MMA legend Anderson Silva will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame this summer, the promotion announced.
Silva, who held the middleweight title from 2006 to 2013, will enter the Hall in the “pioneer” category as he becomes the latest fighter to be immortalized amongst his peer group.
“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.”
His 2,547 days atop the middleweight division represents the longest title reign in the promotion’s history and sets an exceptionally high bar for the next wave of MMA hopefuls.
Reactions to the announcement at UFC 286 this past weekend poured in from across the globe and came from multiple generations of fighters, underscoring just how impactful Silva’s career truly was.
Now 47 years old, Silva has effectively retired from the world of mixed martial arts. However, the combat sports legend has recently taken to boxing with high profile bouts against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and former UFC fighter Tito Ortiz Jr.
A native of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Silva wrapped up his MMA career with a 34-11-1 record (17-7-1 in the UFC). After rattling off 16 consecutive wins at middleweight, Silva was never the same following his 2013 contest with Chris Weidman as father time finally caught up with him.
From July 6th 2013 through the end of his time inside the octagon, “Spider” went 1-7-1 before calling it a career in October of 2020. Nevertheless, Silva’s mark of 26 finishes (23 KO’s, 3 submissions) is a testament to his world class striking abilities which cemented his status as one of the greatest of all time.
The former middleweight king joins fellow inductees Jose Aldo and Jens Pulver in a star studded class of 2023. The ceremony is slated to take place this July during international fight week.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner
Photo: Elite Sports Tour. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.