The former UFC middleweight champion defeated Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. via a split decision
Anderson Silva is undoubtedly one of the greatest UFC and MMA fighters of all time, with an unbeaten record of 34-11-0, however, his boxing career never quite got off the ground.
Having lost on his debut in 1998, he didn’t get in the boxing ring again until 2005: a fight which he won, in fact, and clearly left his feeling as though there was unfinished business in that arena. Nevertheless, he stunned fight fans on his return to boxing, beating veteran Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. by a split decision.
https://twitter.com/FiteTV/status/1406471236750823427?s=20
The scorecards read, 77-75, 75-77 and 77-75, with two of the judges scoring in favour of Silva. The Brazilian is 46 but it certainly didn’t show: he moved around the canvas with much more ease than his opponent, this being Chavez’s 60th fight – that did show, as the Mexican tired quickly.
In truth, many fans felt as though the decision should have been unanimous, as Silva not only looked more than up to scratch but dominated the second half of the fight, sensing Chavez’s stamina waning and picking but the pace and the power.
Vintage. Anderson. Silva.
In his return to the boxing ring, The Spider broke out some of the moves that made him an MMA legend 🕷 (via @FiteTV) pic.twitter.com/crZwnUYMFj
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 20, 2021
More importantly, it was the confidence that still shone through at this age, even without much experience in this discipline, that was a joy to watch. I guess it’s that kind of backing yourself that leads to 16 consecutive wins and defending his title 10 times.
He held the 185-pound title from 2006 to 2012 but looks to show little sign of stopping in the near future, as he now has the positive boxing record he has been chasing. You only need to watch this uppercut to see how much he still has left in the tank.
.@SpiderAnderson landing a BEAUTIFUL uppercut in round 4 on Chavez Jr.
How do you have it scored?#TributeToTheKings
PPV: https://t.co/ZUiLgsTmuO pic.twitter.com/wWYQaIVPO7
— TrillerTV (@FiteTV) June 20, 2021
