Las Vegas, Nevada - When Chael Sonnen challenged Anderson Silva for the UFC® middleweight title on August 7, 2010 at UFC 117, he started the fight as a 4-1 underdog. He is the underdog once again for Saturday's eagerly-awaited UFC 148 rematch, but the odds this time are significantly closer due to Sonnen's incredible success in the first fight.
Chael Sonnen said: "To say this guy is superior to me is a joke. Look at the statistics from the first fight. I out-landed him by over 200 punches, I took him down at will, I passed his guard at will and I beat him on the feet too."
Sonnen's boasts are supported by hard data. According to FightMetric, the challenger landed 252 more strikes than Silva, with a total of 320 punches, kicks, elbows and knees finding the mark; Sonnen completed three takedowns in the fight, and kept Silva on his back for a combined 20 minutes of the fight - twice as much as "The Spider" had been on his back in his entire UFC career; Sonnen passed Silva's guard into side-control six times and swept him as well; Sonnen also out-struck Silva during the three minutes the fight was contested standing up.
However, the champion said the only statistic that really counts is who won the fight.
Anderson Silva said: "He took me down, he is good at wrestling. Okay. Good. But I punch him in the face 'BAP! BAP! BAP! BOOM!' and that is it. I win. That's it. No different from the first fight on Saturday. I win!"
For more information or current fight news, visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship®
Universally recognized for its action-packed, can't-miss events that have sold out some of the biggest arenas and stadiums across the globe, the UFC® is the world's premier mixed martial arts organization. Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, headquartered in Las Vegas and with offices in London, Toronto and Beijing, UFC produces more than 30 liveevents annually and is the largest Pay-Per-View event provider in the world. In 2011, the UFC burst into the mainstream with a landmark seven-year broadcast agreement with FOX Sports Media Group. The agreement includes four live events broadcast on the FOX network annually, with additional fight cards and thousands of hours of programming broadcast on FOX properties FX and FUEL TV. This includes the longest-running sports reality show on television, The Ultimate Fighter®, which now air on FX in an exciting new live format.
In addition to its reach on FOX, UFC programming is broadcast in over 149 countries and territories, to nearly one billion homes worldwide, in 20 different languages. UFC content is also distributed commercially in the United States to bars and restaurants through Joe Hand Promotions and in English throughout Canada via Premium Sports BroadcastingInc. and in Quebec through Interbox. The UFC also connects with tens of millions of fans through its website, UFC.com, as well as social media sites Facebook and Twitter. UFC President Dana White is considered one of the most accessible and followed executives in sports, with over two million followers on Twitter. Ancillary UFC businesses include best-selling DVDs, an internationally distributed magazine, the best-selling UFC Undisputed® video game franchise distributed byTHQ, UFC GYM®, UFC Fight Club affinity program, UFC Fan Expo® festivals, branded apparel and trading cards.
