Anderson Silva to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame
Anderson Silva, the longtime former UFC middleweight champion, gets his rightful place in the UFC Hall of Fame this year.
The UFC Hall of Fame class of 2023 was already a loaded one with just two inductees. And now, a third pioneer of Mixed Martial Arts will be with them, as legendary middleweight champion Anderson Silva will be inducted. The UFC officially made the announcement during the UFC 286 pay-per-view broadcast.
"Anderson Silva is one of the greatest athletes of all time," UFC President Dana White said in a statement. "Anderson’s 16-fight winning streak in the UFC, 10 successful title defenses and almost seven years as middleweight champion were one of the most remarkable things we’ve ever seen in professional sports. He was an absolute artist inside the Octagon, and it will be an honor to induct him into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer."
Silva is commonly referred to as one of the greatest to ever compete in MMA, let alone the UFC, and is commonly cited as arguably the best middleweight fighter of all-time.
Silva is best known for a 17-fight win streak he went on between 2006 and 2013, all but the first of which was in the UFC. His 16-fight win streak in the Octagon and his title reign of 2,457 days still stand as the longest in UFC history to this day. In addition, he holds the UFC records for most UFC middleweight title fights (and wins) and the most finishes, knockdowns and knockouts in UFC title fight history.
His 10 consecutive title defenses was a record that stood until broken by Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson in 2017.
Anderson Silva announced as the third inductee into the UFC Hall of Fame class of 2023
After a successful UFC debut against Chris Leben in June 2006, Silva defeated Rich Franklin at UFC 64 to win the UFC middleweight championship. He'd defend the title successfully 10 times against the likes of Nate Marquardt, Dan Henderson, Chael Sonnen and Vitor Belfort. This win streak also saw Silva score wins over James Irvin, Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar.
Silva's run with the belt ended in one of the biggest upsets in MMA history, when he was knocked out by Chris Weidman at UFC 162. Things weren't the same for Silva, whose MMA career ended with a 1-7 (1 NC) run between 2013 and 2020.
Silva briefly revitalized his combat sports career in 2021 and 2022 with three professional boxing fights (he also had one in 1998 and one in 2005). Silva defeated Julio Caesar Chavez Jr. and Tito Ortiz before losing to Jake Paul.
Prior to his run in the UFC, Silva was 17-4 while competing for promotions like PRIDE and Cage Rage.
Silva will be joined in induction by Jose Aldo and Jens Pulver.
The 2023 induction ceremony will take place this summer during International Fight Week July 3-9.
Next. UFC weight classes in order. dark