Anderson Silva facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Anderson Silva
Silva in 2012
Born	Anderson da Silva (1975-04-14) 14 April 1975 (age 50) São Paulo, Brazil
Other names	The Spider
Residence	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Nationality	Brazilian American
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st)
Division	Welterweight Middleweight Light Heavyweight
Reach	77+1⁄2 in (197 cm)
Stance	Southpaw
Fighting out of	Curitiba, Brazil
Team	Chute Boxe Academy (1997–2003) Muay Thai Dream Team (2003–2006) Brazilian Top Team (2003–2006) Black House (2007–2013) Team Nogueira Killer Bees Muay Thai College (Founded/Current Team)
Trainer	Boxing: Josuel Distak and Luiz Dorea Jiu-Jitsu: Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira, Sylvio Behring and Ramon Lemos Wrestling: Mark Muñoz Muay Thai: Rafael Cordeiro, Pedro Rizzo, Israel Gomes Panantukan: Dan Inosanto
Rank	Black prajied in Muay Thai 3rd degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Antônio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira 5th dan black belt in Taekwondo Yellow rope in Capoeira
Years active	1997–2020 (MMA) 1998, 2005, 2021–present (Boxing)

Professional boxing record
Total	5
Wins	3
By knockout	2
Losses	2
By knockout	1


Kickboxing record
Total	1
Wins	1
By knockout	1


Mixed martial arts record
Total	46
Wins	34
By knockout	23
By submission	3
By decision	8
Losses	11
By knockout	4
By submission	2
By decision	4
By disqualification	1
No contests	1

Other information
Spouse	Dayane
Children	5

Anderson da Silva (born 14 April 1975) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and professional boxer. He is famous for being a former UFC Middleweight Champion. He holds the record for the longest time as champion in UFC history, which was 2,457 days. This amazing streak started in 2006 and ended in 2013. During that time, he also set a UFC record with 16 wins in a row. Silva left the UFC in November 2020 and later started boxing again.

Many experts, including UFC president Dana White, think Silva is one of the greatest mixed martial artists ever. He was added to the UFC Hall of Fame in July 2023, which is a huge honor!

Background

Anderson Silva was born on 14 April 1975, in São Paulo, Brazil. His family was not rich, so he spent most of his childhood in Curitiba with his aunt and uncle. His uncle was a police officer. Anderson first started learning martial arts as a child, practicing jiu-jitsu with other kids in his neighborhood. As a teenager, he began training in taekwondo, capoeira, and Muay Thai.

Mixed Martial Arts Career

Early Fights (1997–2002)

Silva started his professional fighting career in Brazil in 1997, winning his first two fights. He had his first loss in 2000. After that, he went on an impressive winning streak, winning nine fights in a row. Six of those wins were by submission or TKO (Technical Knockout). In 2001, he fought Shooto champion Hayato Sakurai in Japan. Silva won, becoming the new Shooto Middleweight Champion and the first person to defeat Sakurai.

Pride Fighting Championships and Cage Rage (2002–2006)

In 2002, Silva joined the PRIDE Fighting Championships. He won his first few fights there, including a technical knockout against former UFC champion Carlos Newton. However, he later lost a fight to Daiju Takase. After this loss, Silva felt discouraged and thought about quitting MMA. But his friend Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira convinced him to keep going. Silva then left his old team and joined Nogueira's team, fighting in different events around the world.

He also fought in the Cage Rage promotion in England. In 2004, he won the Cage Rage Middleweight Championship by defeating Lee Murray. He defended his title several times. In 2006, Silva had a fight in Hawaii where he was disqualified for an illegal kick. He said he didn't know the rules properly for that event.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (2006–2020)

Becoming a Champion

In April 2006, the UFC announced they had signed Anderson Silva. He made his UFC debut on 28 June 2006, against Chris Leben. Leben was undefeated in the UFC and confident he would win. But Silva surprised everyone by knocking out Leben with quick, accurate strikes in less than a minute!

After this impressive win, the UFC asked fans who Silva should fight next. Most people wanted him to fight the UFC Middleweight Champion, Rich Franklin. Silva fought Franklin on 14 October 2006. He defeated Franklin by TKO in the first round, becoming the new UFC Middleweight Champion.

Longest Reign as Champion

Silva in 2007

Anderson Silva defended his title many times. In 2007, he successfully defended his title against Nate Marquardt and then again in a rematch against Rich Franklin. On 1 March 2008, he fought Dan Henderson in a special fight where both the UFC and Pride titles were on the line. Silva won by submission in the second round, unifying the titles.

He also fought in the Light Heavyweight division (a heavier weight class) and won by knockout against James Irvin.

Silva continued to defend his Middleweight title. In 2008, he fought Patrick Côté. Côté got injured during the fight, and Silva won by TKO. In 2009, he defeated Thales Leites by decision. This was the first time a UFC opponent took Silva through all five rounds.

Later in 2009, Silva fought at Light Heavyweight again against former champion Forrest Griffin. Silva knocked Griffin down three times in the first round and won by knockout. This fight was considered one of the best of the year.

In 2010, Silva defended his title against Demian Maia. He won by unanimous decision, but some fans and even UFC president Dana White were not happy with his performance because he seemed to avoid fighting at times.

His next big fight was against Chael Sonnen on 7 August 2010. Sonnen dominated Silva for most of the fight, but in the fifth and final round, Silva managed to catch Sonnen in a submission hold and won! This was a huge comeback victory.

Silva then faced Vitor Belfort on 5 February 2011. Silva won with a spectacular front kick to Belfort's jaw, followed by punches, ending the fight in the first round. He also defeated Yushin Okami in 2011, getting revenge for his earlier disqualification loss.

A rematch with Chael Sonnen happened on 7 July 2012. Again, Sonnen dominated the first round, but Silva came back in the second round and won by TKO. He also won a Light Heavyweight fight against Stephan Bonnar in 2012.

Losing the Title and Injury

On 6 July 2013, Silva fought Chris Weidman. Even though Silva was expected to win, he lost by knockout in the second round. This ended his amazing streak as the longest-reigning champion in UFC history.

They had a rematch on 28 December 2013. In the second round, Silva broke his left leg during the fight, and Weidman won by TKO. Silva had surgery and took time to recover.

After Being Champion

After his injury, Silva returned to fighting. On 27 February 2016, he faced Michael Bisping and lost by decision. It was a very close and exciting fight.

Silva also fought Daniel Cormier in a Light Heavyweight fight on short notice in 2016, losing by decision. On 11 February 2017, he won a decision against Derek Brunson.

In 2019, Silva fought future champion Israel Adesanya and lost by decision. He then lost to Jared Cannonier due to a leg injury. His last UFC fight was on 31 October 2020, against Uriah Hall, which he lost by TKO. After this, the UFC released him from his contract.

Boxing Career

Professional Boxing

In March 2021, Anderson Silva started a new chapter in his career by fighting Julio César Chávez Jr. in a boxing match. Silva won the fight by split decision, throwing many more punches than his opponent.

He then faced former UFC champion Tito Ortiz in a boxing match on 11 September 2021. Silva won this fight by knockout in the first round.

On 29 October 2022, Silva fought YouTuber and professional boxer Jake Paul. Silva lost this fight by unanimous decision.

Exhibition Boxing

Silva has also participated in exhibition boxing matches, which are not official professional fights. On 21 May 2022, he fought fellow MMA veteran Bruno Machado. The fight went the full eight rounds, and no winner was declared.

On 15 June 2024, Silva had an exhibition boxing match against Chael Sonnen in Brazil. They had fought twice before in MMA. This boxing match went all five rounds and was declared a draw.

Fighting Style

Anderson Silva is known for his amazing stand-up fighting skills. He is an expert in Muay Thai, boxing, and taekwondo. Many people consider him one of the best strikers in the history of MMA.

Silva's fighting style is very precise, powerful, and he is great at counter-attacking. He can switch between different fighting stances easily. Even though he is famous for his striking, Silva has also used his ground skills to win fights, submitting skilled grapplers like Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen.

Personal Life

Anderson Silva is married to Dayane and they have five children: three sons and two daughters.

Before becoming a professional fighter, Silva worked at McDonald's and as a file clerk. He looks up to Spider-Man, Bruce Lee, Muhammad Ali, and his mother as his biggest heroes. He also loves comic books and comic book heroes.

Silva became a citizen of the United States in July 2019.

He has also acted in movies, including the action drama film Tapped Out (2014) and the crime action film The Invincible Dragon (2019). In 2023, a mini-series about his life and UFC career was released on Paramount+.

Filmography

Television and Film

Year	Title	Role
2009	Never Surrender	Spider
2009	Hell's Chain	King Anaconda
2011	Like Water	Himself
2013	Til Death Do Us Part 2	Andrew Silver
2013	Worms	Hairy (voice)
2014	Tapped Out	Anderson
2014	Monday Nights at Seven	Mateus
2017	Ultimate Beastmaster	Himself/host
2019	The Invincible Dragon	Alexander Sinclair

Championships and Accomplishments

Mixed Martial Arts

Cage Rage Championships
- Cage Rage Middleweight Championship (One time)
- Three successful title defenses
Shooto
- Shooto Middleweight Championship (One time)
Ultimate Fighting Championship
- UFC Hall of Fame (Pioneer wing, Class of 2023)
- UFC Hall of Fame (Fight wing, Class of 2024) (for his fight against Chael Sonnen at UFC 117)
- UFC Middleweight Championship (One time)
  - Ten successful title defenses
    - Most successful title defenses in UFC Middleweight division history (10)
    - Longest title reign in UFC history (2457 days)
  - Most wins in UFC Middleweight title fights (11)
  - Most finishes in UFC title fights (9)
  - Most knockouts in UFC title fights (7)
- Fight of the Night (Five times)
- Knockout of the Night (Seven times)
  - Most "Knockout of the Night" awards in UFC history (7)
- Submission of the Night (Two times)
- Longest win streak in UFC history (16 wins)
- Most main events in UFC history (21)
ESPN.com
- 2011 Knockout of the Year (vs. Vitor Belfort)
Inside MMA
- 2011 KO Kick of the Year Bazzie Award (vs. Vitor Belfort)
MMA Live
- 2010 Fight of the Year (vs. Chael Sonnen)
Sherdog
- 2009 Beatdown of the Year (vs. Forrest Griffin)
- Mixed Martial Arts Hall of Fame
Spike Guys' Choice Awards
- 2008 Most Dangerous Man
Sports Illustrated
- 2008 Fighter of the Year
World MMA Awards
- 2008 Fighter of the Year
- 2010 Fight of the Year (vs. Chael Sonnen)
- 2011 Knockout of the Year (vs. Vitor Belfort)
Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Most Outstanding Fighter (2012)
- MMA Most Valuable Fighter (2012)

Images for kids

Silva in 2007