Entering the UFC off the back of a memorable knockout win, 14 fights deep into his Octagon tenure the iconic Anderson Silva finally had the chance to avenge his most recent loss.
Riding a devastatingly dominant run as the undisputed middleweight champion, Brazilian megastar Anderson Silva would lay waste to the best of the best throughout his seven-year stay as the champion of the division.
Turning back stars and former champions at both the middleweight and light heavyweight limits, Curitiba striking ace Silva had beaten a laundry list of stars across both divisions.
And finally nabbing the chance to avenge his most recent loss, Silva grasped the opportunity with both hands in a historic homecoming to Brazil.
Anderson Silva flattened Yushin Okami in sophomore UFC Brazil outing
With the promotion landing in Brazil for the first time since their 1998 debut in the region, matchmakers rightly topped the UFC 134 card with defending middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
And on this day in 2011, Silva would battle it out once more with Japanese contender Yushin Okami — who holds a controversial win over the former.
Competing at Rumble on the Rock 8 — Silva would suffer his fourth career loss in a controversial disqualification defeat to Okami, who he slammed with an upkick whilst the latter was considered in a downed position.
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Removing all doubt six years later, however, Silva would flatten Okami with a sneaky right hand straight during an exchange, before unloading a slew of ground strikes for a blistering knockout win.
A year later, Silva would return to his home country again to take on a late pioneer in another main event showdown.
Anderson Silva’s brutal win over Stephan Bonnar
In his final victory while holding the middleweight title, Silva made his third outing at the light heavyweight limit against The Ultimate Fighter 1 runner-up Stephan Bonnar.
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At his blistering and confident best, Silva elected to invite pressure from Bonnar in the first round of their main event clash.
Even standing statuesque at the Octagon fence, Silva evaded Bonnar’s attempts at offense, before tripping him to the canvas.
Following up with a brutal knee to the body, Silva grounded out the late star with another series of heavy ground strikes.