyone.
As far as this card goes, it is a little weak for the year end show espeacially comparing it to last years.
As for the 205 picture. I would keep an eye on Tito if he beats Forrest convincingly. Plus Randy is one win away from a title shot. The guy just fought twice in 3 months so Id suspect he would like a little time off. When he returns Dont be surprised to see him fight the winner of Silva/Evans or even a rematch with Tito. With the fight between Machida/Rua 2 confirmed but not booked for at leats a 3-5 months its safe to say the UFC has some time to build up another 205 contender. There is Rampage if he returns, Tito, Jardine(jk), Thiago, Randy, possibly even Hendo if Dana kisses his a$$ enough to get him back. Not to mentiona Anderson who is rounding out his contract. Nobody though IMO deserves a shot at the belt with one more win. Unless Rampage comes back and beats the Tito/Forrest winner or the Silav/Evans winner.
This is why I love it when there is legitmate competition for the UFC. I really enjoyed the Fedor vs Brett Rogers fight a few weeks ago! I would have paid to see that fight…Fortuantely, as all “true” MMA “fans” should know, it was FREE on CBS. Competition is a great thing! Those people who are complaining about the lack of depth/excitement in some of these upcoming UFC bouts are justified. Due to unforeseen cirucumstances, many of the UFC’s most anticipted matchups have been postponed or cancelled lately…i.e. Lesnar’s illness, Rampage decides to quit and go into the movie busines etc.